Dr. Hans Gunther Oberlack, Mayor of Glienicke/Nordbahn, a residential area north of Berlin, Germany, has organized a ceremony to celebrate the 66th independence day of Sri Lanka in the town hall. H.E. the Ambassador of Sri Lanka for Germany, staff of the Sri Lankan Embassy in Berlin and the Sri Lankan community living in Glienicke/Nordbahn were invited for the celebration.
The Mayor organized a programme with the participation of school children under his purview on the occasion of the Independence Day of Sri Lanka. The ceremony commenced with hoisting the Sri Lankan flag by H.E the Ambassador. The children then showed a performance of singing and dancing admired by the guests.
In his introductory speech, the Mayor briefed the children about the location, landscape, people and culture of Sri Lanka. The Mayor further said that he was very proud that Mr. Neville Perera, who won the State Literary Awards for the year 2013 in Sri Lanka for the Best Children's Literature in English with his book 'Kitty and the Bell Necklace', was living in his constituency.
Addressing the gathering, the Ambassador welcomed the initiative of the Mayor showing respect to the Sri Lankan community living in Glienicke/Nordbahn. The Ambassador briefed the audience about Sri Lanka and encouraged the school children present to learn English as a lingua franca, a common means of communication bringing the people together. The ambassador donated a Sri Lankan flag to the office of the Mayor.
H.E the Ambassador and the Mayor agreed on organizing a student exchange programme between Sri Lanka and Glienicke/Nordbahn. Mr. Neville Perera read his book for the children and donated some of his books to the School library. The guests were entertained with refreshments.