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Message from Her Excellency the President on the occasion of the Deepavali Festival I have great pleasure in extending warm greetings to all Hindus in Sri Lanka who celebrate Deepavali today. Deepavali, which is the festival of lights, is celebrated by devotees in the age-old custom of lighting rows of lamps. This is to signify the defeat of arrogance, evil and cruelty and the attainment of wisdom. There is deep significance attributed to this festival of Deepavali. It is supposed to unify people and encourage peaceful co-existence. It is also the period for giving and sharing. As the President of Sri Lanka, I am happy that this day of religious significance has helped you to preserve your religious traditions and contributed immensely to greater understanding of your fellowmen. We are now at a very crucial stage, when, in a few weeks time the people will decide on the future of the country. Let us in the spirit of Deepavali, join hands to put an end to the evils of war and create a prosperous Sri Lanka, based on the principle of peaceful co-existence. I send my greetings to all of you on this very auspicious occasion and wish that this year’s dawn of the Deepavali festival would herald an era of peace and tranquility to this country as a whole. Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga 13 November 2001
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Sri Lankan
President Chandrika Kumaratunga in her Deepavali message Wednesday,
invited people of all ethnicities living in Sri Lanka to join hands to put
an end to the twenty-year-old ethnic conflict and create a peaceful nation
to live in peace and harmony.
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