President’s speech to Sri Lankan expatriates at the Presidential Secretariat on 14-11-20009
11-14-2009
Ven. Maha Sangha,
Minister of Foreign Affairs and other Ministers,
Secretaries to Ministries,
Expatriate friends who are present,
It is customary in our villages to welcome a person living far away by offering a tray of betel, when he steps into the house after a long time. I remember we were welcomed in Jaffna by keeping a pottu on the forehead and with incense smoke from a lamp. When you set foot on the motherland after being away for a long time, I don’t have a betel tray or even a thilaka to keep a dot on your forehead. Therefore let me welcome you all by saying ‘Ayubowan’. During a period of three years we have built a country where we can actually wish long life.
Friends, some people born here live here until death. But they live in this country as boarders. When we were engaged in massive operations to defeat terrorism, I saw these boarders conducting themselves without considering the welfare of the country. It is not fresh news that they continued to conspire while living in the countries where you lived. They perceived the country in a different way. Those of you, who love the motherland, know who they are. People like you who worked with love for the country responded to them.
They stepped into the streets of those countries and carried the voice of the Government of Sri Lanka to the world. On difficult occasions, collected money and supported us. You sent equipments needed by the three forces as well medicines and artificial legs required for the disabled soldiers. I pay gratitude to you on behalf of the nation for your service.
Friends you stepped into a free country - a country which defeated separatism. Therefore this victory is a victory of the nation. You were invited first in the immediate aftermath of defeating terrorism. My motherland is free. The responsibility of building the country is yours as well as mine. Thus we invited you to come to Sri Lanka to rebuild the country.
Friends, we invited you because we are speedily building a country for you to live in, for you to advance in and a better country for your future generation. If you have left the motherland seeking for freedom, democracy and peace, Sri Lanka now has all of these. We have built them.
Even before winning the Vanni, the Eastern province which we initially liberated was developed and an election was held. Uthuru Vasanthaya commenced even before two weeks passed after the liberation. It was the then politicians who told the people that they had developed various areas but what has happened is quite the opposite.
Today people who go on tours to the North and East Province tell us that bridges, roads and irrigation schemes have been constructed better than expected. It is the people who visit the areas who come and tell me about the development in those areas as I have little time to travel around the country. This is the kind of change seen in the country today. Today, it is not the country that was there when you left. There is no need to compare with the past thirty years. Today, it is not the country that was there before three years.
Today, we are able to build national unity and confidence between one another. Today, language is not an issue for us for development. We are learning all languages today.
I wish to speak a few words in Tamil too, on this occasion:
(In Tamil)
Friends,
I warmly welcome all of you who have come here today. After living abroad for a long time you have come to your motherland. It is a happy occasion for you. Even we are happy. You must have had various reasons to leave this country. Now you have stepped on soil free of terrorism.
Now you can live in this country without fear or doubt. This victory is the victory of your children. There is rapid development through the Negenahira Navodaya and Uthuru Vasanthaya prograammes. Even the administration in those areas is carried out democratically.
In this country there cannot be any racial, religious, caste or provincial differences hereafter. All must live with equal rights. I am your friend. Have trust in me. Let us now build our country. Your service is necessary for our country.
Let us safeguard the motherland. Let us join to achieve that.
(In Sinhala language)
Friends, although you have come to Sri Lanka today you are not too late to fulfill your obligations to your country.
When traveling in the liberated areas, you will realize that we have established peace in areas extremely suitable for the tourism industry. Arugambay coast where terrorists were trained has how become a paradise for local and foreign tourists. We have opened the doors for the best investors of the world to invest here.
The era in which talented youngsters were used to guns and combat, is now over. Now they are being trained by the government for various vocations. It is your responsibility as well as the government to make them useful to the world. We are ready to build several investment zones. You are not too late.
All of you should join hands to contribute to projects to build the country. We are ready to grant approvals and cooperation through the Board of Investment, Urban Development Authority and the authorities such as the Alternative Energy Commission without delay.
Central Bank of Sri Lanka is prepared to relax foreign exchange procedures to suit foreign members. Tax policy is already relaxed. A Presidential Tax Commission has been established to expand investments.
We should manufacture the plate we eat on as we produce rice for consumption in our country. We should use our own Engineers and architects in the construction services of all industries. If there is a place for our professionals in the world, why should they not have a place in our own country?
Our country and the government have confidence in our expertise. The ‘Api Wenuwen Api’ concept should be applied to the nation - building process as it was used for the fight against terrorism.
The allegation that we are violating human rights was given high publicity across the world. But in the history of my political career, I have spent a long time in safeguarding human rights. I follow the philosophy of protecting human rights.
While supporting to extricate the army from baseless allegations leveled against them as well as to boost their morale, I did everything possible to safeguard the human rights of all peoples of this country. Our Tamil and Muslim friends will endorse that.
Friends, we are confident that there will not be a country in Asia frequented with flames of war and oppressed by terrorism in the future. Therefore, today we carry out speedy resettlement activities in the North and East.
We resettle only after creating an environment suitable for living by completely removing all land mines and death traps.
However, you have left Sri Lanka about twenty to thirty years ago. Thus the future generations would know about Sri Lanka only through what you tell them.
For thousands of years we Sri Lankans lived in harmony without ethnic conflicts. But today the present conditions prevailing in Sri Lanka are completely distorted and given publicity through websites and other means of propaganda.
Your children are not aware of our history and the greatness of our people. They do not know about the noble humane conduct of our people. If they get a wrong picture, this country will become an unfortunate country, unsuitable to live in. It is your responsibility to give your son and daughter a correct perception of this country.
Tomorrow you will be able to see the progress of the development process spearheaded by us. See for yourself the things that I have told you. Don’t fear to walk on the road as you feared before. Today you can freely walk from Devundara to Point Pedro. We have created an environment where you can see new things as well as bring new things to this country.
The way we carried out those things when the world`s economy was collapsing and when the world obstructed us, is not fresh news to you. We have done those things and also left a great country for you today. Now this country is entrusted to you!
Wish you all a bright future!
