President at Int’l Women’s Day meeting:
Eradication of terrorism the highest reward for country’s women
Chaminda Perera and Raja Waidyasekera, Tissamaharama
Special Corr
President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday said the Government gave the
highest reward to women by eradicating terrorism from the land within a
short period. He said women in Sri Lanka underwent a number of hardships
and difficulties due to the war and the Government was able to relieve
their burden by eradicating terrorism from Sri Lankan soil.
Women take the lead |
* Women’s
representation in legislature to be increased
* Contribution by women to
society immense
* Women’s representation in all
fields increased
* Top rungs of judiciary,
administration held by women |
The President stressed that a large number of women can now heave a
huge sigh of relief after the Government curbed the illicit drug menace
through the Mathata Thitha Program.
The President made these observations yesterday at a meeting held at
the Singapore hall at Siri Sanghabopura in Hambantota to mark
International Women’s Day.
He said the Government removed the fear psychosis from the minds of
women. The women in all over the country were in distress and they were
hanging around schools anxiously throughout the day fearing that their
children would fall prey to the terrorists.
President Rajapaksa said that Government ended that era for good. The
President stressed that he has decided to increase the women’s
representation in the legislature. “ He added that women should be given
their due place in society.
The President added that the women should also be prepared to protect
their place in society too.
He added that the women in Sri Lanka faced innumerable problems due
to the illicit drug menace and a number of families disintegrated due to
this situation.
He stressed that he pioneered implementing the Mathata Thitha program
to comply with a request made by a woman at a women’s conference in the
Estate sector. “She requested me to take action against the illicit drug
menace in the region,” he said.
He said that nobody sells cigarettes to the underaged and smoking is
taboo in public places. The women today can heave a sigh of relief as
the drug menace no longer exists in the villages,” he said.
The President reiterated the Government is bound to protect society
and the posterity from all types of woes thought it loses a large amount
of revenue in the process. “We have inherited a culture which is
intertwined with our history of 2500 years. The number of divorce cases
have increased today as society strayed from our rich culture,” he
added.
The President said that the women’s contribution to society and the
country’s economy is immense. He added that their contribution as
expatriate workers and apparel sector employees has helped swell the
country’s foreign reserves.
The President added that the women representation in all fields has
increased remarkably.
The top rungs in the judiciary and administration are held by women
today, he said.
President Rajapaksa said women have been placed in a higher position
although there was an era in which Sri Lankan women were far ahead of
other countries in terms of politics.
He said that Sirimavo Bandaranaike became the world’s first woman
Prime Minister and he was fortunate enough to work under Prime Minister
Bandaranaike and President Chandrika Bandaranaike .
“We established a different Ministry for women as we had a clear
understanding on the importance of women and the children in this
country,” he said.
Minister G.L. Peiries and Tharunyata Hetak Organization Chairman
Namal Rajapaksa were also present. |