Distinguished Members of the Diplomatic Corps
Members of the Judiciary
Secretaries
Commanders of the Armed Forces and the IGP
Officers of the Police and Public Service
Dear Mothers, Fathers and Children
Friends
On this proud day of our independence
I stand before you as the Head of State with a great
feeling of contentment. I derive this contentment through
the belief that I have given you leadership for over
a period of one year, to safeguard our national dignity,
from a time it had reached the lowest ebb. It is the
trumpet call of conscience that I have fulfilled my
duties true to my heart and with loyalty to my motherland,
which gives me the contentment and courage necessary
to face all challenges on behalf of my country.
My address to you on this proud occasion
is not in the traditional mode of an Independence Day
speech. I state with great humility that this address
has a sense of determination and strong resolve.
You will recall a very special appeal
I made to you to you on the last Independence Day Celebrations.
It was that we should stand united to achieve the noble
objectives of the Sri Lankan nation.
Our Government took all efforts to
arrive at a common understanding among all political
parties and other forces. We strived to establish a
political order that would work towards the common good
of the country, shedding all differences. If you look
around with honesty, you will observe the good
omens of the new political order that is emerging.
On this historic occasion, I again
appeal to all democratic forces to place the motherland
before one's family, race, religion or political party
in the national agenda. From this platform, I also wish
to make this appeal to the Tamil National Alliance represented
in Parliament, who have so far not entered into dialogue
or understanding with us. It is only by joining with
us that the innocent Tamil people of the North can be
liberated from terrorist intimidation and the misdeeds
of violence; and the North could be
emancipated. If you are anguished in fear and anxiety;
and lack in human freedom, however much democratic the
political ideology you claim to follow, I must state
in all honesty that none of you are free men.
I request you to look back for a
moment at the journey we have traversed to this day,
from the time when the honour and dignity of Sri Lanka
had declined to the extreme depths, and the western
world pointed to Sri Lankan society as the epitome of
disgrace.
In the period between the 58th anniversary
of independence and today as we celebrate its 59th anniversary,
we have sacrificed much for peace, which is the foremost
national need. You are aware that we did not give into
any provocation until the closure of the Mavil Aru anicut,
violating the
fundamental rights of more than 50,000 people. Even
when the terrorists left the negotiation table we remained
there with humility. Was this through cowardice? No!
Venerable Sirs. That is how we demonstrated our commitment
to peace.
It is this massive commitment to
peace that led our Security Forces to liberate the innocent
Tamil people who were taken hostage and used as a human
shield by the terrorists, to win their savage demands.
For this valiant effort our heroic security forces deserve
the salute of the Sri Lankan people on this honoured
day.
Similarly, we should now take speedy
action to establish democratic governance in areas liberated
from the clutches of the terrorists in the East and
the North. It is our duty to protect the lives and property
of the Tamil and Muslim people, and bring sanctity to
the future world of their children. As I stated at the
inauguration of the Moragahakanda Maha Samudra, I wish
to re-emphasize that the most reliable weapon against
terrorism is to do justice by the innocent Tamil people.
I know that the Sinhala people in the South are ready
for this. We are not ready to give into the blood-thirsty
demands of the LTTE. However, at the minimum we should
be reasonable and honest enough to agree with Mr. Anandasangaree
or the Hon. Douglas Devananda.
The uncompromising stand of our government
is a firm commitment to a policy to safeguard national
dignity, and not betray it. We have proved this over
and over again. We wish to declare loud and clear on
this occasion that national dignity means the non-betrayal
of the democratic rights of the people of a country
to whatever vicious forces - either local or foreign,
whatever the circumstances.
Dear Friends,
Your strength is unlimited. All we
can add to it is determination. When this strength and
determination come together it is crystal clear that
national prosperity will follow. History has proven
this.
That is why we decided to adopt a
policy of development that will safeguard the future
of our children, while responding to terrorist power
in the only language that they best understand. You
are already aware that we have named the coming decade
as the Decade of Development in this country. Towards
that we have taken a large number of very important
decisions in the past year. The Norochcholai and Upper
Kotmale Power Plants, the Sampur Coal Power Plant, the
Moragahakanda Maha Samudra, the New Airport at Weerawila,
expanding the Port of Colombo to twice its capacity,
new railways and
expressways are among these decisions. All this will
invariably change the future development profile of
Sri Lanka.
That is not all. There is - Mathata
Thitha - the War on Intoxicants, which is the firm foundation
to secure the world of your children. The Treasury loses
Rs. 6 billion annually due to the prohibition of smoking
in public places and the War on Intoxicants. Yet, we
decided it better to protect the environment, health
and well being of our people than utilize this to bridge
the budget deficit. This thinking is at the core of
Mahinda Chintana. On the other hand you will recall
that when certain media were posing a challenge to the
good taste and values of the people, how we acted strongly
against
it. You will also recall how we changed our tax policies
to save the arts from degrading foreign influences.
We should remember with gratitude how our people on
every such occasion observed all this from the viewpoint
of democracy and appreciated what we did.
Similarly, I believe this is the
most suitable day to recall the steps taken by us to
strengthen the public service and welfare activities,
when plans were afoot to weaken and destroy them; and
the justice meted out by our Government to the lower
ranks of the Police Department, the Public Service
and State Corporations who had been harassed for a long
time without at least confirming them in service.
On the one hand, at a time when we
are engaged in an unconditional struggle against venomous
terrorism, and on the other, when we are implementing
the biggest schemes in history to take the country towards
successful development; and when we are taking unwavering
decisions to protect our
cultural values, we have to understand that the familiar
opportunist political tendencies will be seeking to
raise their head. Therefore, I call on you with the
greatest responsibility not to resort to any cause of
action likely to challenge the stability of the country.
Therefore, I believe this the most suitable platform
to make a particular appeal to the working people of
this country not to supply oxygen, consciously or not,
to terrorism that is gasping for life. I also call on
the media to also act with
responsibility in this regard.
Yesterday, I went to Vaharai to offer
my sincere thanks to all those brave soldiers whom liberated
Vaharai from terrorists, without inflicting any casualties
on civilians. Also, during the visit, I wanted to inspect
the implementation of resettlement of my Tamil brethren.
I went to Sampur as well. I declared open a Police Station
in Vaharai to ensure that civil rule is firmly established
and law and order maintained. Today, the people of that
area live in a relaxed and free atmosphere. I think
it is the people in those areas out of all Sri Lankans
who maximally enjoy the 59th commemoration of our independence.
Therefore, it is my heartfelt wish that the next independence
will be colourfully commemorated together by the children
of the south and those of the north.
It is with my firm belief in the
strength, courage and boldness of my Government that
I emphatically state before you of my total commitment
to ensure the honour and prosperity of this blessed
land, by decisively defeating separatism, and sending
opportunist politics into retirement, without violating
the confidence placed in me by you in the last Presidential
Election.
Similarly, I call upon our friendly
forces that worked with incomparable commitment for
the success of the Mahinda Chintana, as well as the
other forces, to join hands with us for the sake of
the dignity and prosperity of the motherland: join with
us who have brought to the fore a policy that is free
of debt; not subservient; and is most suited to our
country.
I also call upon those all forces
and organizations that stand for social justice and
transparency to offer your reasonable criticism to our
Government. You will recall me saying in my inaugural
speech as President that we respect our critics more
than those who eulogize us. A fact that I have realized
well during the three decades of my political career
is that reasonableness is the foundation of public protest.
In conclusion, on this important
event I am happy to express my gratitude to our foreign
friends and governments for the fraternal assistance
extended to us against separatism, and for peace and
development of the motherland. We pay them the highest
honour and appreciate their kindness and friendship.
Freedom is the path for the victories
of a nation. Freedom is protecting and safeguarding
the victories achieved. Therefore, let us act together
on the path of freedom for the future victories of the
nation. Let us be committed! Let us win! Let us with
our own hands win for our motherland the dignity she
deserves!
May you all be blessed by the Noble
Triple Gem!
May all deities protect you!
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