Human deluge
Honours war heroes:
Wijitha NAKKAWITA
They came in their tens, dozens, scores and hundreds totaling over
two hundred thousand people from all walks of life, with the Lion flags
aflutter, a riot of colour and joy in the very air while they marched
from the Campbell Park Colombo to the Parliament grounds, Kotte but
among them, the heartrending sight of the war heroes who had lost limbs
joining the marching crowd with their crutches reminiscent of the
sacrifices of thousands of their valiant comrades in arms had made to
free this country held to ransom by a group of bloodthirsty terrorists
for nearly three decades.
Yesterday�s mass rally to felicitate and express the gratitude of the
nation to the heroes of the hour, President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Defence
Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Commanders of the three Armed Forces Army
Commander General Sarath Fonseka, Navy Commander Admiral Wasantha
Karannagoda and Air Force Commander Air Chief Marshall Roshan
Gunatillake and all the members of the Armed Forces and Police who had
made it possible for the nation once again to enjoy the freedom won by
those among the living and dead members of the Armed Forces.
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The crowd on their way to Parliament grounds. Picture by
Chaminda Hittetiyege |
The day too stood solemn with heavy cloud in the skies with a rain
that was experienced earlier in the day the people and the valiant
soldiers braved the rain, men, women and children, the young and old,
but the intermittent rain cleared up by afternoon providing a shade to
the marching thousands as if the weather gods had had been kind to the
Sri Lankan nation that had suffered immeasurably under the threat of the
terrorists who had built their killer machine on lies, falsehoods and
subterfuge.
The sight was heartrending when the crowds from all parts of the
country of all ages and sizes their faces lit up with the joy of freedom
going in one direction to the Parliament ground and songs, slogans and
chanting of religious prayers and invocations from the religious
dignitaries of the national religions that had come to give their
blessings to the nation.
After two minutes silence in memory of the fallen war heroes and
civilians who had sacrificed their lives the Chancellor of the
University of Kelaniya the Most Ven Welamitiyawe Kusaladhamma Nayake
Thera performed the Buddhist religious rites followed by Hindu rites by
Kurukkal, Swami K.L.Mohan, Islamic rites by Moulavi Mohammed Niyaz and
Christian rites by Rev Fr.G.Hettiarachchi.
After the religious rites, a number of well known artistes came on
stage and once again the song �Ran malak lesa dev bambun dothing pidu ea
pin bime� was sung by Sunil Edirisinghe, the lyrics symbolic of the
occasion written by our journalist colleague Karunaratne Saputantri of
our sister newspaper Silumina who was killed with his colleagues when
the LTTE terrorists attacked the aircraft they were travelling in.
When President Mahinda Rajapaksa arrived at the meeting the
spontaneous applause was deafening and among the shouts heard was �our
saviour� and the more enthusiastic and able bodied people were seen
jumping for joy to welcome the leader who followed in the footsteps of
the heroic leaders and kings of the past in liberating the country from
the ruthless terrorist group that had killed infants, pregnant women and
the old and the feeble without exception. |
