A stanza of Alfred Lord Tennyson flashed upon my mind when I heard
the momentous speech of President Mahinda Percy Rajapaksa. Let me recall
it once again.
“Self-reverence, self-knowledge, self-control
These three alone lead to sovereign power,
Yet not for power (power of herself
Would come uncalled for), but to live by law,
Acting the law we live without fear,
And because right is right, to follow right
Were wisdom in the scorn of consequence.”
President Mahinda Rajapaksa knows how to follow the right amidst
various impediments which he has already overcome. He is a patriot not
by words but by deeds. Mother Lanka and her joy knows no bounds when our
President makes a laconic speech wherever he goes.
As Tennyson spells out, he bequeaths those three qualities:
Self-knowledge, Self-reverence and Self-control. That is why he could
win the majority of people in the world.
Hail President! You are a scholar and gentlemen.
V.K.D.S. Jayawardena
Uda-Thuththiripitiya
The war has ended now. Everyday in the past, we used to hear news of
bomb explosions somewhere. Many were dead or injured. We used to wonder
whether any of our loved ones were among those victims. Now all these
are over and we, as citizens can breathe in peace after the war was won
due to the sacrificial, dedicated and determined efforts of our valiant
soldiers.
We now have to live in harmony and with love for one another,
irrespective of our ethnic identities. This feeling of love and unity is
very well poised in a report and a photo published in the Daily News of
02.10.2012 on page 9 under the caption titled “Recalled to Life through
Rehabilitation”.
On this page there appears three photos relating to this fact. In the
first picture one of our soldiers grips the hand of an ex-LTTE female
cadre who is in a bus which brought a crew of ex-LTTE female cadres to
Colombo on a goodwill mission. They had been rehabilitated in a centre
in Vauniya under the leadership of Brigadier Dharsana Hettiarachchi,
whose photograph is also depicted alongside.
We hope that this peaceful attitude will continue to flourish
uninterrupted in our hearts more than ever among all of us without
hatred to humanity, race, language or religion wise.
D. Samarasekera
Kaduwela
There is a gross violation of the Animals Protection Ordinance taking
place at Meeraniya Street and Wilson Street in Colombo 12. I hope that
animal lovers, protectors or law enforcement authorities will take
serious notice. I bring to everyone's notice about this violation, so
that some steps may be taken immediately to reduce the agony of the
cattle about to be slaughtered on 27th October 2012.
If you walk along Meeraniya Street and Wilson Street in Hulftsdorp,
you will see a large number of cattle including calves tied to lamp
posts for several days at a stretch with ropes less than two feet in
length restricting their movement. One is tied at Wilson Street near the
Courts to a coconut tree in a way that it cannot lie down and it has
been standing for the last one week.
These sights are heart wrenching. Any how they have been condemned to
die in a few days time. Till then, they should live with a little
comfort and freedom.
D.J.L.S. Karunaratne
Colombo 12
I wrote a letter to the previous IGP which I posted many months ago.
It did not yield any results and the menace continues unabated.
I am sending a copy of the letter which speaks for itself, to the
Citizens’ Mail Column for the information of readers.
S.K. Perera
Nugegoda
'The Inspector General,
Sri Lanka Police Force.
As an inconvenienced resident of Wijerama Junction in Nugegoda, I
wish to complain about a major highway hindrance to all.
This is the very large herd of cattle that roams daily throughout the
day in the vicinity of this junction, roaming between the Delkanda and
Navinna junctions. They obstruct traffic on this very busy highway - the
High level Road and invade all the private lanes and gardens, destroying
plants and disturbing the garbage that is put out by the residents for
the weekly collection.
This is a menace that should stop immediately. No cattle farmer
should be legally permitted to harass the public in this manner. There
is no herdsman to guide them or keep them tethered to grasslands.
They walk into gardens at night to take refuge in private properly.
Please instruct your officers to handle this problem with immediate
effect, failing which I will be complaining direct to higher authority.
Yours truly
S.K. Perera'
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