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MAHINDA RAJAPAKSA REITERATES
CHINA’S LONG STANDIND FRIENDSHIP WITH SRI LANKA AND SAYS IT NEVER
DESERTED HIS ISLAND NATION DURING DISTRESS
By Walter Jayawardhana
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This is how the national Theatre for
Performing Arts will look when it is completed at Nomads Grounds, Ananda
Coomaraswamy mawatha Colombo 7, close to our national Museum.
Remembering that China and Sri Lanka are long standing friends President
Mahinda Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka said China never deserted Sri Lanka in
its times of distress.
The President said , “When our people want to how the closeness
of our friendship they say there are more Chinese eateries in Sri Lanka
than in China.”
Making the inaugural speech of the construction of Sri Lanka’s
National Theatre of Performing Arts to be built with Chinese government
assistance Rajapaksa also made use of the occasion to send his kind
thoughts to the Chinese government and the people of China for those
who lost their loved ones and those who lost their limbs or badly injured
in the recent deadly earth tremor in China’s Shichuan province.
He wished, “May the people of China have the strength to overcome
this tragedy just as we overcame the tragedy of the Tsunami! I know
very well that China could do so as it has a population that is used
to hardship with fortitude and China is progressing rapidly today challenging
the developed world.”
In an obvious reference to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
who has been engaged in cleansing the Northern Province of Sinhala and
Muslim races and attempting to do so in Eastern Province the President
said, “Language, nation and culture do not develop when you evict
thousands of people belonging to another race from your region. You
cannot develop or nurture language or a nation with communalism. Hence
defeating terrorism in a country means defeating communalism. We have
recently taken many very successful steps towards this end.”
The following is the full text of the President’s speech: “At
this moment when we are about to inaugurate the construction of this
theatre with Chinese government assistance my thoughts are with the
Chinese government and the Chinese people who have suffered immensely
due to the earthquake in Shichuan province. I express my deepest sympathies
of the people and the government of Sri Lanka as well as my own sympathies
to the people and the government of People's Republic of China.
“May the people of China have the strength to overcome this tragedy
just as we overcame the tragedy of the Tsunami! I know very well that
China could do so as it has a population that is used to hardship with
fortitude and China is progressing rapidly today challenging the developed
world.
“Friends, you know China and Sri Lanka are long standing friends.
China never deserted us in times of distress. Now there are plenty of
Chinese goods in Sri Lanka. Perhaps if you look at the sky from the
Bandaranaike Conference Hall you may see a balloon made in China floating
in the sky. When our people want to how the closeness of our friendship
they say there are more Chinese eateries in Sri Lanka than in China.
“We are close not only physically but also spiritually. Hence this
theatre would be close to the hearts of our people.
“Friends, we have to build a society which can enjoy our artistic
and cultural heritage. Our rapid development activities as well as the
war on terrorism has the objective of equipping our country with these
facilities. All freedoms of the people were curtailed at the time when
the terrorist was strong enough to decide who should govern the country.
Not only political and religious heritage but also the cultural heritage
was constrained by terrorism.
“Language, nation and culture do not develop when you evict thousands
of people belonging to another race from your region. You cannot develop
or nurture language or a nation with communalism. Hence defeating terrorism
in a country means defeating communalism. We have recently taken many
very successful steps towards this end. Today we are swimming upstream
against communalism for which our country and society are ready. Friends,
it is not enough to defeat terrorism, we should also defeat communalism.
There are no racial or caste differences in appreciating art. Most of
our Buddhist songs were recited by Master Mohideen Baig, a Muslim. Many
people of other nations are used to appreciating artistic works produced
in our language. Art has no racial or caste distinctions. Our society
has been quite tolerant about thought and traditions of other ethnic
communities. Chinese nationals have been engaged in business for hundreds
of years without any problem. They would tell whether there is communalism
in our country or not.
“I earlier said that our development would create the necessary
environment for the development of art and culture. We should very quickly
create facilities for appreciation of art in our country. When we want
to have a big art festival or a concert we still go to the Bandaranaike
Convention Hall. But its a convention hall and not one designed for
artistic performances.
“We do not have a performing arts theatre because as a nation we
have not thought about arts sufficiently. However, we have a rich artistic
tradition. We are quit rich in the performing arts. The Dalada pageant
is a treasure of performing arts. It is one of the most valued pageants
in the world. Our society is rich in a variety of dance forms, belonging
to the up-country, low-country, Sabaragamuwa traditions as well as various
Tamil traditions. Yet we don’t have an appropriate theatre to exhibit
these dances. We must enrich these dance forms and also build a society
that would appreciate them. Our development system will generate a tolerant
society. Art is not harmonious with a competitive society based only
on commercial objectives.
“We do not push our people to race after a trade economy. We do
not train our children to live by selling our treasures. Our aim is
to develop on the basis of an indigenous economy as in China. Such a
society will not run behind commercial objectives. This will be a great
service to art.
“You know our rural roads are been developed rapidly. Villages
are receiving electricity quickly. There is also a rapid development
in rural transport and communication facilities. All these are prerequisites
for a fine appreciation of art. Both the thinking and the material existence
that encompass our development are beneficial to art. Therefore, the
country that is being built today will be one that could make maximum
use of this great theatre that will be constructed here .
“May the theatre provide facilities to artists belonging to all
nations so that they could speak in the language of their hearts! I
wish you a happy future!”
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