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Sunday, April 27, 2008 - 15.02 GMT |
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Resolved to save youth from modern day savagery
- President Rajapaksa
to Commonwealth Youth Ministers |
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“Sri Lanka has for the past three decades been faced with a threat by the most brutal terrorist
organization in the world, a terror outfit that does
not hesitate to use our youth as pawns and cannon
fodder in its brutal operations….. Therefore, it is
our resolve not to give in to these forces of
terror; to save our youth from the clutches of these
forces of modern day savagery,” said President Mahinda Rajapaksa addressing the Seventh Meeting of
the Commonwealth Youth Ministers, which opened in
Colombo today (27).
“We know the danger it poses to our children and
youth. Among the lasting consequences of the brain
washing of child soldiers is such that even in adult
life many of them remain committed to violence and
terror,” the President said.
President Rajapaksa added: “There is an interesting
observation that youth are used for war but not
generally used for peace building. Today, throughout
the world it is estimated that over three hundred
thousand persons below the age of 18 are involved in
armed conflict with non-state actors whilst another
five hundred thousand have been recruited to
military forces. In many situations youth are seen
to be the source and origin of conflict due to
perceived grievances and frustrations, both social
and economic. Therefore, in all our societies that
are affected by conflict it is necessary to build on
the hope and goodwill of youth for the cause of
peace and understanding.”
Here is the text of the
President’s address:
It is my pleasure to welcome you all to Sri Lanka to
participate in this Seventh Meeting of the
Commonwealth Youth Ministers. My country one of the
oldest members of the Commonwealth is glad to have
you in our midst enjoying the renowned hospitality
of Sri Lanka.
You will find here a most suitable location to
discuss the emerging issues of youth development,
specifically, the linkages between peace-building,
social development and transformation as you address
the theme of this meeting, “Youth and Peace
Building”.
The unique nature of the Commonwealth spread across
the continents with diverse political structures
that embrace democracy is well positioned to discuss
the issues that affect youth around the world today.
Our acceptance of democracy must enable us to
identify the problems faced by the youth in our
countries linked by so many common causes.
Similarly, we are also in a better position to
arrive at solutions to these problems based on the
traditions and wisdom of our societies and the
shared knowledge of modern social structures.
Our government recognizes the importance of youth in
national development. We see in our youth the future
of our country which leads to a commitment to give
the highest priority to ease the concerns of youth
and resolve the main problems that face them.
These problems are made worse today by the economic
hardships imposed on most of our member countries by
external forces largely beyond our control. This
situation calls for a common resolve to meet the
challenges to the development of our youth.
We see today the importance within the Commonwealth
of initiatives directed towards creating greater
opportunities for education and employment of youth
in a culture of understanding of youth and their
aspirations. There is the need for
inter-connectivity of youth, where they learn from
shared experiences separated as they are, in
different cultures but, brought together in the
common search for progress.
The theme of this meeting, Youth and Peace Building,
can benefit from Sri Lanka’s own experience, which
can relate very well to other countries of the
Commonwealth, too. Sri Lanka has for the past three
decades been faced with a threat by the most brutal
terrorist organization in the world, a terror outfit
that does not hesitate to use our youth as pawns and
cannon fodder in its brutal operations to attack the
sovereignty and territorial integrity of this
country.
Its use of young boys and girls as child soldiers to
carry arms for the forces of terror has been
condemned by the United Nations and all those who
seek peace and democracy in the world, including
several members of the Commonwealth. I am aware that
Sri Lanka is not alone in facing this brutality of
child soldiers.
We know the danger it poses to our children and
youth. Among the lasting consequences of the brain
washing of child soldiers is such that even in adult
life many of them remain committed to violence and
terror. Therefore, it is our resolve not to give in
to these forces of terror; to save our youth from
the clutches of these forces of modern day savagery.
Sri Lanka for its part has an extensive
rehabilitation programme for children who were
involved in armed conflict. However, I believe that
these children must be returned to their parents for
there can’t be anything better than parental love
and care.
We trust this meeting will look at this situation
for the threat it poses to the youth of the
Commonwealth and the world and see how best we could
all use the resources of our youth for the cause of
peace and reconciliation.
We see today the need for better empowerment of
youth to overcome the growing challenge of
unemployment that is of increasing concern to youth.
This calls for the development of the total
personality of the youth through a more balanced
education, skills development, sports and
recreation, in an environment enriched by culture
and religion encouraging life in harmony with
nature. All this requires political stability and
economic development, matters that are at the very
core of interests of the Commonwealth.
In this context Sri Lanka can boast that 40 per cent
of the nominations of political parties or
independent groups contesting local government
elections are from youth between 18 to 35 years of
age. Youth thus empowered by the communities they
live in, have proved to be a powerful force for
development of democracy and peace building in Sri
Lanka. Youth main-streaming is at the heart of a
country’s development agenda. I believe this to be a
core element of the Commonwealth Plan of Action for
Youth Empowerment.
We must give our youth greater opportunities to
develop their own talents which need changes in
attitudes towards the role of youth, their
aspirations and their search for new challenges to
overcome. It’s just last Wednesday that my
government initiated a programme in partnership with
our closest neighbour and fellow Commonwealth member
India, to raise the level of English Language
teaching in our country and provide access to our
youth to the opportunities available by the boom in
the IT Industry. The Commonwealth is today most
suited to engage in such participatory development
for our youth.
I am happy to state that Sri Lanka’s investment in
our youth and our future has ensured a free
education system from kindergarten to university
level which also provides free school text books and
uniforms while children are in the primary and
secondary schools. It is also a matter of pride and
satisfaction that 97 percent of our youngsters are
enrolled at school. Our social welfare programmes
have consistently placed Sri Lanka high in the
United Nations Development Indices.
Also, despite the ravages of terrorism and the
enormous strain it places on our economy, we have
made significant advances in social and economic
development. We are proud to have the longest
tradition of representative democracy in Asia and,
to be among first developing countries to promote
universal health and education, gender equality and
social mobilization. We have achieved exceptional
socio-economic indicators - way ahead of those
normally expected of a country in the lower and
middle-income range and we are now on the path to
achieve or surpass many of the Millennium
Development Goals.
While facing up to the threat of terrorism and the
harsh effects of globalization, the Sri Lankan
economy grew by 6.8 per cent last year continuing a
trend in such growth in recent years indicating
progress towards a higher growth path. On employment
that is so important to youth, Sri Lanka saw its
level of unemployment drop to its lowest rate of 6
per cent last year giving cause for much hope to our
youth.
All these successes have helped Sri Lanka to record
a significant reduction in poverty among the people
with notable achievements in some districts that
earlier had high levels. In 2002, 22.7 per cent of
our population was below the poverty line and this
improved tremendously to 15.7 per cent by December
2007. The percentage drop in poverty over 5 years is
the fastest ever. It is also satisfying to note that
there has been a substantial increase in the Per
Capita Income of our people. It now stands at US
dollars one thousand six hundred and seventeen
(1,617) a sharp increase from US dollars nine
hundred and eighty one (981) in the year 2003.
At the time of our election in November 2005 only 5
per cent of the population had literacy in
Information Technology. We are glad to have extended
IT literacy to 20 per cent by December 2007 with
considerable progress in the rural areas. Our
creating a network of 500 rural tele-centres styled,
Nenasala has been instrumental in this increase in
IT literacy. Our aim is to have 1000 Nenasalas
islandwide by January next year with a goal to reach
50 per cent IT literacy by end 2010.
Another aspect concerning the life of youth is
morality, the decline of which has given rise to an
escalation of the incidence of AIDS throughout the
world, particularly among young adults. Here again,
religious guidance and spiritual orientation would
be the sole remedy to save world’s young people from
destruction. Coupled with this global menace of AIDS
is the use of illegal drugs which has destroyed
youth in their prime. Our government having
understood this most unfortunate situation has
launched a programme “Mathata Thitha” which means a
full stop to drugs, tobacco and alcohol. After 2
years of operation the programme has been rated as
successful and young people have benefited immensely
by it.
There is an interesting observation that youth are
used for war but not generally used for peace
building. Today, throughout the world it is
estimated that over three hundred thousand persons
below the age of 18 are involved in armed conflict
with non-state actors whilst another five hundred
thousand have been recruited to military forces. In
many situations youth are seen to be the source and
origin of conflict due to perceived grievances and
frustrations, both social and economic. Therefore,
in all our societies that are affected by conflict
it is necessary to build on the hope and goodwill of
youth for the cause of peace and understanding.
An important element in regard to youth in conflict
is that we must devise ways and means to handle
young people in post – conflict situations. What
plans have we got for the young people after the
conflicts are over? How do we bring back those youth
in conflict into normalcy? These are areas still
unresolved.
We have in our youth the genuine ambassadors of
peace when our societies involve them in peace
building and conflict resolution. Youth who are not
yet spoilt by the divisions among adults are better
able to carry the torch of peace and reconciliation
and be the signal of a new order of tolerance and
understanding. Therefore I believe that this Colombo
meeting will be able to reflect on the manner in
which the Commonwealth Youth Programme can involve
young people affected by conflict in meaningful and
practical programmes, aimed at peace building in
areas of conflict throughout the Commonwealth.
It is also important to emphasize, Ladies and
Gentlemen, that “youth and peace building” is of
relevance not only to war – torn countries and those
in the developing world. Even the most economically
and socially stable of our member countries are
grappling with issues of social breakdown and
violence including drug-related crime and terrorism.
Peace building has therefore become a vital part of
nation building in the widest sense where
sustainable peace is secured by building political
cultures, institutions and economies that are fully
inclusive of young people of all ethnic and social
backgrounds. I believe the discussions would focus
on the most practical and feasible measures to
address these issues.
In this context I am happy that the Commonwealth
Heads of Government Meeting’s mandate, for Respect
and Understanding has been included in your agenda.
This report which focuses on the preventive aspect
by exploring ways and means to mitigate factors that
have a potential fuelling for conflict would provide
some important inputs for the Commonwealth Plan of
Action for Youth Empowerment.
The Youth of the Commonwealth have every promise of
playing a significant role in Peace Building in our
world given the opportunity and encouragement for it
by greater interaction among societies and cultures.
We have sportsmen and sportswomen who can make their
own impact for the promotion of peace and
understanding.
In this context I propose to this Conference to
resume the Commonwealth Youth Exchange Programme to
bring about the interaction of youth so important
for peace building. Such exchanges of youth are also
most useful to strengthen the bonds of friendship
within the Commonwealth.
In conclusion I wish to refer to an extract from the
Report of Respect and Understanding and I quote
“when young people are disenfranchised or humiliated
or made to feel that they have little to say and no
future, they become drawn into movements or
ideologies that appear to guarantee them a place in
the work world and give them solid identity
(unquote). This reflects the reality of today’s
society. I leave you Ministers to explore ways and
means through your deliberations in arresting this
trend.
I wish this conference all success and once again,
wish you a very pleasant stay in Sri Lanka.
May you be blessed by the Noble Triple Gem!
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