President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday said that the law of the land is applicable to all citizens of the country equally and Forces personnel are no exception.

He was addressing the convocation of the Sir John Kotelawala Defence University at BMICH today (28 Oct).

The President added that Forces personnel have to comply with the country’s military, civil and criminal law. He stressed that they cannot evade the civil law of the country merely because of being military personnel.

You are going out today to serve your motherland that was protected by the immense sacrifices of officers who went before you. It is not blood but sweat that you must shed today. I call upon you to go out prepared to work tirelessly to prevent the shedding of a single drop of blood, stated President Mahinda Rajapaksa.


We trained and disciplined hundreds and thousands of young sons and daughters, and overcame this challenge [of defeating terrorism] with their strength. We have now acquired a generation of thousands who are knowledgeable, disciplined and have strategic thinking. We will use them to build this nation, he said.

President Rajapaksa further stated that a graduate of a university who seeks to put into practice what one has learnt can discover gaps between theory and practice. 'In seeking to bridge those gaps it is necessary to have experience, maturity and creativity', he said.

'Therefore, whichever University you graduate from, it is the responsibility of the educated generation to act in a manner which brings pride to the nation', he emphasized.

'War is now over. It is time to commit ourselves to build the country which was freed with the sacrifice of life. How this could be done is the question before the nation. We must do this in the same way we freed the nation'.

'While you enrich your mind with professional knowledge your heart should be filled with love for the country. Therefore, this University should not only serve the needs of the army and government but also provide professionals required by the private sector, the President stated.

The purpose of all Universities today is to produce the citizens necessary to build the nation. Wherever you work you must bear in mind that you belong to the combined services of Sri Lanka, he added.