Second anniversary of the liberation of motherland :

National War Heroes Day on grand scale

Rasika Somarathna and Priyanka Kurugala

The National War Heroes Day Celebration - 2011 is to be held on a grand scale with 8,700 Security Forces and police personnel joining the victory parade at the Galle Face green on May 27. The main War Heroes commemoration ceremony is to be conducted near the war heroes cenotaph at the Parliamentary Grounds. Both events are to be held under President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s patronage.

The Prime Minister, the Speaker, ministers, governors, Defence Ministry Secretary dignitaries, war heroes and their families and the public will participate.

Military spokesman Major General Ubaya Medawela said that the victory parade would include air and naval shows conducted by the Sri Lanka Air Force and the Navy.

A 21 gun salute to the nation and another 21 gun salute to the President too would be accorded.

The inaugural War Heroes Commemoration Flag was issued to President Rajapaksa by the Ranaviru Seva Authority at Temple Trees last Thursday.

“A gamut of activities have been organized in remembrance of war heroes who sacrificed their lives and limbs to safeguard the territorial integrity of the motherland,” Media Centre for National Security (MCNS) director general Lakshman Hulugalle said at a press briefing.

The Ranaviru Commemoration Day is celebrated on May 19 each year. This will be the second consecutive time that the war heroes are remembered after the successful completion of the Humanitarian operation,” on this day Hulugalle added.

According to Ranaviru Seva Authority, ceremonies to commemorate war heroes was held on May 20 near the cenotaph in Mailapitiya, May 21 at the War Heroes Memorial in Mullaithivu, and at the District Secretariat in Eastern Province, and near the cenotaph in Badulla. Similar events also are planned on May 24 at the War Heroes Memorial in Anuradhapura, May 25 at the cenotaph in Krunegala and at the War Heroes Memorial in Ratnapura and on May 26 at the War Heroes Memorial in Galle.

A number of programmes which would benefit Ranaviru families too are to be launched. Educational scholarships are to be provided to deserving children of war heroes.

Major General Medewela said the Mihindu Seth Medura in Attidiya dedicated to disabled war heroes’ welfare too is to be opened during this period. Several of activities too have been planned in the Northern and Eastern provinces.