'All communities now live in unity and harmony'

By Ananda KANNANGARA

All Sri Lankans, irrespective of caste, creed, religion or ethnicity celebrated the third anniversary of the dawn of peace on May 18. It was the day on which Sri Lanka's Armed Forces eliminated the terrorists completely, ushering in peace to the country.

Ven. Moneragala Pannalankara Thera	Mohan Sharma kurukkal

Terrorism which was unleashed in the eighties had destroyed not only valuable lives, but also millions of rupees worth of properties.

The Sunday Observer met several Buddhist, Christian and other religious dignitaries to seek their views on the victory.

All of them thanked the Armed Forces for the sacrifice they made until the last moment of May 19, 2009 to crush the LTTE and bring a lasting solution to the national issue. Ven. Moneragala Pannalankara Thera who spoke on behalf of Most Ven. Banagala Upatissa Thera thanked the Government and the members of three Armed Forces for bringing the 30-year conflict to an end and predicted that there will be no war in this land again.

"We were able to end the battle against terrorism in May three years ago. The month of May is a significant month for the Buddhists in the country due to the Vesak festival. Buddhists in the country celebrate the Birth, Enlightenment and the Passing Away of the Buddha on the Vesak Full Moon Poya Day which also falls in May.

"As there is peace in the country, Sri Lankans now have to work for the betterment of the country and its people, thinking that all people belong to one mother.

Therefore, we should live in peace and harmony."

Ven. Rajakeeya Panditha Wewahamanduwe Vacissara Thera thanked the Sri Lankan Armed Forces and the Police for stopping the war and bringing peace.

He said the ending of the conflict three years ago strengthened amity among communities irrespective of their ethnicity.

"Unlike during the past 30 years, now all major communities in the country, the Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims live together and work in harmony and unity," he said.

He said many Tamil people seek character certificates from him for various purposes.

He said he travelled to Jaffna recently and saw a vast difference. A few politicians are still making various remarks on current development activities.

"I request the authorities to speed up development activities in the Northern District as people in Jaffna need more and more development activities," he said.

Director for the Archdiocesan Apostolate, Rev. Fr. Jude Bernard Rodrigo wants the Government to carry out the proposals in the LLRC report for the benefit of all people in the country.

While thanking the Armed Forces for bringing peace to the country, Rev. Fr. Rodrigo wants the Government to carry out more development activities in the North as it is immensely needed at this juncture.

He said media freedom is important to a country and authorities should maintain it.

He said: "Sri Lankan people are happy as there is no war in the country, but we should focus attention on the high cost-of-living in the country.

The Chief Kurukkal Priest of the Sri Kandasamy Kovil, Panadura, K.L.M. Mohan Sharma appreciated the services rendered by the Sri Lankan Armed Forces to bring everlasting peace to the country after three decades and said that after the 1983 riots, the administration of the Kovil was carried out by Edmond Silva, a Sinhalese.

He said with the dawn of peace in May 2009, the administration of the Hindu Kovil was handed over to the previous management.

"Now our Swamis and priests are engaged in the regular poojas and other religious activities without any obstacle and I should thank the Government and President Mahinda Rajapaksa for bringing everlasting peace to the country," he said.

He said now no one is talking about the war and people of all communities live in unity.

Chief Priest Sharma also mentioned President Rajapaksa's historic statement after the dawn of peace three years ago that although various communities live in the country, they belong to two sections.

"They are the people who betray the country and the people who love the country." The Kurukkal said these words should be written in golden letters as no leader in the country had made such an encouraging statement which strengthened all communities.

"I should thank the President for making such an inspiring statement," he said.

He further said with everlasting peace, communities in all parts of the country, irrespective of their caste, creed or religion are now living in unity and harmony like the children of one nation.