(COLOMBO, LANKAPUVATH) –In a message to mark the World Children’s Day, which falls today President Gotabaya Rajapaksa urged the parents to let the children enjoy their childhood at liberty, as childhood is irreversible.
He said in the face of the pandemic many restrictions are imposed on children and plans are being implemented to bring the children’s world closer to them expeditiously.
“The school classroom and the playground are still at a distance from our children. It has become a priority of the government to revive all those lost aspirations of the nation’s children in a secure manner,” the President said.
Following is the full text of the President’s message:
In the face of the current global pandemic, the restrictions imposed on the imagination of the entire generation of children and their world are many. The school classroom and the playground are still at a distance from our children. It has become a priority of the government to revive all those lost aspirations of the nation’s children in a secure manner. All our plans are being implemented to bring the children’s world closer to them expeditiously.
It is not only the parents and guardians who feel satisfied when their children excel in the society. That happiness is experienced by the entire human society. There are plenty of such experiences in the world, and they will continue in the future as well. Therefore, as adults, we must provide the necessary environment to empower the child with knowledge, attitudes and skills in order to endow the country with a generation of virtuous children.
The theme of this year’s World Children’s Day is “Children before Everything”, which is the eternal thought of parents. As a progressive government, I would like to recall that providing the requisite services, facilities as well as creating opportunities for your child within a secure environment, is becoming a reality as pledged in the National Policy Framework ‘Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour’.
The responsibility placed on adults regarding the children, in this process of socialization, cannot be underestimated. Therefore, I urge you to let the children enjoy their childhood at liberty, as childhood is irreversible.
Though our children do not have the opportunity to celebrate the World Children’s Day this year too due to the prevailing pandemic situation, I extend my blessing for all children to celebrate the Children’s Day joyfully while at home, and also wish them a prosperous future.
