Daily News – Sri Lankan Cultural Evening at ICD

The Daily News (Sri Lankan Newspaper) - March 7th, 2013; The Daily News covers the Institute of Cultural Diplomacy’s annual Berlin International Economic Congress, focusing on the Sri Lanka Cultural Evening. Quoting Ambassador Sarath Kongahage, the article highlights Sri Lanka’s return to the South East Asian stage in both economic and political potential.
  March 18th, 2013

World Should Take Note of Lanka’s Positive Accomplishments

Sri Lanka once again takes its rightful place in South Asia after suffering decades of terrorism on the world stage, both in terms of its economic potential and political profile. We want the world to take note of what is being accomplished in the country and the hand of friendship, support and understanding to be extended to our people, Sri Lankan Ambassador in Germany Sarath Kongahage said.

He said, “This will enable our nation to march forward, complementing the efforts of the rest of the world and contributing towards economic, social and political advancement on the basis of our vibrant democracy.”

Ambassador Kongahage was speaking at a Sri Lanka Cultural Evening at the Berlin International Economic Congress 2013 on March 7.

The Berlin International Economics Congress 2013 organized by the Institute of Cultural Diplomacy (ICD), an international organization with headquarters in Berlin, took place under the motto – “Intercultural Relations, Youth Development Advancement, Environmental Responsibility, Ecotourism: Opportunities for Successful Nation Branding in the 21st Century”. Keynote speakers from all continents discussed a better future for their countries and the world.

On March 7, a Sri Lanka Cultural Evening organized by the Sri Lankan Embassy took place in the framework of the Congress. The keynote speech was delivered by Ambassador Sarath Kongahage. Managing Director, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Rumy Jauffer and SriLankan Airlines Deepal V. Perera made presentations.

The event was opened by Diplomatic Council Secretary General Hang Nguyen, an international think-tank headquartered in The Hague. Ambassador Kongahage highlighted that Sri Lanka has a written history of more than 2000 years. The Ambassador elaborated the multitude of historic links between Sri Lanka and Europe.

He mentioned that Sri Lanka and Germany were celebrating the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2013.

Rumy Jauffer highlighted the potential of tourism in Sri Lanka. He mentioned that tourist arrivals in Sri Lanka crossed the 1-Million-mark in 2012 with German tourists ranked third. He further said that the island still has a great potential with all parts of the island including the North and East of the country now being accessible and developed as tourism destinations. He invited all present to visit Sri Lanka in the near future.

Deepal V. Perera, detailed the history of the national carrier of Sri Lanka. He highlighted the function of Sri Lanka as a trade hub in the Indian Ocean as well as tourism destination. He proudly announced the opening of the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport in Hambantota as the second international airport in Sri Lanka on 18th March and explained that tourists could reach many exciting destinations on the Southern Coast, including the old city of Galle and the Uduwalawe National Park, from there.

The keynote speeches were accompanied by cultural presentations of Sri Lankan traditional dancers. Almut Jayawera, a German national, who studied Kandiyan dancing in Sri Lanka, presented a Kandiyan dance item and explained the dance forms to the audience in Sinhala and German languages.

Anjali Dissanayake, Malki Gamage and Romessi Silva performed a folk dance, which enthralled the audience with a Bharatha Natyam dance by two sisters.

President and Founder of the Institute of Cultural Diplomacy Mark Donfried thanked Ambassador Kongahage for organizing a fascinating show of Sri Lankan culture as a part of the Berlin International Economic Congress. He described the keynote speech of the Ambassador and the presentations as both enlightening and informative. He said that on this evening every participant had had the chance to become an expert on Sri Lanka.

He mentioned the appearance of the Sri Lankan dancers as a true piece of cultural diplomacy.

A large crowd of guests from culture, business and diplomacy was present throughout the event, among them Hans B. Sicat, President, CEO of The Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc., and Lord Jack McConnell, Member of the House of Lords and Former First Minister of Scotland.