News
They have faded away into oblivion
View(s):‘Old soldiers never die; they just fade away,’ is the well-known saying and come November 11, services rendered by military personnel are commemorated world over.
Ceylon Signal Corps,1944
Remembrance Day or Poppy Day is observed in the Commonwealth of Nations member states since the end of the First World War to remember the members of their armed forces who died in the line of duty
For one group of Sri Lankans Remembrance Day is of special significance– they are the 500 odd Lankans who served alongside British troops during WW II.
Among these veterans is 97 year-old H.G.P. Jayasekera who served as a signalman. Mr. Jayasekera who is among the group and is a member of the Ceylon War Veterans Association of WW II affiliated to the Royal Commonwealth Ex-Services League laments that he and other survivors of this group are largely forgotten and get very little benefits.
The veterans receive Rs.1000 a month as an allowance, half of which is paid from the funds of the Sri Lankan Ex-Servicemen’s Association. “As most of us served only during the war years from 1939-1945, we are not entitled to a pension. Some joined the Government service later on and continued to a pensionable age,” Mr.Jayasekera said.
Captain Sisira Bandara (84) another ex-serviceman said he had been actively involved in Remembrance Day events since 1994. Mr. Jayasekera has been playing a lead role in looking into the welfare of the ex-servicemen who served in the Second World War,” he said.
Sisira Bandara at the Remembrance Day event in Colombo. Pic by Amila Gamage
H.G.P. Jayasekera served as a WWII signalman