Indian Buddhists say:

Make Lanka terrorism free

**Over 200,000 Indian Buddhists attend conference

**A Sri Lanka-India Friendship Circle

**Development process threatens mankind and nature

The All India Buddhist Assembly adopted a resolution calling for the total eradication of all forms of terrorism from Sri Lanka and the entire SAARC region at its 22nd annual convention held in Maharastra, India on January 10 and 11.

This was disclosed by JHU Parliamentary Group Leader Ven. Aturaliye Ratana Thera at a press conference at the National Library and Documentation Board auditorium yesterday.

Ven. Ratana Thera who led the Sri Lanka delegation to the convention, said more than 200,000 Buddhists from all parts of India attended this conference. Another 25,000 people professed Buddhism at this convention.

He said Indians belonging to the Shakya and Dalit class were professing Buddhism in large numbers at present.

Ven. Ratana Thera said they also adopted a program to set up a Buddhist Education Institute on a 11-acre plot in Maharastra which has a population of over 80 million of which more than 25 per cent were Buddhists. At this convention, they also founded a Sri Lanka-India Friendship Circle under his Chairmanship.

Ven. Upagupta Thera of Maharastra was appointed secretary while a 31- member Executive Committee representing all Indian States was also appointed.

Ven. Ratana Thera who delivered the keynote address at this convention, said the development process in the world which was centred round Europe and USA later was now crumbling threatening the very existence of mankind and nature.

Global warming had become the most pressing problem in the world today. The main contributory factor for this situation was aggressive and greedy development policy launched by Europe. Today glaciers were getting melted submerging islands and causing floods and landslides. On the other hand forest fires were spreading causing desertification, he said.

“The crisis resulting from this development which exploited the resources of the present generation cannot be overcome by a community or country single handed. We cannot overcome this crisis by going back to that comprador system which built castles in the air and laid emphasis on unlimited consumption of meat without concern for animals and plants.

The whole world today needed a new concept based on love and compassion which believed in the existence of nature. That is why Buddhism based on human values was needed to console the whole world,” he said.