The Tsunami which ravaged nearly two third of the coastal area of Sri Lanka from North East to South West of the Island on the 26th December 2004 has left in its wake approximately 31000 dead 5000 missing and over a million displaced. 90000 homes have been totally destroyed while 26,000 are partially destroyed. Thousands of fishing boats have been destroyed thus depriving the populace of their main source of livelihood. Among the dead are many children and others who have been orphaned. Due to the destruction of the infrastructure caused by the rapid inflow of sea water, fresh water wells and the arable land has been contaminated. The devastation by the Tsunami in a matter of 15-30 minutes is unparalleled in history. The Government envisages that the rebuilding and rehabilitation process to take several years. The cost of the destruction is estimated to be several billion dollars.
In this context H.E. the President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga has appointed three apex bodies made up of both State and Private Sector professionals to oversee all aspects of restoration in the affected areas.
-- Accelerating rescue and relief
-- Rebuilding the Nation
-- Logistics and law and order
The international community has responded magnificently to the devastated region with sympathy and compassion coupled with pledges of immediate relief assistance. I take this opportunity on behalf of the Sri Lanka government to express our sincere gratitude and appreciation for the magnanimity of the Government and the people of Pakistan who have not only displayed a spontaneous outpouring of sympathy but immediately responded with donations of food, medicines, tents, medical teams and other relief items worth several millions of dollars.
The private sector as well as the people too have donated large sums of money and material to our Missions in Islamabad and Karachi. All these augur well for the strong bonds of friendship that exist between our two countries.
Sri Lanka and Pakistan have maintained excellent bilateral relations in the fields of politics, commerce, culture and sports throughout. During the past year every endeavour has been made to further strengthen these ties and some of the significant achievements need mentioning. There were several high level visits mainly the visit of the Pakistan Prime Minister to Sri Lanka and the Sri Lanka Foreign Minister to Pakistan. The President of Sri Lanka is scheduled to visit Pakistan in the near future. Under the SAARC programme numerous delegations of Ministers, parliamentarians and high officials visited each others countries.
The long awaited bilateral free trade agreement is nearing completion and will hopefully be ratified shortly. This will certainly increase the volume of trade between the two countries. A Memorandum of Understanding on interaction in the Gem trade and agriculture are also under consideration.
Tourism is a major source of revenue in Sri Lanka. A thorough assessment conducted after the Tsunami has revealed that except for some hotels in the South which need to be repaired all others in the rest of the country are functioning normally. The advantage in Sri Lanka is that tourism is not restricted to the beaches but has many other facets such as the cultural triangle, mountainous region and eco tourism. Its heartening to note that the inflow of tourists continues unabated.
Sri Lanka looks towards the future with hope and expectation. Under the leadership of Her Excellency the President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, the government has committed itself to ensure that the nation comes out of this crisis and has appealed for all Sri Lankans to unite and work together towards reconstruction and rehabilitation of people and the economy.
On this auspicious occasion of Independence I would like to pay a tribute to all our national heroes who led the freedom movement during colonial domination and suffered untold hardships and even death. Let us also remember our leaders, servicemen and civilians who laid down their lives in protecting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of our motherland. Their sacrifice is not in vain. They died that we may have a better tomorrow.
In conclusion I take this opportunity to wish the Government and the people of Pakistan peace and prosperity in the future. Sri Lanka Pakistan Dosti Zinddabad.