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| Sunday, 26 September 2004 |
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Past generations blamed for ethnic discord by Elmo Leonard The past generations must take the blame for the prevalent ethnic disharmony in the country, Minister of Environment and Natural Resources, A. H. M. Fowzie, said last week. This discord had split the country and retarded its progress. It had also cast a gloom on the future of youth, Minister Fowzie said at the awards ceremony for the `Outstanding Young Persons of the Year', organised by the Junior Chamber International, Sri Lanka (JCI). "Such a contest gives the youth of the country a chance to be future leaders and strive towards excellence in their fields", Minister Fowzie said. Among the winners for 2004, was Sajith Premadasa, the son of former President R. Permadasa, who was a worthy winner, considering the work he had done in the deep south of the island, towards poverty alleviation. Fowzie said that although former President Premadasa and he belonged to opposing political parties, he had to acknowledge that the late president had lived and died close to the people and had the ability to get the people to rally round him. Sajith had not wanted to claim any political privileges for himself, but instead, had opted to prove his mettle, choosing the harsh Hambantota district as his constituency. "The youth of the nation are dynamic and have new technology to back them in their endeavours", Minister Fowzie said. The year 2004 winners were: Salindu Watapaluwa (business accomplishment), Samantha Pathiratne (entrepreneurial accomplishment), Sajith Premadasa (political, legal and public administration), Nishan Peires (contribution to arts), Kingsley Ratnayake (contribution to media), Sanjeewa Jayawardena (contribution to human rights), Anandan Gulasingham (human and voluntary services), Ms Surakshana Dias, A. Abeygunawardena (personal improvement and accomplishment). |
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