Defence Seminar 2014: Focus on development
By Dhaneshi Yatawara
The stage has been set for Defence Seminar 2014 which is to be held
from August 18-20 in Colombo. It is being organised by the Sri Lanka
Army.
Defence Seminar 2013: Soldiers ready to welcome delegates |
Over 350 delegates including 133 foreign delegates from 43 countries
are expected to be partners in this learning experience.
Themed 'Sri Lanka: Challenges to a rising nation' the Defence Seminar
2014 hopes to shift focus towards development and prosperity.
According to the chief coordinator of the event Brigadier Ralph
Nugera, who is also the Director, Training of the Army, the focus of
this year's seminar will be on the strategic path of rising up which
nations adapt after ending terrorism and lessons in relation to Sri
Lanka.
There are many other symposia and seminars organised by different
armies within our region and by countries that Sri Lanka closely
associates with. Yet the unique experience of our country gives
importance to the event.
“It will be a learning and interactive experience on areas of
national well-being and prosperity along with its related challenges and
concerns.
It would also broaden the scope of the forum to include candid views
of regional and global partners on the rise of the country following the
restoration of peace,” said Brigadier Nugera.
Common ground
He said that today, many armies face challenges in coping with new
roles in supporting governments in the development of the nation going
beyond the security concern.
From left: Secretary, Ministry of Defence and Urban Development
Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Minister G. L. Peiris and Army Commander Lt.
Gen. Daya Ratnayake at the 2013 Defence Seminar. |
“All such institutes are finding ways and means to cope with these
challenges as development demands get more complex over time. So there
is a common ground for all to discuss and exchanging knowledge and
experience,” he added.
The Defence Seminar, which will be held for the fourth year, brings
forward issues ranging from defeat of terrorism and post-terrorism
recovery to national stability and its effects on regional security.
“This is an opportunity to gain experience to strengthen national
security and build up strategies to face challenges like terrorism
without any casualties,” he added.
The Defence Seminar has now grown into an internationally accepted
forum for interaction on matters of national, regional and international
security.
It has become one of the annual attractions for the country. A
significant number of hotel rooms of various ratings get booked at least
for a week. The seminar progresses through carefully sequenced sessions
comprising presentations and panel discussions designed to optimise
discourse and learning on a range of topics relevant to national
development, prosperity and security in a regional and global context.
The intention is to use Sri Lanka’s experience as a means to pursue
productive engagement.
Diversity
Brigadier Ralph Nugera |
This will not be an event for military personnel alone. Some of the
most eminent personalities and intellectuals including politicians,
senior government officials, scholars and security experts will
participate diversifying it further.
The core objective of the seminar is to use Sri Lanka’s rise after
the end of terrorism as the focal point to generate discussion, fuse
learning, exchange ideas, share knowledge and experiences and interact
on matters corresponding to the theme.
The first seminar organized in 2010 on the theme “Defeating
terrorism; the Sri Lankan experience' aimed at sharing the Sri Lankan
experience and the lessons learnt in fighting terrorism for over three
decades. Though there was a heavy enthusiasm from armies of different
countries, the seminar attended by over 94 delegates from 41 countries
comprised a diversity of professionals.
Subsequently inspired by the overwhelming response to Defence Seminar
2011, Defence Seminar 2012 under the theme, “towards lasting peace and
stability” extended the discourse to the post terrorism experience of
the nation. This forum took to the region and the world, Sri Lanka’s
post-terrorism efforts based on the 5 R concept of reconstruction,
resettlement, rehabilitation, reintegration and reconciliation. The
forum provided the environment for learning and sharing of experience
and knowledge through the candid exchange of ideas.
Defence Seminar 2013 under the theme 'Post-terrorism Sri Lanka;
challenges and regional stability' expanded the discussion from national
peace to the stability of the region. It was attended by a 113 delegates
from 44 countries.
This year the seminar would discuss the shifting from threat based
defence policy to ability based defence policy seeking solutions to
common problems arising from issues of national development and
survival. The organisers hope that as happened in past years that
Defence Seminar 2014 would promote intellectual connectivity in areas of
mutual interest which would add to long-term professional relationships
among nations. |