SL Peace Council holds inter-religious convention

COLOMBO(News 1st) - The Sri Lanka National Peace Council held an inter-religious convention in Colombo today (January 28). The Conference was organized with assistance from USAID. At the conference chairman of the Sri Lanka national Peace Council Jehan Perera said that Sri Lanka is a multicultural, multi-religious country, but that doesn't mean that it loses its identity. He added "We have a history. We have a culture and a religion. We have to respect that." He went on to say that America is one of the most powerful nations in the world, they had major issues with their President and even within their Parliament yet their institutions helped resolve them. He concluded with "we want stronger institutions too. The constitution and the law must reduce the power possessed by a single individual. T.A. Ariyarathne the founder of Sarvodaya Organisation also had some opinions to share. "Following the introduction of Buddhism, we found our unique way of existence. If any immigrants were to arrive without desecrating our way of life we accepted them as our own people." He noted that when the reign of Sinhalese Monarchs concluded, the reverends reached out to Kandasami and made him king Sri Wickrama Rajasinghe. He added that incidents like these led to a peaceful country and they could be inspirational in the quest to make a peaceful Sri Lanka. Aliana Teplitz, U.S Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives also mentioned that she believes in a prosperous future. "The U.S. government has, in fact, has worked with Sri Lanka to advance its development goals for more than 60 years. Providing assistance to improve the lives of Sri Lanka across the country." She noted that through their agency they have invested more than 2 billion dollars over that period of time.