Monday, 14th April 2014
(COLOMBO, Xinhua)
Sri Lanka still needs to focus on reconciliation and development, President Mahinda Rajapaksa stressed in his statement for the Sinhala and Tamil New Year on Monday, insisting that more needs to be done five years after the end of a three-decade war.
Rajapaksa released his message to mark the Sinhala and Tamil New Year that falls on Monday. This is the only cultural festival jointly enjoyed by both communities.
In 2009, Sri Lanka's government, led by Rajapaksa, defeated the Liberation Tamil Tigers of Eelam (LTTE), which was fighting for a separate homeland for the Tamil community. Yet despite the end of the conflict, the government has been criticized for not pushing ahead with reconciliation and promotion of human rights, including increased political power to the Tamil community.
"It is essential to build national unity to usher in rapid development in the country," said the president's statement.
"What is outstanding in the traditions of these festivities are coexistence and reconciliation. The most valued quality of this Avurudu (New Year) festival is taking the ideal of understanding and cohesion beyond the family, to the village, the city and the entire country."
The local New Year comes just a few weeks after a resolution was passed at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) allowing for a UN probe into allegations of war crimes committed by the Sri Lankan government during last seven years of the conflict.
The Sri Lankan government headed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa has vehemently rejected the resolution and pledged to prevent UN investigators from entering the country.
The UN investigations are expected to begin in May.
Rajapaksa has assured that his government is working hard to reconcile the Sinhalese, who make up about 75 percent of the population with the main minority Tamil population. This was also the main point in his New Year message released to media.
Editor: chengyang
See more at : http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2014-04/14/c_133261392.htm
