Although business is brisk for domestic furniture manufacturer, H.D.D. Gunasekera from Medirigiriya in the Polonnaruwa district, he does not intend to keep his ‘vision’ confined to the monetary gains his enterprise brings. Instead, he uses his trade links with the rest of the Eastern Province to foster a spirit of friendship and harmony among the communities of the region.

’Ushering ethnic unity through business links, should be a chief priority of the local business community’, Gunasekera said.’ In the East, I make business interaction with the businessmen of other communities, a chief means of spreading friendliness and good-will among them’, he explained. Goodwill among people was the basis of peace, he said.

The proprietor of Sau Siri Suprima Furniture, Medirigiriya, Gunasekera supplies the Polonnaruwa district and its outlying regions, including Batticaloa. "Business is generally good because the demand is great for Medirigiya furniture, which is popular for its durability and finish’, he said. However, obtaining permits for the transport of timber is proving a problem and this has been even brought to the notice of the President and he is looking forward to a favourable outcome.

An agent for Damro and Fiesta furniture, Gunasekera has also diversified into steel furniture. Currently, some 30 workers are engaged in the latter enterprise which he hopes to expand.