PRESIDENT Mahinda Rajapaksa chided the local and international forces that try to bring Sri Lankan soldiers before an international war crimes tribunal, at yesterday’s ceremony to mark the 60th anniversary of the Sri Lanka Army. He added that such cowards will not win the hearts and minds of the general public.
“The Sri Lankan soldier did his best to minimise civilian casualties and acted with great discipline absent in many Armies around the world. And the local and international forces that try to tarnish their image will not succeed and neither will they win the hearts and minds of the Sri Lankans,” he said. “Just last week, Hillary Clinton said rape was used as a weapon by the Sri Lanka Army. What they have to realize is when they point a finger at us, three fingers are pointed at them,” he added.
President added that terrorism is born and nurtured because of the lack of development in a country and that the deaths of over 30,000 troops in the battle against terrorism will only be validated only if the country is able to achieve economic development.
“There will be no place for terrorism when there is development in the country and that’s why we have implemented so many development programmes throughout the country,” he said. During his speech, the President stated that all the military analysts of the world are studying the Sri Lanka Army’s victory against the LTTE.
“It is the first time in modern history that a guerrilla group has been totally defeated militarily and for hundreds of years military experts will study our tactics. But, if they just stick to studying military strategy they will not fully understand this victory. They will also have to study the humaneness of the Sri Lankan soldier and the sacrifices made by the civilian population,” he said. “That’s how we have become the proudest Army in the world today,” he added.
(Courtesy: The Nation)
