{"id":149719,"date":"2025-05-21T14:40:57","date_gmt":"2025-05-21T21:40:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=149719"},"modified":"2025-05-21T14:40:57","modified_gmt":"2025-05-21T21:40:57","slug":"a-nations-response-a-president-betraying-the-spirit-of-sri-lankas-ranawiru-victory-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2025\/05\/21\/a-nations-response-a-president-betraying-the-spirit-of-sri-lankas-ranawiru-victory-day\/","title":{"rendered":"A Nation\u2019s Response: A President Betraying the Spirit of Sri Lanka\u2019s Ranawiru Victory Day"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><em><label class=\"components-checkbox-control__label\" for=\"inspector-checkbox-control-1390\">Shenali Waduge<\/label><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-shenali-waduge wp-block-embed-shenali-waduge\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"o53GauEQWw\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.shenaliwaduge.com\/a-nations-response-a-president-betraying-the-spirit-of-sri-lankas-ranawiru-victory-day\/\">A Nation\u2019s Response: A President Betraying the Spirit of Sri Lanka\u2019s Ranawiru Victory Day<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"&#8220;A Nation\u2019s Response: A President Betraying the Spirit of Sri Lanka\u2019s Ranawiru Victory Day&#8221; &#8212; Shenali Waduge\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shenaliwaduge.com\/a-nations-response-a-president-betraying-the-spirit-of-sri-lankas-ranawiru-victory-day\/embed\/#?secret=IbgNJvbdYM#?secret=o53GauEQWw\" data-secret=\"o53GauEQWw\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"963\" src=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-17.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-149720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-17.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-17-300x282.png 300w, https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-17-768x722.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>A day of honor was turned into a day of betrayal.<\/strong><strong>&nbsp;<\/strong>Victory Day in Sri Lanka is not just a date on a calendar \u2014 it is a solemn tribute to the tens of thousands of brave&nbsp;<strong>Ranaviruwo<\/strong>&nbsp;who laid down their lives to defend the nation from one of the most brutal terrorist organizations in the world: the&nbsp;<strong>LTTE<\/strong>. It is a day meant to remember sacrifice, celebrate unity, and reaffirm our commitment to a sovereign, unitary &amp; undivided Sri Lanka. Yet this year, the President\u2019s Victory Day address did not honor the fallen \u2014 it diminished their sacrifice. By deliberately avoiding the term&nbsp;<strong>Ranaviruwo,\u201d<\/strong>&nbsp;failing to name the LTTE as terrorists, and drawing false moral parallels between those who defended the nation and those who tried to destroy it, the President not only rewrote the past \u2014 he betrayed the very spirit of the day. This response is not about politics. It is about&nbsp;<strong>truth<\/strong>,&nbsp;<strong>duty<\/strong>, and&nbsp;<strong>respect<\/strong>. It is a call to remember who our true heroes are, and to ensure their legacy is never blurred, distorted, or forgotten in the future \u2014 especially not by those who swore to protect it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/v\/1ASPz7suND\">https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/v\/1ASPz7suND<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>1. Sacred Day Undermined by Political Calculations<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Victory Day is not just another commemoration. It is a solemn tribute to over&nbsp;<strong>28,000 war heroes<\/strong>&nbsp;who laid down their lives &amp; an equal number who are injured for life, to protect Sri Lanka\u2019s sovereignty from LTTE terrorism. In his speech, the President failed to even call them <strong>Ranaviruwo<\/strong>\u201d\u2014a symbolic yet crucial term. His refusal to identify the LTTE as terrorists, while omitting to mention President Mahinda Rajapakse without whose orders as Commander in Chief to militarily defeat LTTE &amp; rescue Tamil civilians held hostage by LTTE as well as name key military leaders who led the war to victory, is viewed not as omission but calculated erasure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>2. Revising History: A Dangerous Narrative<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The President\u2019s ambiguous moral equivalence\u2014suggesting no one takes up arms without reason\u201d\u2014distorts the root cause of the conflict.&nbsp;<strong>Tamil separatism<\/strong>, not economic grievance, led to war. The&nbsp;<strong>Vaddukoddai Resolution (1976)<\/strong><strong>&nbsp;<\/strong>openly called for armed youth rebellion. Prior to that the ITAK was formed seeking a separate Tamil Nation in 1949. The&nbsp;<strong>LTTE only hijacked the quest of Tamil politicians after being secretly trained by India alongside other Tamil militants &amp; initiated the war<\/strong>, not the State. Our forces defended civilians and national unity\u2014not against fighters,\u201d but against&nbsp;<strong>internationally designated terrorists<\/strong>&nbsp;who were even getting help &amp; material assistance from external forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>3. Distortion of Sacrifice<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Every life lost in defense of the country holds meaning. The sacrifice of:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Total 28,589 war heroes paid the supreme sacrifice in defense of the nation<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Armed Forces \u2013 23,962 (6261 died between 2006-May 2009 last phase)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Airforce \u2013 443<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Navy \u2013 1160<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Civil Defense Force \u2013 456<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Police \u2013 2568 (includes the 600 policemen killed brutally by LTTE in the East)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>29,551 Armed Forces personnel remain wounded.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>cannot be equated with those who died&nbsp;<strong>attacking<\/strong>&nbsp;the country (LTTE &amp; Other militants)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To compare the grief of a mother of a soldier with that of an LTTE terrorist\u2019s family may be politically convenient\u2014but morally and nationally dangerous.&nbsp;<strong>Soldiers defend a nation. Terrorists seek to attack &amp; destroy it.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"497\" src=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-25.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-149721\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-25.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-25-300x146.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-25-768x373.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>4. A Gravest Insult: False Moral Equivalence<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sympathizing with LTTE families without&nbsp;<strong>any mention of their atrocities<\/strong>\u2014child soldiers, suicide bombers, ethnic cleansing\u2014offends not only war heroes but the very truth of our national struggle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The LTTE themselves kept families of other militants below their own elite circle. Now, the State, in the name of reconciliation, allows&nbsp;<strong>glorification of LTTE dead<\/strong>&nbsp;while marginalizing the real protectors of peace. This is an insult. The terrorists must be laughing at us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-shenali-waduge wp-block-embed-shenali-waduge\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"K6qr6Ty4MQ\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.shenaliwaduge.com\/sri-lanka-armed-forces-are-cruel-inhuman-war-criminals-look-how-they-treated-injured-ltte\/\">Sri Lanka Armed Forces are CRUEL INHUMAN War Criminals \u2013 Look how they treated injured LTTE<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"&#8220;Sri Lanka Armed Forces are CRUEL INHUMAN War Criminals \u2013 Look how they treated injured LTTE&#8221; &#8212; Shenali Waduge\" src=\"https:\/\/www.shenaliwaduge.com\/sri-lanka-armed-forces-are-cruel-inhuman-war-criminals-look-how-they-treated-injured-ltte\/embed\/#?secret=8kuP9E5Qck#?secret=K6qr6Ty4MQ\" data-secret=\"K6qr6Ty4MQ\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>5. The Fallacy of War for Peace\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our military didn\u2019t wage war to seek abstract peace. They fought to&nbsp;<strong>end terrorism<\/strong>, restore rule of law, and&nbsp;<strong>free civilians held hostage by the LTTE<\/strong>\u2014nearly 300,000 in 2009 alone.&nbsp;<strong>Peace was a result<\/strong>, not the mission. The mission was national survival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the wrong message conveyed by the President has been carried forward by his ministers as seen by their statements in Parliament<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Video Player<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>00:00<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>01:26<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Video Player<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>00:00<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>01:20<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/p\/16EWUapt2z\">https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/p\/16EWUapt2z<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>6. Ongoing threats ignored<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The ideological battle continues:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Pro-LTTE groups<\/strong>abroad remain active continuing to seek separatism.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>University radicalization<\/strong>in Jaffna grows.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Demands for separate statehood<\/strong>persist<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Reduction in troop presence<\/strong>as well as reduction of the entire armed forces, undermines stability &amp; ushers vulnerability of the State.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Yet the President ignored all of these. That is not leadership\u2014it is negligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>7. Politicization of a Sacred Day<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Instead of unity, the President used Victory Day to:<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Criticize political opponents, float unfair theories<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Give veiled warnings to the military.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Push vague, sanitized narratives on war and peace.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Leadership requires moral clarity\u2014not confusing sermons.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>8. Reconciliation \u2260 Whitewashing Terrorism<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Reconciliation cannot come by erasing the difference between&nbsp;<strong>defenders and aggressors<\/strong>. It must be rooted in:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Truth<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Justice<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Historical accuracy<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The rumored promise to build a&nbsp;<strong>memorial for Prabhakaran<\/strong>&nbsp;(as per Shamindra Ferdinando) is a betrayal of national memory, not an act of peacebuilding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/p\/1AxmGqS3de\">https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/p\/1AxmGqS3de<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>9. What Did They Sacrifice their Life?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>They died for:<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A<strong>unitary Sri Lanka<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A<strong>terror-free homeland<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Protection of&nbsp;<strong>all citizens<\/strong>&nbsp;regardless of ethnicity<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What they did not die for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Political expediency<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Rewriting of history<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Reconciliation\u201d that rewards separatism<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Not Everyone Can Become a Soldier<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Not everyone can become a soldier \u2014 because not everyone has the strength to look death in the face and still choose to stand their ground. A soldier is more than a uniform; he is discipline in action, courage under fire, and sacrifice without applause. He is the shield between chaos and the people he has sworn to protect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Behind every brave soldier is a mother who taught him compassion and resilience, a father who instilled honor and duty, and a family that nurtured the values that made him choose service over safety. These are not ordinary families \u2014 they are the unseen pillars of the nation\u2019s strength.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Becoming a soldier is not a profession \u2014 it is a calling, one that only a few are willing and able to answer. It demands heart, willpower, and the ultimate readiness to pay the highest price. That is why Victory Day must remain sacred \u2014 to honor the extraordinary few who gave their all, so the rest of us could live in freedom. Their legacy is not to be distorted, compared, or diluted \u2014 because not all can be soldiers, and not all sacrifices are the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>10. Final Verdict: A Dangerous Betrayal<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This is not<strong>reconciliation<\/strong>. It is\u00a0<strong>revisionism<\/strong>. It weakens the nation and emboldens those who still seek to divide it.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The real half-victory is not due to moral failure by the Armed Forces\u2014but due to:<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Political failures to tackle<strong>ongoing separatism<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Foreign-funded historical distortion<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1025\" height=\"480\" src=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-26.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-149722\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-26.jpeg 1025w, https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-26-300x140.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/image-26-768x360.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1025px) 100vw, 1025px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The President speaks of spread of racism? Who are the guilty? The Vaddamana Viharaya in the North was destroyed by Tamil racists, this is the situation outside Tissa Viaharaya in the North <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/p\/14GJVY8trkH\/\">https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/share\/p\/14GJVY8trkH\/<\/a> &nbsp;all of the remaining Buddhist sacred sites are under risk by Tamil racists. Have a single Buddhist stopped Tamil praying in Hindu kovils across the South or anywhere else? The President must identify the real racists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The State\u2019s silence on&nbsp;<strong>continued desecration of Buddhist sites<\/strong>&nbsp;and illegal land grabs in the North &amp; East. No Govt can speak for only minorities completely ignoring the rights, grievances &amp; the wrongs being done to the majority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A President is duty-bound to protect sovereignty, honor the military, and uphold truth\u2014not to&nbsp;<strong>equate grief<\/strong>,&nbsp;<strong>promote dangerous moral ambiguities<\/strong>, or&nbsp;<strong>forfeit national memory for political gain<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let this serve as a warning: a nation that forgets its heroes will one day struggle to find new ones. The people will remember what was not said, and they will not forget who chose silence over truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Shenali Waduge A day of honor was turned into a day of betrayal.&nbsp;Victory Day in Sri Lanka is not just a date on a calendar \u2014 it is a solemn tribute to the tens of thousands of brave&nbsp;Ranaviruwo&nbsp;who laid down their lives to defend the nation from one of the most brutal terrorist organizations in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-149719","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-shenali-waduge"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149719","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=149719"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149719\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=149719"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=149719"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=149719"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}