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Elements fault lanka but shield LTTE fund raisers
Monday, 05 September 2011 00:00
Why have they no concern for the truth, asks President Rajapaksa
By Sandun A. Jayasekera
President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday said that many countries, groups and organizations which faulted Sri Lanka today were harbouring those who funded terrorism in Sri Lanka and still let raise funds for this brutal cause. He said they were also glad to give safe haven to the very theoreticians of terror in this country.
Delivering the keynote address at the inauguration of the three day ‘Rotary South Asia Conference on Development and Co-operation’ in Colombo, President Rajapaksa charged that Sri Lanka was now being warned that the same terrorist group who bled this country for nearly 30 years and spread terrorism to the entire world was rapidly raising funds.
“It is regretted that the very individuals and institutions that point their fingers at us for the defeat of terrorism seem to be unaware of the truth about our prolonged battle against terrorism and the very nature of those terrorists. Have they no concern for the truth about Sri Lanka’s agony and the humanitarian actions that under-scored our battle against terrorism? Have they no interest in the truth?” President Rajapaksa asked.
“We now stand proud as a nation that has eradicated terrorism from our country. In doing so, we have made South Asia too, safer from terrorism,” he said.
“We have achieved this with much less of the assets and none of the deceit and duplicity of those who have been waging a War on Terror for more than a decade, those with much more economic and fire power than we had and many more allies than we ever had, but are still caught up in the killing fields made by un-manned drones and other lethal devices that attack civilians too,” President Rajapaksa emphasized.
“We now seek to consolidate the peace we have won so hard and to bring much needed relief to civilians, to parents, children and elders who were forced to carry arms for terrorists, relief to mothers whose children were made child soldiers, to women who were made to be suicide bombers and rehabilitation to those who fought with the forces of terror.“Yet, there are loud voices raised against us on accountability. To most of these voices, accountability is only a verbal apology for civilian deaths that are dismissed as collateral damage in heavy bombings. Are their actions fair by all concerned?” President Rajapaksa questioned.
“The world is today engulfed in one crisis after another. Whole regions and continents suffer the effects of unregulated and wasteful expenditure with unacceptable levels of national debt pushing more societies into costly bail outs. At such a critical time for the world economy, Rotary stands out as an organization with the ultimate aim of service to society through your enterprise. You stand ready to serve the community and society from your prudent and far-sighted business practices,’.
“The message of Rotary is one that has special significance in Sri Lanka. From the time the first Rotary Club was established, the contributions made by Rotary to our society are significant. Not only has Rotary done so much in so many fields of activity, more importantly, it has brought out the best among our business community and professionals. This was so during the days of British Rule and ever since we won our Freedom and Independence”.
“We have now been able to resettle more than 280,000 of the Internally Displaced by last month; that is about 90 percent, which is a record for any programme of relief and resettlement anywhere in the world.”
We now stand proud as a nation that has eradicated terrorism from our country. In doing so, we have made South Asia too, safer from terrorism. We have achieved this with much less of the assets, and none of the deceit and duplicity of those who have been waging a War on Terror for more than a decade; those with much more economic and fire power than we had and many more allies than we ever had, but are still caught up in the killing fields made by un-manned drones and other lethal devices that attack civilians, too.”This fact is accepted by international bodies engaged in humanitarian relief for refugees, and all who are interested in the truth. Therefore I am compelled to ask the next ethical question. Does distorting facts about our humanitarian operation help to build goodwill and better friendship?” he asked.
Sri Lanka is now in the process of Reconciliation and Reconstruction. We are diverting all our energies to put the tragic years of terror well behind us. We are building a new society, learning from the lessons of the past, and moving towards the promise of future success. We have already shown the world that terrorism can be defeated. That it can be done with a commitment to the humanitarian traditions that are part of our region’s culture and heritage.Our commitment to human rights is second to none, and with such commitment we seek to transform our society to one of peace, pluralism and equality. It is a society where the great spirit of Service above Self, that is the guiding motto of Rotary, will have much relevance. Will this not be beneficial to all concerned?
Rotary International Past President and Conference Chairman Rajandra K. Saboo made the welcome address while Rotary International Past President K. R. Ravindran delivered the vote of thanks.