The people of Sri Lanka should move forward together as one Sri Lankan people with no further polarization based on labelling some as victors and the others as vanquished, Human Resources and Disaster Management Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said, addressing the Leopard Capital Investor Forum, at Cinnamon Lakeside last week.

"From the perspective of a Government Minister charged with the subjects of Disaster Management and Human Rights, I have viewed the damage and destruction of both human and physical resources of the country in the last phase of the war as posing a challenge that confronts us in the post-conflict phase. We must, as a people, seize the many opportunities that will come our way and not to make the same mistakes as in the past when we failed to exploit opportunities for the betterment of the people of this country. Visiting the conflict affected regions, in particular, which are undergoing a transformation due to the present reconstruction programmes of the Government; I believe the time has dawned for the country as a whole to reap the benefits of peace that the military victories have brought about. I am confident that, given lasting peace and stability, this country has the potential to progress very fast and even catch up with the front-runners in the region.

In terms of living standards, we were at the top of the table in 1948, at the time we gained independence, second only to Japan among Asian countries. We have fallen behind the front runners and others who were trailing behind us have caught up with us or have overtaken us. However, despite the conflict, we have made some progress in the last few decades and reached the status of a middle-income country, showing the resilience and indomitable spirit of the Sri Lankan people.

"There is no gainsaying that throughout the history of humankind peace has always held the key to prosperity in any country. Economic advancement and prosperity will tend to reinforce the peace achieved through military operations after much sacrifice in terms of human and physical resources. The global experience and the 2500 year history of Sri Lanka provides numerous examples to support this assertion. I am confident that at this critical moment in the country’s history we can and will rise to the occasion. In doing so, we must be guided by the pragmatic policies of the Government of President Mahinda Rajapakse and achieve economic advancement with equity thereby ensuring and sustaining peace.

"Looking ahead I will try to describe some of the salient activities concerning the efforts the Government has initiated in the post conflict period to lay the foundations and to prepare the ground for a massive reconstruction effort in the North and the East. The efforts at resettlement of civilian population and infrastructure development will serve as an impetus for subsequent public and private initiatives requiring investment to address problems of poverty, low standards of living and the lack of employment.

"I would like to briefly describe the activities the Government undertook in the immediate aftermath of the liberation of LTTE controlled areas. As you may be aware, the Government was able to liberate the East two years ago. At the conclusion of the hostilities there, we faced similar problems that we now face in the North concerning, demining of the, areas of return, the opening of roads for vehicular transport and civilian resettlement. In the East, our work proceeded smoothly winning the approbation of the international community and we were able to complete the work well ahead of schedule.

"We have brought to bear on our work in the North the wealth of experience that we gathered in the course of doing the same work in the East. We are confident that we would complete this work in the next six months and return these areas to civilian administration in the same way as we did in the East. This will pave the way for elected officials to represent the interests of the people of the North effectively. The Government is anxious to achieve this as soon as practically feasible. Contrary to some pessimistic voices, I believe a sound civil administration, sensitive to the needs of the population, will contribute immensely to peace building and exert a positive influence on economic advancement in the region.

The District of Mullaitivu though affected by the war has managed to restore normalcy in most areas of civilian life. While we have commenced resettlement in the area, a couple of weeks ago we managed to open two of the main schools in the District. This is a small example of what I mentioned above.

"The work completed to date consists of the return and release of over hundred and thirty five thousand IDPs in their own villages, demining of key location’s such as the Mannar "rice bowl" was deemed necessary as a matter of priority to enable resumption of livelihoods. The opening of the A9 the main trunk route linking Colombo and Jaffna will lead to closer integration of the economy of this region with the national economy. The work on the restoration of the railway track between Vavuniya and Jaffna has also commenced and we expect to complete it within the shortest possible space of time. This will further strengthen the economic integration of this region into the national economy. However, I would hasten to add that there is still a great deal of work to be undertaken.

"Government will make every effort in the next few years to complete the process of economic integration of this region to ensure that goods and services flow freely into and out of this region. When all these developments are completed, the economies of the two regions can be expected to increase significantly in their contribution to boosting the overall growth figure for the entire economy. According to estimates of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, the per capita income that is now around US $ 2100 will increase to over US$ 4000 in the next five years.

"With such ambitious targets, why should anyone in their right senses hold back the process of resettlement? There have been many criticisms levelled at the Government of Sri Lanka that it is slow in resettling the affected IDPs in their own villages. Whilst I am fully aware of the undesirability of keeping IDPs in camps unnecessarily for long periods, the government is not convinced that it is a good policy to rush them into areas that have not been fully cleared and opened up for civilian settlements and had basic infrastructure in place to enable the resumption of livelihoods and normality. Every citizen of this country needs to have reasonable access to basic facilities wherever they live. Resettling and returning them without adequate preparation will be counterproductive.

The LTTE eliminated democratic voices to such an extent that over the years nearly 50 Senior Tamil politicians were assassinated. Institutions of democratic governance have fallen into decline and they need to be restored. One of the significant contributions made by the military victory is that moderate voices reflecting all shades of the socio-ethnic spectrum are now being heard. The President has himself taken on the mantle of leadership in addressing these issues and achieving home-grown resolutions to the outstanding issues. Through his reconciliation initiative, a meeting of minds on crucial areas that proved elusive in the past and appeared to divide and polarise us into opposing camps, is becoming possible. I am confident that if we achieve our manifold objectives, terrorism will never darken the shores of our motherland ever again.