President praises bravery of National Civilian Award winners

COLOMBO: The winners of the 13th National Civilian Bravery Awards Ceremony conducted at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall, Colombo, called on President Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple Trees last morning.

The Awards Ceremony was organized by the "Weera Podujana Foundation" a voluntary organization to felicitate heroes who staked their own lives in acts of bravery to save others in distress.

At this ceremony conducted for the 13th successive year, the heroes received awards. The speciality of yesterday's Award Ceremony was that it recognized bravery achieved both at national and international level.

"The basics of human rights is the right to life. Placing one's life for another is among the highest values," said the Australian High Commissioner, Dr Greg French who was the chief guest at the ceremony.

Dr. French added that the worth of any society and of any community can best be measured not by its Gross Domestic Product or by its industrial output but by the value it puts on human life.

Sena Sathyamoorthy, a labourer from the Kandy area who staked his life to rescue two children who were trapped in a blaze that broke out in the house where they lived, won first place and awarded a gold trophy and cash prize.

A Pakistani Civil Engineer, Gul Javith Butt, was awarded the Silver Trophy for risking his life to save several victims of the October 8, 2005 earthquake in Pakistan which claimed 80,000 lives.

Sumith Jayalal Abeygunawardena, a Police Officer, was awarded the "Virujana Weera Rajatha Sammanaya" for his gallantry to save the lives of five members of the same family and another person caught in the floods.

The President who met the award winners at Temple Trees last morning gave them mementoes and praised them for their bravery risking their lives to save others in distress.

Ven. Kiribathgoda Gnanananda Thera, representatives from the British and Pakistani High Commissions, representatives from the Australian Royal Humanitarian Association and the Royal Humanitarian Association of the United Kingdom and Members of the Godfrey Philips Bravery Awards Institute of India attended the event as distinguished invitees.