Those who say SL not Sinhala Buddhist not fit to be here: Ittepane Dhamalankara Thera

Anyone who says Sri Lanka is not a country of Sinhala Buddhists are not fit to be in the country, Mahanayaka of the Kotte Chapter, Most Ven. Ittepane Dhamalankara Thera said.

“According to the history that I know of, no Buddhist or nonbuddhist has ever said Sri Lanka is not a Sinhala Buddhist country. Even Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith who is not a Buddhist has said this is a Sinhala Buddhist country and that he is fortunate to live here. In this backdrop, if anyone says that Sri Lanka is not a country of Sinhala Buddhists, such persons are not fit to be in the country,” the Prelate said. He made these comments during a discussion with MP Dinesh Gunawardene and others involved in planning proposed Vesak programmes in the Maharagama area.

The Thera said that parents were justifiably afraid to send their children to school and the only solution was for all Ministers and MPS to visit all schools and remain there for a few hours.

“This should be done without delay. If these elected leaders honestly want to protect the country and nation they should go near the schools. I see no reason why they cannot do it. If they visited these schools, the fear psychosis among parents would vanish. Therefore, I earnestly request all MPS to take up this challenge,” the Thera said.

Ven. Ittepane Thera also opined that presently the country had no government in control, and was moving according to the wishes of a few. “We cannot allow this anarchic situation to continue. The terrorists had planned the attack at a time the President and Prime Minister were on opposite sides and the government was on a completely different side. This had been the worst moment for the nation, and the terrorists must be laughing behind our backs,” he said, adding that public complaints should not be taken lightly and discarded. “If the police cannot take action the army should be given police powers to control the situation. Our Tri-forces have won public trust and confidence. They should be allowed to perform their tasks without undue interference. The public are confident that within a short time the Tri-forces would be able to quell this situation and restore normalcy,” the Thera said.

“Though several persons were appointed as Defence Secretaries, I feel the country’s security should be vested with MP Sarath Fonseka,” he added.

Meanwhile, MP Dinesh Gunawardene said the government could not ask Buddhists to refrain from celebrating Vesak, but ensure the security of the country. “No one can ask us not to celebrate Vesak, and we should not show the rest of the world that we are living in fear. Therefore we should decorate each house and streets as usual,” Mr. Gunawardene said.