Various international organizations and countries of the West seek to induce us to betray our freedom for economic assistance from them. Or else, they seek to once again strengthen separatism in this country. Those of us who love this land should be aware of such forces, said most Reverend Dr. Malcolm Ranjith, Archbishop of Colombo on the occasion of Yuletide Evening at Temple Trees yesterday (21 Dec).

Whoever wins the coming Presidential election should act in a manner as not to betray to foreign forces the freedom we have won for this land with sacrifice of life, the Archbishop of Colombo stressed.


Following is the full text of the speech of most Reverend Dr. Malcolm Ranjith, Archbishop of Colombo on the occasion of Yuletide Evening at Temple Trees yesterday (21 Dec).

Let me first wish that the coming Christmas festival will be one of joy full of the abundant rays of peace & prosperity and the blessings of God. It is clear that we in Sri Lanka can celebrate the coming Christmas amidst peace and joy that did not prevail last year. For nearly thirty years we marked Christmas in the midst of much disaster and insecurity as well as people living in many areas having to abandon their homes and villages and live in a harsh and painful environment as refugees. We were then gripped with fear as to when our lives would be lost through bomb explosions. That situation is almost totally over today. That is a great victory we have won.


It is fitting that we remember with gratitude the officers and other ranks of the armed services and police. We pay our special respect and tribute to those who sacrificed their lives to achieve peace. We also pray to God to shower his blessings on all those heroes of war who were disabled as well as their children and families rendered helpless through all this tragedy.

We also offer our sincere thanks to HE the President and the government for courageously defeating all efforts of national and international forces to prevent the restoration of peace in this our little island, and bringing to naught their efforts to cleanse our land of terrorism and see the dawn of peace. But for that courage this country may still be suffering the agonies of war.

Friends,

It is not wrong to say that if in the past Sri Lanka was subjugated to foreign powers it was because of the various divisions and conflicts that prevailed in our own land and among our own people. The prevalence of divisions among the various communities and religious groups on political and ideological grounds is not beneficial to the progress of the country. It is the policy of foreign forces to creep into the space provided by such divisions and use it to achieve their own selfish aims. Various foreign forces gained maximum benefits though the past 30 years from the divisions among the Sinhala and Tamil people that did not hitherto exist and the conflict and clashes that took place. This is what led to our country being steadily weakened in its human resources and wealth and descending to a situation of dependency. Therefore, what is most needed today is to accept positively the differences that exist among us on religion or ethnicity, respect each others identity and join hands as children of a single mother to restore to the country the glory of the past. Do we not hear today the words of the perennial favourite song – “Bedeegiyoth rata yai sun vee” (Divided the land will perish). If we unite foreign forces will not be able to meddle in our affairs. If divided they will take us in to their grip.

Various international organizations and countries of the West are making even more efforts than in the past to subjugate our land. These forces seek to keep us bound by their conditions. Our answer to them should be “Physician, heal thy self”.

These organizations and states seek to induce us to betray our freedom for economic assistance from them. Or else, they seek to once again strengthen separatism in this country. Those of us who love this land should be aware of such forces.

Whoever wins the coming Presidential election should act in a manner as not to betray to foreign forces the freedom we have won for this land with sacrifice of life. Therefore it is our duty to protect all those who won the war and contributed to such victory. It is not fitting for us to betray them due to pressure from foreign forces.

Similarly, as Sri Lankans let us unite under a single flag. Accepting the individuality of others and respecting it, is a valued quality to achieve this end. Oppressing others on the basis of religion or language should not happen among us. Those who do so will also fall into the category of those who support separatism and seek to inflame the country. It is possible for us to describe such people as traitors to this land.

The most important path to save our country from conspiracies of forces is to avoid sowing enmity on religion and language. Accordingly, it is important to recognize the cultural identity of the Tamil and Muslim people living in the North and other parts of the country to enable them to contribute as soon as possible to the country’s progress. True patriotism means the restoring of normalcy in the North and East with speed, handing over of the administrative structure in those areas to the people through a democratic process, and drawing them to the mainstream of life in Sri Lanka though a sustainable political solution. To the extent this is done the tendency among foreign forces to interfere in the internal affairs of our country can be avoided.

Those of us who love the freedom and independence of our country therefore, kindly call upon Your Excellency to take urgent steps to achieve this end. Similarly, we also wish to stress the importance of restoring with similar speed the democratic trend that prevailed in this country before the war. The freedom and peace that you brought to this country by the defeat of terrorism will then become the new foundation for the future progress of this country.

In this season of Christmas we pray to our Lord for our country.

Together with those of all other religions let us take the path to commit ourselves for a united and dignified Sri Lanka.

I wish you a Happy Christmas filled with the Blessings of the Lord.

May God Bless you all.