High Commission of Sri Lanka in India

The glittering Esala Perahera of Sridalada Maligawa (Temple of the Sacred Buddha tooth relic) in Kandy will be held from July 31 to August 14, 2011. The Perahera, which is 235 years old, is one of the grandest events we have in Sri Lanka. Many locals and foreigners look forward to witness this wonderful festival every year. This is held during the Esala month, in August, honouring the sacred tooth relic. Many foreigners who have been fascinated by the Perahera have written notes about it; among them is the famous British poet and novelist, D. H. Lawrence, who describes the Perahera as a “perpetual fire-laughing motion among the slow shuffle of elephants.”

Fa-Hien, one of the famous Chinese monks who arrived in Sri Lanka on a pilgrimage in the fifth century A.D. also gives a full description about the Perahera in his book, Fa-Hien Travel Records. “By the side of the King’s Palace is the Vihara of the Buddha’s Tooth, several hundred feet high, brilliant with jewellers and ornamented with rare gems. Above the Vihara is placed an upright pole on which is fixed a great Padmaraja (ruby).

The Perahera comprises whip crackers, who lead the way heralding the approach of the perahera, flag bearers who carry the standards of the different Provinces and Temples, the Peramunarala, who rides the first elephant carrying an ola manuscript called the Lekam Mitiya (a register of the Maligawa lands), the drummers playing Hewisi (martial music) on a variety of drums such as the Daula, Tammettama, Udakkiya and Bere, and playing Horanewas (flutes), the Gajanayaka Nilame (traditionally the Head of the Royal Elephant Stables) gripping a silver henduwa (ankus, elephant goad), followed by the Kariyakorale (master of ceremonies, second in the hierarchy of temple officials), attended by minor temple functionaries, drummers and dancers.

Next treading majestically and solemnly is the Maligawa Tusker, carrying a duplicate of the Perahera Karanduwa (golden casket) containing the sacred relic, followed by two lines of dancers facing each other with drummers in the middle, and finally the Diyawadana Nilame (Custodian of the Tooth) in oriental splendour attended by lance bearers, sunshade bearers and parasol bearers as well as temple headmen.

This time the Kandy Esala Perahera will be held in a grand style and will be a testament that Sri Lanka is ready for tourism after the peace!

Dates of the Kandy Esala Perahera 2011:
From 31st July 2011 to 14th August 2011

I strongly condemn the dastardly attacks on innocent civilians in Mumbai this evening. 

The people of Sri Lanka stand in solidarity with the people of India and will continue to work collectively with the peace loving people of the region to eradicate terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

 Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been wounded and those who lost their loved ones as a result of the violent attacks.

Mahinda Rajapaksa

President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka

The 5^th Conference of SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians was inaugurated by the Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh, in the historic Central Hall of the Parliament House in New Delhi on 9 July. The Central Hall is where the Indian Constitution was framed and the transfer of power from British to Indian hands took place on 15 August 1947. The Hall is presently used for holding Joint Sittings of the two Houses and for special occasions when the Members of Parliament are addressed by distinguished Heads of State of foreign nations. With all eight SAARC nations having embraced parliamentary democracy, the gathering for the first time of the Speakers of all SAARC Member States in the Central Hall was a significant occasion for SAARC.

 In his address, the outgoing Chair of the 4^th Conference of SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians, Hon. Chamal Rajapaksa, stated that the SAARC region has witnessed the oldest form of democracy practiced by the Sakyas, the clan of Prince Siddharta who became Gautama Buddha. Stating that the Parliamentarians of SAARC Member States have an important role to play in strengthening regional cooperation and integration, the Speaker stressed that it is essential to strive to increase youth and female representation in the Parliaments of the South Asian countries for achieving socio-economic development.

The Conference will be held from 9-12 July. The Parliamentary delegation for the Conference from Sri Lanka comprises Hon. Nimal Siripala de Silva, Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources, Hon. Mangala Samaraweera, Hon. Faizal Cassim, Hon. Tharanath Basnayake and  Hon. Sunil Handunnetti.

Sri Lanka's pre-occupation with social equity is certainly appropriate at the international level at this time. It is important to ensure that the major trends of economic policy in the developed world should not have a harmful effect on the well-being of developing countries, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said.

Inaugurating the 50th annual session of the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization (AALCO) at the Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel Colombo this morning, President Rajapaksa said the use of substantial subsidies by Treasuries and Reserve Banks to support agricultural production in the developed world, and other forms of protectionism, cause serious distortion of the interplay of market forces. These measures reduce to great extent, the ability of farmers in our countries to access international markets for their export products on an equitable basis.

Here is the full text of the speech by the President:

It is with the greatest pleasure that I inaugurate these proceedings of the Asian - African Legal Consultative Organization in Colombo this morning. The occasion is all the more significant because you have chosen Sri Lanka as the venue of your discussions which mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of this body which has made a rich contribution to the development of the laws and legal systems of two continents in our time.

Your choice of Sri Lanka is especially appropriate, as my country turns a new and exciting page in her modern history. As you gather here today, we as a nation leave behind us the pain and anguish of a long-drawn-out conflict thrust upon us by one of the most ruthless terrorist organizations the world has known. With the sacrifice, prayers and blessings of all our citizens, irrespective of language, religion or cultural background, we have overcome the menace of terror and put our country on the fast track of economic and social development for the benefit of us all.

This is a change which touches every aspect of our national life. It requires re-vamping of our institutions in every sector. Not least of these is the law, its priorities, the values on which it is based, the procedures which are considered suitable for the pursuit of its aims, and the agencies through which it is applied for the well-being of the community.

There are several factors uppermost in our minds as we address the challenges that accompany the dawn of a stable and honourable peace.

The first among these is the need to protect our nation against a wide range of activities which groups closely linked to the merchants of terror, continue to engage in to the detriment of our country. Since the problem of terrorism is by no means restricted to Sri Lanka, but is of immediate relevance to many of the countries represented in this forum, you will no doubt rejoice that terrorist violence is, for us, a thing of the past, and we will never allow to raise its ugly head to be raised again within our shores. But it is to be remembered that their initiatives have now been transferred to the field of international action, and no stone is left unturned to apply every possible form of pressure to obstruct our country’s efforts to heal the wounds of the past and to bring together the entire nation through a process of reconciliation in keeping with the culture and aspirations of our people. This is why continuing vigilance at the international level, and resort to both domestic law and international law as a source of protection, are vitally important.