'Friends of Two Cities'

A real program of building the bridge of peace:

Alex PERERA Bandarawela special corre.

It is need of the hour to achieve sustainable peace after 30 year long war. Whiting the present political background strategies favourable to achieve peace created and certain level of success has been achieved.

Contributing to achieve peace is the responsibility not only of the State sector but also of the entire society. The goodwill that disappeared with the war has to be re-inserted.

Trust instead of mistrust, understandings instead of misunderstanding have to be re-established in the hearts of the people. There may be students in North and East who have never met a Sinhalese. They may have developed unhealthy attitudes as a result of war. Therefore it is required to create opportunity for these students to meet and work in collaboration with their counterparts from the South.

Understanding the value of this process Education Ministry has started a program called 'Friends of Two Cities' (Denuwara Mituro).

This is a program that would encourage active participation which creates sense of caring and sharing to re-establish peace.

A program as such was launched in Bandarawela recently involving students and teachers of eleven schools in Kalkuda educational zone, Batticaloa and students and teachers of ten schools in Bandarawela educational zone.

These students and the teachers from East and South exchanged experience in a new environment. They tried to identify common features of different cultures, develop the ability to experience beauty in diversity, understand that political, social and economic problems which are not based on ethnicity or nationality but on common problems irrespective of ethnicity or nationality, help the development of patriotism through identifying national heritage and natural resources, realize the futility of war, understand the value of human dignity through developing a deep and prolonged friendship.

Most of the students came from Kalkuda met a group of Sinhalese for the first time in their life. The students and the teachers exchanged everything in the four days of their stay in Bandarawela. The departure was very sentimental. All were crying.

Director, Social Integration and Peace Education Unit of the Ministry of Education B. W. Padmashantha said that he is conducting this program with the guidance of Education Minister Susil Premajayantha and the mission in this program is to help the massive peace process launched by President Mahinda Rajapaksa after the war.

G.T.Z. program sponsored by the German Government is giving the financial help for the project.

Director, GTZ Dr. Patricia Bitter, Deputy Director of Education Bandarawela J. M. Jayasundara and some other officials of the Education Ministry, some Directors of Kalkuda Education Zone, also participated in the event.