Commander Clears the Air & Enlightens Wanni Troops
Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya, Commander of the Army continued the second leg of his visit to the Security Force Headquarters-Wanni (SFHQ-W) on Friday (15) and completed his interaction with Wanni troops whom he himself commanded as the Wanni Commander during the peak of humanitarian operations.
In the wake of unfounded and malicious anti Army allegations being voiced in Geneva and elsewhere, Thursday’s (14) visit of the Commander to the Wanni theatre, was also exclusively, meant to clear the air and enlighten hundreds of Wanni War Heroes who actively contributed to the success of the humanitarian operations.
“All of you, valiant soldiers fought this battle with dedication and commitment with ‘zero casualty’ policy to the civilians. Even fleeing Tamil civilians from LTTE-held areas witnessed the warmth shown by our soldiers as they began reaching no fire zones. Why doesn’t any of those detractors, dare to speak uncountable relief thus, provided by the Army troops to those fleeing, irrespective of multiple threats against their own lives?. Fortunately, both our President and Secretary Defence have stood firm and would not allow anyone to insult our troops under any circumstances,†the Commander queried, addressing cross sections of the troops, serving the 21 Division, 61 Division and 54 Division Headquarters under the Security Force Headquarters-Wanni (SFHQ-W) during his stopovers. The visit also coincided with the issue of New Year greetings to the troops, ahead of the forthcoming traditional New Year in Sri Lanka.
The day’s itinerary commenced after the Commander spoke to a gathering of soldiers serving the 21 Division Headquarters at Anuradhapura where the visiting Army Chief underlined the importance of safeguarding the good image of the Army and the country at all times.
His next stop was at 61 Division Headquarters in Periyamadu where the visiting Commander was received warmly by the General Officer Commanding, 61 Division. After spending about two hours there, the visiting Commander used the opportunity to interact with the troops and spoke to them, opening a bit of his mind, showing sense of warmth and concern.
Afterwards he flew to the 54 Division Headquarters in Mannar and met the troops serving there after a brief address, delivered to them on the same above lines of thinking.
Before the end of the day’s agenda, the Commander went to see the historic Mannar Fort, now under renovation, carried out by Army troops in the area. The Commander during his stay there spoke to the troops and shared a couple of views with them and requested them to ensure the project was brought to completion, meeting the given deadlines.
(Extracted from SL Army Website)
