Need to think ‘outside the box’

I am grateful, Mr Speaker, for this opportunity to support the budget allocation and the work of the Ministry of National Languages and Social Integration amongst others. In fact my one complaint is that not enough has been given for the work of this extremely important ministry. In his budget speech the President made clear the seminal contribution to national development of the activities associated with this ministry, and I can only hope that its work does not suffer from a shortage of resources.

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Social media and human rights:

Opportunities for reshaping democratic engagement

Post-armed conflict Sri Lanka should develop on efforts to establish cyber relationships between peoples – especially those who have left our country due to violence or other causes. I have often said that these people must be coopted into assisting with our development and national renewal. With the defeat of terrorism the message of peace, brotherhood and reconciliation can be most effectively deployed through social media. This is not to merely promote government policy and support peace-building and mutual understanding by being a part of some media or propaganda campaign. Genuine exchange of views about issues, perspectives, perceived differences and the like can be generated by concerned citizens and will only help in fostering the sense of mutual understanding and respect.

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Harvesting rainwater means harnessing life

Regulations will be introduced to make rainwater harvesting for daily use compulsory for all government institutions, Water Supply and Drainage Minister Dinesh Gunawardane said in Parliament recently. The minister said he introduced this concept when he was the Urban Development Minister. He said rainwater harvesting is done successfully in countries such as India and Nepal.

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