Archbishop congratulates Armed forces on the conclusion of war
Archbishop Oswald Gomis in a Press Release issued
today says, "We are indeed very happy that the war is over and I
congratulate His Excellency the President Mahinda Rajapaksha and the
Chiefs of the Defense forces who supported him with deep commitment and
self-sacrifice."
Full text of the press release -
Press Release of The Archbishop of Colombo on the
conclusion of war
We are indeed very happy that the war is ended and
that the governments Security Forces have been able to release all the
innocent civilians who were trapped in battle.
I congratulate His Excellency President Mahinda
Rajapakse, President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka,
for his very courageous leadership and thank the Chiefs of the Defense
outfit who supported him with deep commitment and self-sacrifice. I also
offer my deepest sympathies to those who laid down their lives in battle
and those innocent civilians killed, trapped in war.
In a sense we could say that we have won the battle
but the war is not ended. The war would end only on the day that we grow
in nationhood realizing that we are all one people in one country with
equal right. We have to realize the fact that we are a multi-ethnic,
multi-religious and multi-cultural community. As such we are now left
with the great task of nation- building forgetting our ethnic, political
and religious differences.
It is imperative that there be a political formula
that will inspire confidence and promote a sense of belonging among the
minority groups in the country. We have to leave the sad and bitter
memories of the past three decades and look positively and
optimistically towards the future in hope. All of us have to share the
blame for our division and forgive each other. We should have the
humility and wisdom to learn from the sad experiences of that past.
It is then, and only then, that we could build
nationhood that will bring true peace and prosperity to our beloved
country - Sri Lanka. Let us always remember that united we will flourish
but divided we will perish.
May Sri Lanka be a land where unity, equality and
fraternity reign supreme !
Archbishop Oswald Gomis
Archbishop of Colombo
18th May 2009 |
