Sri Lankans celebrate 'Dawn of Peace'

LOS ANGELES: "We celebrate the dawn of peace in Sri Lanka as the foundation of development, which was made possible with the defeat of separatist terrorism in our motherland" declared Ananda Wickramasinghe, the Consul General (CG) of Sri Lanka in Los Angeles.

The statement was made at the celebration "Dawn of Peace" organized by the Sri Lankan Consulate office along with the community organizations in and around Los Angeles to celebrate the birth of a new era, sans terrorism in Sri Lanka.

The event was held on Saturday June 6 starting at 3 pm. Children of the Sri Lankan expatriate community took center stage in many items of the celebration. At the start of the event, the national anthems of Sri Lanka and America were sung by young Shanya Makalanda. Representing all ethnic groups in Sri Lanka (Sinhalese, Tamil, Muslim, Malay and Burgher), children Nadun Silva, Ruzlee Manthra and Shannon Dennis, from the expatriate community participated in lighting the traditional oil lamp. They released white balloons together, signifying the dawn of peace.

A minute of silence was observed to pay homage to the brave soldiers who paid the supreme sacrifice in defending the motherland. Conducting Buddhist ceremonies, the Maha Sangha from temples around Los Angeles, led by Venerable Ahangama Dharmarama chanted "pirith" to bless the motherland. Venerable Ambalanthota Kolitha of the Sarathchandra Buddhist Meditation Center in North Hollywood, CA, mentioned that President of Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajapaksha, is a person who says what he does and does what he says.

"With such leaders we could expect a prosperous and a truly unified nation in the future", concluded the venerable monk.

The Catholic prayers were conducted by Rev. Father Alexi Smith who briefly quoted Cardinal Mahoney's message after defeat of terrorism in Sri Lanka; that the nation should progress forward healing the wounds of the past.

The Muslim prayers were conducted by Ajward Shariz. In his address Ajward mentioned, "After many years of strife, we have just sighted the light of opportunity in Sri Lanka. The opportunity to choose hope, over fear and unity of purpose, over conflict and discord.

If there was ever a time in the history of Sri Lanka to augment the change; for change of hope, unity, advancement and progress, my dear respected brothers of Sri Lanka, this is the time... the opportunity to embark on a journey, proclaim an end to petty grievances and divisive politics and recriminations and worn out dogmas that far too long have strangled a nation's prosperity. Today, I say to you, we face a different challenge. Challenge which is daunting, but it can be diffused, of us being one race, one cast one creed. Just be Sri Lankans.

Consul General addressing the gathering said, "Today, we salute the military and the political leadership of our motherland for bravely staging a victorious stand to ward off a grave terrorist campaign of the highest order. This celebration makes us feel special because one of the key architects of the victory over terrorism was Gotabhaya Rajapakshe who lived with us in LA.

It is our responsibility to attend to the problems of families of soldiers who sacrificed their lives and limbs for a united Lanka. I am very glad to note that in our midst there are organizations such as the 'Ranaviru Foundation" and "The Sri Lankan Patriots" who have a range of projects aimed to help our fallen heroes and their families."

Jayam Ratnam, president of the Sri Lanka America Association, the oldest Sri Lankan community organization in southern California mentioned, 'now that the menace of terrorism has been halted we all should take part in the development process of our motherland.

Dr. Mohan Kumararathne, President of the "Ranaviru Foundation USA", which was instrumental in raising funds in excess of $100,000 for a housing project dedicated to the families of disabled soldiers in Sri Lanka sometime back mentioned that a formidable obstacle against development had been surpassed.

Ven Aparakke Punnyasiri, co secretary of "Sri Lankan Patriots" organization paid tribute to the political and military leadership for being able to lay the foundation for a united and prosperous Lanka. "Our organization carried out many campaigns for the cause and is ready to continue same in the future. Yet what we should not fail to observe is that though terrorism has been dealt a deathblow, seeds of separatism still exist. We should be vigilant of such, especially in the light of constitutional amendments that are to be proposed for a permanent solution."

Led by Sri Lankan children's song and dance items, the cultural event started after the formal event, giving prominence to the younger expatriate generation. These performances commenced with the Sinhala songs sung to the lilting music provided by the 'Next Generation', the kids' band from Gardena, CA. Dilukshi Fernando, Naomi Amarasekera, Rukshan Fernando, Yohan Peiris, Thanushka Fernando and Chammi Amarasekara performed here.

Vinayani Jayasinghe sang a Sinhala song 'Mata Maeni Wage' perfectly and also presented a delightful Bharatha natyam item. Rosie Maddock, grand daughter of Ananda Niyarepola and Kiara and Siara Gunawardena, two little daughters of Nalaka and Ioma Gunewardena,  presented colorful dance items to the popular Sri Lankan songs 'Wesak Kekulu' and 'Koho, Koho'.

Experienced and accomplished Sri Lankan artists Supun de Silva, Bhadraji Jayatilleka, Anoma Rasaputhra, Ramani Weerasinghe entertained the gathering with many popular songs while the song, 'We are Sri Lankans', composed for this special occasion by Rukshan Perera of Golden Chimes fame was sung by all  the artists collectively with Rukshan. Rhythm Company, the well-known musical band of Sri Lankans in Los Angeles, provided music and also took part in singing.

A large number of Sri Lankans gathered here enjoyed the Dawn of Peace celebrations. The speeches of the formal event directed the audience to ponder on decisive and important aspects in Sri Lanka and its future.

They also enjoyed 'Kiri Bath' and light snacks provided by Wadiya Restaurant, many other organizations and Sri Lankan well wishers. In organizing this event, 'Sri Lankan Patriots' organization in Los Angeles helped Sri Lankan consulate as requested by the Consul General Ananda Wickramasinghe.

-India Post News Service