Social conciliation should be present at all levels: Basil

Friday, 25 July 2014 00:27 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Social conciliation is an aspect that should be present in every field, community and public service, said Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa.

It should be present at all levels. There should be a village-to-village social conciliation, province-to-province conciliation and so on. Social conciliation should not be confined to making ethnic communities come together. It is an all encompassing activity that should take place at all levels, he said, addressing the media at a symposium organised by the Ministry of Mass Media and Information at the Ministry on Social Conciliation and the Role of Media. Amidst various sinister forces trying to cause ethnic unrest in the country using those vulnerabilities in the social fabric, social conciliation emerged in 2005. Although there had been a conflict in the country until 2009, it remained a conflict between a group that had taken up arms and the Sri Lankan Security Forces. The people have a right to know the truth, but in communicating the truth, the parties concerned should do so with a sense of responsibility, he added. Mass Media and Information Minister Keheliya Rambukwella, Mass Media and Information Ministry Secretary Dr. Charitha Herath, Presidential Spokesman Mohan Samaranayaka, Information Department Director General Prof. Ariyaratna Athugala and Colombo University Political Science Department Senior Lecturer Dhamma Dissanayake were also present.