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Sri Lankans mark independence day with call to end war

Sri Lankan expatriates have said the country will blossom again if peace is given a chance.

  • By Binsal Abdul Kader, Staff Reporter
  • Published: 23:31 February 4, 2008
  • Gulf News

  • Sri Lankan Ambassador Mohammad Nobari Junaid lighting a traditional lamp at the country's 60th Independence Day flag-hoisting ceremony in Abu Dhabi on Monday.
  • Image Credit: Ahmed Kutty/Gulf News
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Abu Dhabi: Sri Lankan expatriates have said the country will blossom again if peace is given a chance.

Speaking to Gulf News during Independence Day celebrations at the embassy in Abu Dhabi, Rohini Seneviratne, a teacher said: "A peaceful Sri Lanka will pave the way for the realisation of its potential in several fields like tourism".

Mariam Wickramasekara, 41, a secretary, said although she hopes for peace, she was not fully confident on the political moves to end the "stupid" civil war.

Jude Kamalanathan, 30, who works in the hospitality sector, said internal differences were for "rubbish" reasons. He trusts the initiatives of the president but does not expect terrorism can be solved overnight.

Lal Renjith Delpechitre, 52, an engineer, said the violence will end soon thanks to the initiatives by the present regime. Mohammad Rafeeq, 40, an engineer said peace could be restored if the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) was disarmed. Milan Goonetilleke, 34, a bank official, said peace could be achieved if the warring factions realised that their own people were the victims of the violence.

Success: Iliteracy tackled

Success in ensuring free education and healthcare for all amidst the civil war is the biggest achievement of Sri Lanka, said the Ambassador to the UAE.

Mohammad Nabavi Junaid told Gulf News the country has achieved a 92 per cent literacy rate which is the highest in South Asia thanks to free education.

"The life expectancy of people has also improved from an average of 60 years to 70 to 74 years," he said.

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