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Tuesday, 21 April 2020 12:13 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Devotees marking the first year remembrance of the Easter Sunday attacks at the St. Anthony Church in Colombo - Pix by Ruwan Walpola
Love, forgiveness, tolerance and accountability were highlighted by Archbishop of Colombo Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith in a special message today to mark the first anniversary of the Easter Sunday attacks.
The attacks were carried out at the Shrine of St. Anthony’s Church, Colombo; St.Sebastian's Church, Negombo; Zion Church, Batticaloa; as well as the Cinnamon Grand, Kingsbury, and Shangri-La hotels in Colombo.
21 April marks a year since the attacks and in a message broadcasted via electronic media, Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith spoke of the solidarity within the country, saying: “Those who perpetrated this heinous act wanted racial riots, religious riots in this country. And by our patience, by working together as brothers and sisters of one country, we prevented that serious situation.”
He explained that all those who were affected could have reacted negatively in the days following the attacks, as it was a serious provocation against the peace and harmony of the country, but instead did their best in being patient.
“We honour all those who lost their lives, those who were seriously injured, and all those who lost their loved ones. Families that have been broken up. Those who are suffering. Because, with a lot of resolve, they decided to be magnanimous on that occasion,” he added.
Cardinal Ranjith went on to pay a special compliment to the Buddhist clergy for showing solidarity and closeness during this tragic period.
“[The Buddhist clergy] even went to the extent of visiting some of our churches and even helping to clean up those churches which had been badly damaged.”
Despite expressing his disappointment at the limited steps being taken to hold those responsible accountable for their lapses, he placed his confidence in the current Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) appointed to investigate the attacks. He said he was hopeful they would be able to ascertain who orchestrated the attacks, as well as those who shirked their responsibility in preventing them despite having received warnings in advance.
He went on to thank the incumbent president for his insistence on investigating the attacks thoroughly and ensuring those responsible are brought to book.
“What are human rights when they try to use such to cover up the perpetrators and associates of those who violated the basic right to life of so many innocent human beings – men, women and children?”
The Archbishop of Colombo added: “I wish to extend our grateful thanks to His Holiness Pope Francis who, when he heard about it, from the first moment issued messages of condolences and solidarity with us. He sent his envoy to Sri Lanka to express his closeness to us. We also thank him for making a generous contribution towards the needs of these people.”
