Dr. AT Ariyaratne, the Founder President of Sarvodaya and Mr. Samanlal Fernando, the Mayor of Moratuwa Municipal Council welcomed the distinguish guests including His Excellency Ashok K. Kantha, the High Commissioner for India.

After visiting Sarvodaya Suwasetha, Dr. Abdul Kalam was officially welcomed by Dr. AT Ariyaratne at Vishva Samadhi Conference Hall, where more than 1,000 people gathered to greet Dr. Kalam. Dr. Ariyaratne mentioned Dr. Kalam’s visit to Sarvodaya is great honour to the entire Sarvodaya family across the country.

Dr. Abdul Kalam addressed the gathering with a inspirational lecture titled ‘What can I do?’. He mainly spoke to the children and youth and during his speech he highlighted the importance of knowledge, creativity, righteousness of the heart and courage of youth.

Dr. Ariyaratne presented special Memento to Dr. Abdul Kalam as reminder of this historical visit. Mr. Saman Algoda, the Executive Director of Sarvodaya delivered the vote of thanks.

Dr. Abdul Kalam’s lecture is available here in Sinhala and English languages.

The video of his speech is also available with this link.

Photo Credit: Mr. Anura Pieris and Suchith Abeywickrama

Honoured with Bharath Ratna, India’s highest civilian award in 1997, Dr. Kalam during this upcoming visit will headline an inspiring guest lecture titled ‘What we can do?’ at Sarvodaya Headquarters at 9 a. m. at Sarvodaya Headquarters. ‘Listening to a lecture of his calibre will be a rare experience’ Dr. Vinya Ariyaratne, the Generall Secretary of Sarvodaya says.

A hero among the youth of India, Dr. Kalam who lead India’s technological advancement over many years now dedicates his life towards creating a world fit for Children.

Born on 15th October 1931 at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu, Dr. Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, specialized in Aeronautical Engineering from Madras Institute of Technology. Dr. Kalam made significant contribution as Project Director to develop India’s first indigenous Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-III) which successfully injected the Rohini satellite in the near earth orbit in July 1980 and made India an exclusive member of Space Club. He was responsible for the evolution of ISRO’s launch vehicle programme, particularly the PSLV configuration. After working for two decades in ISRO and mastering launch vehicle technologies, Dr. Kalam took up the responsibility of developing Indigenous Guided Missiles at Defence Research and Development Organisation as the Chief Executive of Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).

He was responsible for the development and operationalization of AGNI and PRITHVI Missiles and for building indigenous capability in critical technologies through networking of multiple institutions. He was the Scientific Adviser to Defence Minister and Secretary, Department of Defence Research & Development from July 1992 to December 1999. During this period he led to the weaponisation of strategic missile systems and the Pokhran-II nuclear tests in collaboration with Department of Atomic Energy, which made India a nuclear weapon State. He also gave thrust to self-reliance in defence systems by progressing multiple development tasks and mission projects such as Light Combat Aircraft.

As Chairman of Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC) and as an eminent scientist, he led the country with the help of 500 experts to arrive at Technology Vision 2020 giving a road map for transforming India from the present developing status to a developed nation. Dr. Kalam has served as the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, in the rank of Cabinet Minister, from November 1999 to November 2001 and was responsible for evolving policies, strategies and missions for many development applications. Dr. Kalam was also the Chairman, Ex-officio, of the Scientific Advisory Committee to the Cabinet (SAC-C) and piloted India Millennium Mission 2020.

Dr. Kalam took up academic pursuit as Professor, Technology & Societal Transformation at Anna University, Chennai from November 2001 and was involved in teaching and research tasks. Above all he took up a mission to ignite the young minds for national development by meeting high school students across the country.

In his literary pursuit four of Dr. Kalam’s books – “Wings of Fire”, “India 2020 – A Vision for the New Millennium”, “My journey” and “Ignited Minds – Unleashing the power within India” have become household names in India and among the Indian nationals abroad. These books have been translated in many Indian languages.

Dr. Kalam is one of the most distinguished scientists of India with the unique honour of receiving honorary doctorates from 30 universities and institutions. He has been awarded the coveted civilian awards – Padma Bhushan (1981) and Padma Vibhushan (1990) and the highest civilian award Bharat Ratna (1997). He is a recipient of several other awards and Fellow of many professional institutions.

A limited number of open invitations are available for the general public. Please contact Ms. Janaki on 2655255 before 20^th January, 2012 for early reservations.

Sarvodaya has been active in providing services for the people in the Jaffna Peninsula for the last few decades and the new Sarvodaya District Center of Jaffna will allow Sarvodaya to extend its services for the communities of concern and will act as hub in promoting reconciliation between North and South.

The Center situated along A9 road is very well placed at the entrance to the city of Jaffna and has been designed and constructed appreciating the traditional architectural aspects of Jaffna Peninsula.

The new Center situated at No. 568, Nedunkulam Junction, Kandy Road, Jaffna accommodates the Sarvodaya District Center Office in Jaffna, computer lab with 10 computers, library, Suwadana Center (Health facility), WUSC Vocational Training Facility providing vocational training to youth in the area.

The premises also have reserved space for a Sales Outlet for the village productions to promote entrepreneurship and market linkages facilitating economic recovery.

The occasion was highlighted with a Special Family Gathering where all Sarvodaya staffs island wide participated and a cultural show.

Dr. A. T. Ariyaratne, the founder-president of Sarvodaya, Dr. Vinya Ariyaratne, the General Secretary of Sarvodaya, Ms. Imelda Sukomali, the Government Agent of Jaffna, Ms. Ingrid Knutson, the Country representative of WUSC and Professor S. Mohanadas, the Former Vice Chancellor of Jaffna University were among the distinguish guests.

Mr. S. Sathiyakumar, the Sarvodaya District Coordinator in Jaffna organized the event.

The lecture on ‘Proactive Transformation: Safeguarding the Rights of Women and Children in a Developing Economy’ was delivered by Dr. (Mrs.) Sunitha Krishnan – Co-Founder and Chief Functionary of Prajwala ‘Eternal Flame’ and recipient of Real CNN Hero Award.

Dr. A. T. Ariyaratne, the Founder-President of Sarvodaya Movement in Sri Lanka introducing Dr. Krishnan observed that when one looks at the amount of violations taking place all over the world, and the tragic circumstances women and children live in, all 365 days in the year should be treated as United Nations Human Rights Days. He further stated that he was proud that Sarvodaya had been associated with human rights needs of the communities for over 53 years and that he believed the only way to put the society right, was to win the sovereignty of the people. At present the rights of the citizens has been limited to the right to vote. The citizens would have to work hard to regain the lost sovereignty. Dr. A. T. Ariyaratne welcomed Dr. Mrs. Sunitha Krishnan stating that she needs much more recognition than she has been given up to now.

Dr. Krishnan stated that many women and children were traded for labour, adoption, slavery and prostitution from many countries including India, Bangladesh and even Sri Lanka. She stated that it is important for people to ask what they could do for these victims who go through shame, isolation and guilt. Very often the communities victimize the victim whereas the culprit continues with life without having to face the offence he has committed.

She observed that many victims come from optionless backgrounds, which create a sense of desperation for the sake of wanting a better option. Those who are vulnerable are prayed upon with promises of love, marriage or anything that can give a better option in life. Dr. Krishnan stated that she had rescued 7,436 girls from prostitution, which amounts to a mere 7% of those who continue to languish under these inhuman conditions.

Dr. Krishnan stated that it is important to be oneself, within each persons own limitations with family obligations and one must not talk about reasons as to why it cannot be done, instead, must talk about the way in which it can be done. It was important to stand together with the family. She concluded stating that it is important to realize that action is needed to be taken to safeguard children in general, irrespective of to whom they belong and it is important to build a dialogue to find ways to respond to these problems.

Dr. Harendra de Silva and Richard Danziegar chaired a high level consultation on “Building a Community Network to Protect Women and Children from Violence; what you and I can do”. This session was a highly interactive session and the participants expressed their views during this consultation where important points such as the importance of empowering children to build a network were discussed.

This the main celebration held in Sri Lanka on the day, focused on the theme of ending all forms of violence against Children and engaged over 200 children representing the four main faith communities in Sri Lanka and with over 100 representatives from various organizations working for and with children .

Dr. Vinya Ariyaratne welcoming the participants and introducing the World ay of Prayer and Action for Children event, said “…While there are legal provisions for the protection of the rights of the child they very weak in implementation.  As members of the GNRC while advocating and working for the protection of the rights of the children, we are looking at how we can adopt a spiritual dimension and mobilize faith communities towards the protection of Children.”

Speaking further on the role of the religious communities, he went on to say “In each religion there is a prayer, recitals, meditation or moments of spirituality where we can channel our spiritual energy towards the wellbeing of children. Prayer in itself is not enough, we must also covert our spiritual motivations into practical action for the protection for children. If our religious leaders, religious institutions and spiritual organizations also join in the efforts of the government institutions with such action we can make good progress towards ending violence against children in Sri Lanka.”

Dr. Vinya’s speech was followed by the main highlight of the programme, an interfaith prayer for children.  Ven. Madampagama Assaji Nayake Thero representing the Buddhist tradition, Pravrajika Sushanthaprana Matha-ji and Pravrajika Athmadevaprana Matha-ji representing the Hindu tradition, Moulavi M.F.M. Farood Ihsani and Moulavi J.A. Hibatullah from the Islamic faith and Father Anura Perera representing the Christian faith showed solidarity among faith groups in standing together on stage to lead the participants in blessings and prayer for the protection of children from all forms of violence. The interfaith prayer ended with a minute of silence in memory of all children who’ve suffered from violence over the past years.

In highlighting the issue of violence against children that takes place in Sri Lankan society, the National Commissioner of the Depart of Probation and Childcare, Mr. Sarath Abeygoonawardena said “In currently society violence, abuse and harassment of children is a key challenge we are facing.  The traditional safety net of the family to protect the child is no longer as strong. This is not only in Sri Lanka but we share this challenge with our neighbouring countries of SAARC. Increasingly, the very entity that protected the child in the past, the family has become a place where violence against children takes place. Whether it be from an immediate family member or a relative we have there are many cases of physical, mental and sexual abuse of children taking place “.

Continuing his speech Mr. Abeygoonawardena, who is also the national coordinator of the South Asian Initiative for Violence against Children (SAIEVAC), went on to highlight that primary settings where violence against children takes place include the family, the school, the community and child development centres. He also mentioned the prominent role that media has come to play in the lives of children, and the high occurrences of violence brought to the daily lives of children through various media.

Dr. Hemamal Jayawardena, a Child Protection Specialist at UNICEF spoke to the many children in the audience of the importance of developing their personal capacity, to be able talk and build relationships with parents a strengthening ones safety net.

The self defense display lead by Sensei Indishe Senanayake proved to be both entertaining and educational for the children with few simple self-defence techniques introduced to all.

Ms. Rashmi Vidyani, a 17 year old committee member of the National Children’s Council and a Child Representative on the Governance Committee of SAIEVAC spoke representing Children. She highlighted the importance of a participatory and empowering approach towards ending violence against children saying “All children should have the right to experience a happy childhood and it is a responsibility of all to stand against such occurrences. Instead of breaking their winds we should give them wings to fly !”

In closing the event Ms. Sanjanee Ambegoda, a 20 year old GNRC volunteer who hosted the event spoke about the responsibilities that always go in hand in hand with rights. Reminding the audience of the responsibilities that both adults and children hold towards taking action for the protection of children and the responsibilities that children themselves hold towards enjoying the protective and free environment they are provided with.

Institutions engaged at the event reaffirming their commitment towards the protection of Children included Sarvodaya, GNRC South Asia, The Department of Probation and Childcare UNICEF, SAIEVEC, Suwasetha, Ramakrishna Mission, Ceylon Moor Ladies Association, Don Bosco Child Development Centre – Kalutara, Paraththa Child Development Centre , United Religions Initiative, Inter-religious Peace Foundation, JCI Kollupitiya and the Rawatawatte Roman Catholic School.

The main event felicitating Dr. Ariyaratne’s 80^th birthday was held in Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo, with the participation of a number of local and international distinguish guests including diplomats of several countries, Heads of International and local Non-Governmental Organizations, and over thousand of Sarvodaya members across the island including North and East.

The chief guest of the event was Hon. D. M. Jayaratne, the Prime Minister of Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. Hon. Dr. Sarath Amunugama, the Senior Minister for International Monetary Cooperation delivered the key-note speech.

Special guests including Hon. Karu Jayasuriya, the Deputy Leader of United National Party, Hon. V. Anandasangaree, Leader of Tamil United Liberation Front, Rev. Dr. Kimhiko Murakami, Executive Director, Japan Asian Friendship Society of Japan, Professor Alta Funnessa, the CEO of Gonosashtra Kendra and former Head of Department of Geography and Environment, Dhaka College, Bangladesh, M. Mariappan, Chairman of Sarvodaya Mandal Organization, Tamilnadu, India delivered their well wishes messages in the event.

The Sri Lanka Philatelic Bureau has issued a Special Commutative Cover to mark the occasion. ‘Nisala Ru Sanhitha’, a collection of landmarks of Dr. A. T. Ariyaratne’s life in picture has been compiled and presented to him. Sarvodaya Economic Enterprise Development Services (SEEDS) honored Dr. A. T. Ariyaratne with a plaque for his work towards alternative economic system. The G. T. C. 50 group of former Teachers Training Collage (presently National Institute of Education) honored their colleague. Media Unit of Sarvodaya presented a short documentary film on Dr. A. T. Ariyaratne, felicitating his 53 years of work to the nation.

The cultural items representing Sinhalese, Tamil and Muslim traditions highlighted the event.

Sarvodaya’s success is known worldwide thanks to Dr. A.T. Ariyaratne. His village-based movement currently works in over 15,00 villages throughout Sri Lanka and is focused on an integrated approach to grassroots organizing for rural development and spiritual awakening.

Sarvodaya staff and families in Moratuwa gathered yesterday and today to celebrate this momentous occasion with ceremonies such as the ‘pirith’ (a Buddhist chanting ceremony) and an alms giving (offering of a meal) to 80 Buddhist monks and nuns.

The main felicitation event in honor of Dr. A.T. Ariyaratne’s 80^th birthday will be held on the evening of Nov. 8th at the BMICH in Colombo under the patronage of the Hon. Prime Minister of Sri Lanka D.M.Jayarathne and over 2,000 invitees and Sarvodaya community leaders.

Sarvodaya invites all to share birthday wishes with Dr.Ari on this blog site: http://fusion.lk/wishdrari/.

Dr. Ariyaratne was granted this award for his fifty-three years of work to the nation and the World with the Sarvodaya Movement. This work illustrates the World how Buddha’s teachings can be effectively used in modern times to build grassroots-up, non-violent, social, economic and political transformation around the World.

The late President J. R. Jayewardene was the only other Sri Lankan to receive this award in 1983.

Peace educators and activists from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Myanmar, Pakistan and Sri Lanka will take part in this course supported by the inter-faith network, Global Network of Religions for Children (GNRC). The course centers on the use of the Learning To Live Together manual for Ethics Education for Children developed by Arigatou International in collaboration with UNICEF and UNESCO.

“With many of the South Asian countries either in the midst of or having recently faced violent conflict, the relevance of peace education is very high in the region. In order to transform South Asia in to a zone of peace, hope for the future lies with our younger generations and peace education is a vital investment we must make in this regard” says Dr.Vinya Ariyaratne, GNRC’s Regional Coordinator for South Asia and General Secretary of the Sarvodaya Movement.

Learning To Live Together

Learning to Live Together is a resource material to nurture ethical values needed to learn to live together in plural societies. It tackles peace education through intercultural and interfaith learning to help communities and societies live peacefully together, with respect of the other and dignity for all human beings. Giving focus to the key values of Empathy, Respect, Responsibility and Reconciliation the manual highlights dynamic methodologies to engage young people along with collection of valuable resources and tools for ethics education.

Learning to Live Together provides youth leaders and educators worldwide with the tools for an intercultural and interfaith programme, by which children and young people are able to develop a stronger sense of ethics. It is designed to help the young understand and respect people from other cultures and religions and to nurture their sense of belonging to a common humanity.

More information: www.ethicseducationforchildren.org or write to suchith@sarvodaya.org

(Moratuwa, 02^nd August, 2011)

During his visit to Sarvodaya several Sarvodaya staff members explained the functions of the different units. The ambassador discussed the possibility of future cooperation between Sarvodaya and the Government of India with Drs A.T. and Vinya Ariyaratne.

Although Mr. Kantha was familiar with some of Sarvodaya’s activities he described the range of Sarvodaya’s programs as ‘totally amazing’. He went on to praise both the movement and its founder, Dr. A. T. Ariyaratne, who has received many of India’s most prestigious awards.

After a brief meditation session and speech by Dr. Ariyaratne, the High Commissioner delivered a short speech to Sarvodaya’s staff at a family gathering, he praised the Ghandian values of the organization, saying that one question he is often asked is, ‘Is Ghandian philosophy still relevant today?’ His answer is a resounding ‘yes’ and he remarked that Sarvodaya is the very embodiment of this answer.

He went on to describe the value of the organization in a country that is pulling out of three decades of civil strife. He mentioned the value of bringing torn communities back together and the benefits of peace building. Describing himself as humbled by the organizations work he described it as ‘truly wonderful’.

In the concluding remarks of his speech Mr. Kantha said he looked forward to a continuing relationship with Sarvodaya and promised to return very soon.