{"id":122546,"date":"2022-02-04T15:46:21","date_gmt":"2022-02-04T22:46:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=122546"},"modified":"2022-02-04T15:46:21","modified_gmt":"2022-02-04T22:46:21","slug":"united-sri-lanka-association-usla-sri-lanka-independence-commemoration-4-feb-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2022\/02\/04\/united-sri-lanka-association-usla-sri-lanka-independence-commemoration-4-feb-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"United Sri Lanka Association (USLA) Sri Lanka Independence Commemoration-4. Feb 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr. Chula Rajapakse MNZM\u00a0\u00a0Spokesperson USLA<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Sri Lanka\u2019s\nindependence commemoration often kindles nostalgic memories of it\u2019s first Prime\nMinister, Rt Hon DS Senanayake hoisting Sri Lanka\u2019s national flag on the 4th<\/sup>\nof Feb 1948, following the Duke of Gloucester\u2019s lowering the Union Jack on\nbehalf of the British Crown, at the Independence Ceremony at the specially bult\nIndependence hall at the Torrington Square in Colombo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The day still\nkindles nostalgic memories of music that was frequently played in those days\naround independence day, songs such as  Namo Namo Matha, that in Sinhala\nurges its citizens to march forth  like children of one mother and others\nlike Lanka, Lanka Pembara Lanka whose description of Lanka\u2019s many virtues still\ninspires immense patriotic fervor.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a beneficiary of\nmany of these virtues, not the least of which was it\u2019s free education till the\nend of Tertiary, I often reflect on this with gratitude and ponder on how I\ncould pay back these receipts. I remain acutely aware that having\nprofessionally served it\u2019s citizens for seven years, the remainder of my over\nfifty years of professional service as a Medical Specialist has been to\ncitizens of three other countries in three other continents. I have endeavored\nto make up for this shortfall by contributing to the training of Sri Lanka\u2019s\nspecialists in this field, by providing them opportunities in NZ and frequently\ncontributing to their on  going education programs back in Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In our frequent\ntravels to Sri Lanka , we have endeavored to contribute to the lives and lively\nhoods of its citizens especially in the hospitality service by spending\ngenerously be it in five star hotels or in road side kiosks  enjoying\na  Thambili or a delicious mango or a pot of curd and honey from the south.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have also\ninvested in Sri Lanka\u2019s real estate and share market, not too faced by any\nlosses , considering it a pay back to a country and people I owed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As USLA\u2019s\nspokesperson for nearly three decades, I have persistently and relentlessly defended\nSri Lanka from  baseless and  vicious misinformation and denigration\nin the international and national media, and among politicians in NZ and\ninternationally, during its thirty year war that successfully rescued Sri Lanka\nfrom  Tiger terror. This is the pay back that gives me the greatest\nsatisfaction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was during this\nwar that I realized the real significance of our independence , when a few\nweeks before this war victory the foreign ministers of UK and France, having\ntravelled thousands of miles , pressured the then President to withdraw his\noffensive. His response was, please remember we ceased to be your colony\nsixty years ago. My people voted me in, to successfully end this war.  I\nhave no intention of doing anything else\u201d . A few days later he gave a similar\nresponse to a similar pressure  from New Delhi. One can only ponder what\nSL \u2018s destiny would have been but for that steely resolve of its leader on that\ngolden day in its history!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, Sri Lanka is\nin throes of another war , that against Covid. However, following an admirably\nsuccessful vaccination drive , and the return of Tourism income and foreign\nremittances, we have every reason to be confident of a successful out come in\nthis war too, similar to that in the terrorist war, especially with the\nsame  drivers at the wheel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some glimpses of\nwhat this successful outcome, might mean was on display, with the opening of\nthe Magnificent Golden Gate Kalyani, A bridge spanning the Kelani River in\nColombo  featuring  a cable support system for the first time in Sri\nLanka, where the water flow in the river was not disturbed by the bridge at\nall. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A similar glimpse\nwas provided with the opening of the equally magnificent walkway and promenade\nof the brand new Port city Colombo with its Yatch marina with locally built\nYatchs including double hulls on proud display. This promenade that is now the\nvenue for many water front events provides vistas like in Hawaii , the likes of\nwhich was never before available to Sri Lankans who are now lapping them up in\ndroves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, the\nopening of the Mirigama Kurunegalle section of Sri Lanka\u2019s  central\nexpressway provided scenes and arial views of a picturesque highway through Sri\nLanka\u2019s beautiful central hills that also provided new and pleasurable experiences\nto Sri Lankans who are eagerly lapping them up  as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With these dreams\nof the future , gradually becoming reality, I can only urge all Sri Lankans to\nrespond to the call of it\u2019s national anthem and march forward to prosperity, in\nunity  like the children of one mother.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank You<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Chula Rajapakse\nMNZM  Spokesperson USLA.\n4.2.22<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dr. Chula Rajapakse MNZM\u00a0\u00a0Spokesperson USLA Sri Lanka\u2019s independence commemoration often kindles nostalgic memories of it\u2019s first Prime Minister, Rt Hon DS Senanayake hoisting Sri Lanka\u2019s national flag on the 4th of Feb 1948, following the Duke of Gloucester\u2019s lowering the Union Jack on behalf of the British Crown, at the Independence Ceremony at the specially […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-122546","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122546","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=122546"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122546\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=122546"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=122546"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=122546"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}