Tharanga Magazine 2017 tharanga 2017 | Page 8

THARANGA 2017 Message from the President on behalf of the SLSAJ Committee 2017 It is indeed a great pleasure for me to have an opportunity to write a message to “Tharanga 2017”, the annual creative publication of the Sri Lanka Students’ Association in Japan (SLSAJ) representing the SLSAJ Committee 2017, all the members, honorary members and the well-wishers of the association. The success of this publication is the result of the untiring hard work of the talented individuals who dedicated their valuable time and effort. In addition, the success is also due to the continuous improvements which were possible to obtain from the learning Therefore I would like to take this opportunity to convey my sincere gratitude to all past and current SLSAJ members who contributed in numerous ways to the success of the “Tharanga” magazine. This year is an important milestone for the SLSAJ, since it celebrates its 30 th anniversary in 2017. Since its inception, SLSAJ has been involved in organizing different communal activities throughout the year in order to preserve the Sri Lankan traditions and cultural boundaries as the most prominent and active Sri Lankan association in Japan. In addition to the education related activities such as the “Annual Research Conference”, SLSAJ is highly active in organizing various communal events such as “New Year and Thaipongal Celebrations”, “Annual Alms giving”, “Sinhala – Tamil New Year Festival” , “Community services” etc. and entertainment events such as “Annual Trips” which creates valuable opportunities to get-together with the Sri Lankan community in Japan. In addition to the dedication of its highly talented members, the contributions and guidance the SLSAJ receive from various means have always been a great support for its continuous success. On behalf of all the SLSAJ members, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to his Excellency Prof. Ganganath Dissanayake, Ambassador of Sri Lanka in Japan, Ms. Naduni Hasintha, Second Secretary and all the members of staff of Sri Lankan Embassy in Japan for their encouragement, guidance and tremendous support given to us. Furthermore I would like to extend my gratitude to all the well-wishers and honorary members of SLSAJ, all other Sri Lankan associations and the Sri Lankan community in Japan for their tremendous support given to SLSAJ at all times. Specially on this occasion, I would like to appreciate all I would also like to thank you all who supported by providing creative articles for our magazine. Last but not least, I would like to appreciate the efforts of ‘Tharanga 2017 committee’ for their dedication and commitment to make this issue of “Tharanga” magazine a great success. Shyam Kularathna, President, Sri Lanka Students’ Association http://www.slsaj.com SRI LANKAN STUDENTS` ASSOCIATION IN JAPAN Page 3