Prime Minister of Canada greets Tamil New Year

[TamilNet, Saturday, 12 April 2008, 01:59 GMT]
In a warm greeting message, the Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, wished the Canadian Tamil community on the occasion of the Tamil New Year falling on 13th April 2008. "This New Year celebration affords us the opportunity to reflect upon the notable contributions members of the Canadian Tamil community are making to our great nation," he noted. The Solar cum Stellar New Year is calculated astronomically to mark the entry of the Sun in the first degree of the fixed zodiac. It is a Dravidian legacy, especially observed in the extreme peninsular India and Sri Lanka, by the Tamils, Malayalis and Sinhalese, while most of the Indians observe another New Year called Yugadi (Lunar New Year).

Full text of the greeting message from the Canadian Prime Minister follows:

April 13, 2008


Greetings from the Prime Minister

I am pleased to extend my warmest greetings to all those celebrating the Tamil New Year.

This New Year celebration affords us the opportunity to reflect upon the notable contributions members of the Canadian Tamil community are making to our great nation. As fellow Canadians, we can take pride in our rich cultural heritage and stand united in our shared ideals and values of equality, justice, freedom and democracy.

As you gather with family and friends to visit the Temple, you may contemplate and pray that peace and harmony will prevail in the new year through a negotiated settlement to the ongoing ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka.

On behalf of the Government of Canada, I would like to extend my best wishes for a year filled with hope, peace and prosperity.

Sincerely,
The Rt. Hon. Stephen Harper, P.C., M.P.
Prime Minister of Canada


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