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| Wednesday, 17 March 2004 |
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Politics | |
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| Politics will be kept out of sports and arts - President by Uditha Kumarasinghe President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga yesterday pledged to have the fields of sports and arts outside the influence of politics. "In future, all appointments to bodies in the fields of sport and the arts will be from individuals engaged in them," she said. The President gave this firm assurance to a large number of sportspersons and artistes at a meeting held at President's House to look into the difficulties faced in their respective fields. A large number of popular film stars, singers, writers and sportsmen were among the gathering. The meeting was organised by the Cultural Alliance of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party. They included Anoja Weerasinghe, Dhamitha Abeyratne, Nadhika Gunesekera, Robin Fernando, Sanoja Bibile, Keethi Bandara, Sahan Wijesinghe, Mark Sampson, Ranjit Perera, Nayana Sudharshini, who actively supported the UNP at the last General Election in December 2001. At this meeting, the President provided the opportunity to the artistes and sportsmen to explain their grievances and proposals to uplift the arts and sports sectors. All sportsmen and women who are representing the country at the SAF games in Pakistan this month were present. President Kumaratunga emphasised that arts and sports were two sectors which can provide long-term solutions to the present crisis situation in society. Much service can be rendered through these sectors which the politicians are not able to do. Therefore, the next Freedom Alliance Government was deeply committed to provide all necessary assistance to uplift these sectors, she said. A significant feature at yesterday's event was that 74 artistes of the National Art Forum connected to the UNP extended their fullest co-operation to President Kumaratunga to form the Freedom Alliance Government. They also submitted certain proposals to the President through a memorandum to develop the arts. The President addressing the gathering said although Sri Lanka was a small country, it has produced a large number of internationally renowned artistes and sportsmen. "Although we have not focused much attention on this aspect, many countries have laid great emphasis towards these two fields which immensely contribute towards social development," she said. The President congratulated Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan who achieved the coveted milestone of 500 test wickets. She also awarded certificates to Inoka Sathyangani who obtained the Best Director award for her film "Sulan Kirilli" and Damitha Abeyrathne who received the Best Actress award for the same film bringing international fame to Sri Lanka. After the PA Government assumed office in 1994, a considerable amount of work was done in for the development of Arts and sports in the country. As a result, Sri Lanka was able to achieve so many international victories in these two fields including victory in the 1996 Cricket World Cup, Susanthika Jayasinghe's bronze medal in the 2000 Olympic Games together with so many victories in various South Asian games, she said. The President said: "Although the former PA Government acted with responsibility and placed a lot of emphasis on the sports sector, we could not achieve the expected results due to political interferences by the then Sports Minister. Therefore, we need honest politicians to handle these sectors." At present the sports sector has been highly politicised. A new programme has been formulated to develop sports utilising the experience gained during the seven and half year PA administration, she said. Steps have been taken to set up one sports and cultural centre in each district assisting youth to develop their skills. Initially, this programme will commence from the Gampaha and Kurunegala districts, she said. President Kumaratunga said after 1956, not much attention had been focused on the development of arts. In order to give a prominent place to arts, a National Academy for Dramatic Arts will be established on a one acre plot at Torrington Avenue, Colombo utilising the money from the President's Fund. As the second stage, a Cinema Training Institute will be set up in this premises. Meanwhile, a special grant will be offered to writers to overcome the difficulties faced by them in publishing their books. In addition, priority has been given to develop the film industry, the most powerful art medium which can effectively convey messages to the public. "Much attention has also been focused on implementing the recommendations of the National Policy on Cinema," the President added. |
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