Sri Lanka places strong faith in the power of the people in building a developed and prosperous nation.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake emphasised that the present Government is committed to building a society founded on peace, compassion and humanity, as guided by Prophet Muhammad and all other religious prophets, and that no form of ethnic or religious conflict would be allowed to emerge in the country again.
The President made these remarks while addressing the 42nd National Milad-un-Nabi State Celebration held at the Al-Hilal Central College Grounds in Negombo this afternoon (26).
The President stressed that, in building Sri Lanka as a developed and prosperous nation, he placed greater faith in the power of the people than in any other form of power. He said the present government would not take any decision that would cause harm to the people, while also making clear that it would not reverse any decision taken in the interests of the people.
The President said the new constitutional amendment seeks to strengthen the public’s confidence in the law and make the administration of justice more efficient. He also said the government had been committed to strengthening national unity, which is the most important foundation for building the country, restoring Sri Lanka’s standing as a state respected and recognised internationally, and giving effect to the teaching of Prophet Muhammad that everyone is equal before the law.
The event was organised jointly by the Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs and the Department of Muslim Religious and Cultural Affairs. The President also honoured Mawlavis and other religious clergy who have devoted much of their lives to conducting religious activities at mosques in the Gampaha District and serving society.
The President also presented prizes to students who won the school competitions organised in conjunction with the National Milad-un-Nabi celebrations. The commemorative stamp and first-day cover issued to mark the 2026 National Milad-un-Nabi State Celebration, a book on the history of Muslims in the Gampaha District and the 2026 National Milad-un-Nabi Commemorative Edition were also presented to the President.
A commemorative memento was also presented to the President as a tribute from the people of the area.
Addressing the gathering President Anura Kumara Dissanayake further said:
“The birthday of Prophet Muhammad is an extremely important day not only for our country but also for Muslims throughout the world. For many years, we have held the Milad-un-Nabi celebration in our country to commemorate his birth. I believe that, according to their faith, his birthday is of great significance to all the Muslims participating in this event today.
The birthday of a religious prophet who emerged in the world, the services he rendered and his life story can all contribute to creating a peaceful and humane society for all of us. Yet, teachings are sometimes used in ways that are completely contrary to what he preached. When he preached peace, those very teachings are used against peace. When he preached compassion, those same teachings are used to promote hatred. When he preached humanity, those same teachings are used against humanity. Therefore, I believe our religious leaders have a major role to play in bringing back to society the essence of liberation contained in the teachings of every such prophet.
Prophet Muhammad, encapsulating his entire faith, delivered his Farewell Sermon based on five key areas, including humanity, peace, equality and the economy. I believe it is the responsibility of every one of us to create the kind of society envisioned by him and our other religious prophets, a society embodying peace, goodwill and humanity.
Our country has suffered from a prolonged ethnic conflict. Young people in the North and South, Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim alike, lost their lives in ethnic conflicts. This extremely cruel and destructive experience has taught us that we must never again allow any form of ethnic conflict to emerge in Sri Lanka.
All of us living today have, to varying degrees, become victims of those ethnic conflicts. We can allow events to simply pass as events, or we can draw lessons from them so that they do not happen again. I believe that, as a political movement and as a government, we are turning those extremely destructive events into lessons for creating a better society in our country. Accordingly, I assure you that we will not allow any ethnic or religious conflict to emerge in Sri Lanka again.
Our country possesses a strategic location, capable people, a great civilisation, valuable natural resources and a skilled human resource capable of working shoulder to shoulder with any developed society in the world. We have many of the factors necessary to develop a country and leave a better country for its people. Yet, we have still been unable to achieve that developed state. There are several important foundations required to build such a developed state in our country. Without strengthening those foundations, we cannot create a developed society. The bad and destructive things that have occurred in our country over a long period have destroyed its foundations. As a government, we have undertaken the responsibility of rebuilding our country on a strong foundation.
What is the base of this strong foundation? One of the foundations for building our country is creating national unity based on equality and the rights of all people, Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim, Burgher and Malay, while rejecting racism and religious extremism. This is extremely important. A country cannot develop when we fight among ourselves and look at one another with hatred, anger and suspicion. The first pillar of the foundation for building the country is national unity.
Similarly, we can no longer live in isolation from the rest of the world. We have various forms of relations with different countries. Therefore, we must build an image of our country that earns respect and recognition in the world. I believe that, during the nearly two years that have passed, we have laid the necessary international foundation to regain the respect and value that Sri Lanka deserves. Even at the most difficult times, as conflicts around the world intensified and our country itself became involved in a situation arising from such conflicts, we took decisions courageously and earned considerable respect internationally.
Prophet Muhammad himself preached that everyone should be equal before the law. This is extremely important. There was a social perception in our country that the law applied only to those at the bottom, while those with greater power and wealth were above the law. There was also a perception, based on people’s experiences, that the law was not enforced equally because of culture or religion. We are once again assuring the people of this country that everyone must be equal before the law as we build the nation. We have given the people that assurance.
We also need an efficient public service. The people of our country do not have a favourable perception of the public service. Therefore, we need a modern public service that is accountable to the people and provides an efficient service. A number of significant measures have been taken towards this. Within a short period of about one year, we will establish a public service through which all important transactions with the state can be carried out online from home. We have also granted salary increases in 2025 and 2026 to make the public service an attractive career. We are working towards granting another salary increase next January.
We must also strive to build a better society. We also face a grave threat that is frightening us all. We have a responsibility to eradicate the drug trade, which is spreading from village to village and destroying the lives of young people, as well as the criminal underworld that has grown alongside it and is undermining the state.
As a government, we have decided to ensure that we eradicate the scourge of drugs and the armed illegal organisations associated with it. We must do this not only for those of us living today, but also for future generations. Therefore, on this important day marking the birthday of Prophet Muhammad, I call upon everyone to join us in ending the drug trade and the criminal underworld associated with it.
There are many challenges in transforming this country into a developed state and building a better society. In overcoming these challenges, we place our faith in the power of the people. I work with strong faith in the power of the people. I will ensure that none of the decisions or measures taken by my government causes even the slightest harm to the people of this country.
Today, an attempt is being made to create a major uproar over the new constitutional amendment. Through this constitutional amendment, I seek to expedite the process of delivering justice to our people. I assure you that none of this will cause harm to the ordinary people of this country. It contains the aspiration to strengthen the people’s confidence in the law and make the administration of justice more efficient.
Whatever minor objections may be raised, in whatever manner, I assure you that we will not reverse any decision taken in the interests of the people. At the same time, if there are shortcomings in any of the decisions we take, we will not hesitate to change them. We are always a government that listens to the voice of the people.
Therefore, I believe that, on the birthday of Prophet Muhammad today, we have together built a system of governance capable of making a reality of the essence of liberation contained in his Farewell Sermon, his aspiration for peace, his hope for humanity and his concern for the poor. I would like to state that this will continue to be sustained by the power of the people.”
Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs Dr Hinduma Sunil Senevi said:
“The occasion marking the birth of Prophet Muhammad is considered a very noble one. In conjunction with this event, steps have been taken to improve infrastructure at 12 mosques in the Gampaha District at a cost of Rs. 10 million. A book on the history of Muslims in the Gampaha District will also be launched today.
This is a very valuable undertaking because it is important to produce scholarly works on our country’s multi-religious and multicultural approach and make them available to the public. A number of programmes, including the issuance of commemorative stamps, the National Milad competition and the recognition of Ulemas and Mawlavis, were also conducted throughout the past week, centred on the Gampaha District, in conjunction with this main celebration.
Therefore, this State celebration is not an expenditure of national wealth, but rather a major investment in winning love, compassion and reconciliation.
We succeeded in drafting legislation on the Hajj pilgrimage during the past period. That is a major achievement. We have also appointed the Wakf Board and are moving forward by resolving issues faced by the Muslim community and the boards of trustees of mosques.
We have also focused our attention on providing the facilities necessary for Muslims to undertake the Hajj pilgrimage at a reasonable cost. In particular, we were able to provide accommodation for pilgrims in an area with better facilities. That is a special achievement.
This is an era that greatly needs the guidance of great leaders and philosophers. Therefore, this is an era in which people such as Prophet Muhammad are greatly needed. That is why it is necessary to commemorate such a noble prophet who shared love with the entire world, taught love and taught people to accept the person sitting next to them as a friend.
We must study the life of Prophet Muhammad, including his patience, his capacity to forgive, his determination and the manner in which he endured the hostility and hardships directed against him. The lesson all these prophets teach us is to live in our country’s multicultural society with tolerance, accepting and respecting the differences in the lives of others.
I pray that this 42nd National Milad-un-Nabi celebration will be a blessing on that journey.”
Deputy Minister of Religious and Cultural Affairs Muneer Mulaffer, Deputy Minister of Labour Mahinda Jayasinghe, Western Province Governor Hanif Yusoof and Member of Parliament Abubucker Adambawa also addressed the gathering.
Members of the Maha Sangha and other religious leaders, Deputy Speaker Rizvie Sally, Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning Dr Anil Jayantha Fernando, Minister of Science and Technology Professor Krishantha Abeysena, Deputy Minister of Sports Sugath Thilakaratne and other Members of Parliament, foreign ambassadors and high commissioners and other invited guests were also present.
Government officials, including Secretary to the Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs Prince Senadheera and Director of the Department of Muslim Religious and Cultural Affairs M.S.M. Nawas, as well as members of the public, also attended the event.
