🦁 INTERNATIONAL LEO DAY – 2025 🦁

International Leo Day is celebrated every year on December 5 to commemorate the official recognition of the Leo Club Program by Lions Clubs International. This day also marks the founding of the very first Leo Club on December 5, 1957, by Lions Jim Graver and William Ernst in Pennsylvania, USA. 🎉🦁

Leos are doing remarkable work around the world to make it a better place. We are not just volunteers — we are visionaries, motivators, and action-takers. Even in the face of global challenges, Leos continue to rise with courage and compassion. 🌍✨

In recent times, Sri Lankan Leos have stepped forward with unwavering commitment to support communities affected by adverse weather conditions — a true example of youth-led service in action. Beyond crises, Leos continuously work to nurture kindness, leadership, and a more compassionate society. 🇱🇰🤝

As the Leo Club of the University of Colombo Faculty of Arts, we proudly wish you a joyful and impactful International Leo Day. Here's to doing more, serving more and becoming more — together. 🦁💛

🌕 උතුම් වූ උදුවප් පුර පසළොස්වක පොහොය දිනය අදයි 🌕

සම්බුද්ධ ශාසනයේ සුවිශේෂී සිදුවීම් රාශියක් සිදු වූ, වර්ෂාවසනයේ යෙදෙන අවසාන පුන් පොහෝ දිනය වශයෙන් උදුවප් පුර පසළොස්වක පොහොය සැළකේ. මහින්දාගමනයත් සමඟ ස්ථාපිත වූ මෙරට බුදු දහම තවදුරටත් ශක්තිමත් ව ස්ථාපිත වීම සිදු වූයේ අදවන් පොහොය දිනයකයි. 🙏

සංඝමිත්තා තෙරණින් වහන්සේ ශ්‍රි මහා බෝධින් වහන්සේගේ දක්ෂිණ ශාඛාව ද රැගෙන ශ්‍රි ලංකාවට වැඩම කළ අතර, එම බෝධි අංකුරය මහත් හරසරින් යුතුව මහමෙවුනා උයනේ රෝපණය කරනු ලැබුවේ උදුවප් පොහෝ දිනකයි. 🌿🌼

කාන්තාවක් වීම නිර්වාණය පිණිස බාධාවක් නොවේ යන වග ප්‍රත්‍යක්ෂ කරමින්, කාන්තාවන්ට උතුම් වූ විමුක්ති සුවය ළඟා කරගැනීමට ලක්දිව භික්ෂුණි ශාසනය ආරම්භ වූයේ අදවන් පොහොය දිනයකයි. 👩‍🦳🙏

බෝසතාණන් වහන්සේට උතුම් වූ බුද්ධත්වයට පත් වීමට පිහිට වූ ඇසතු බෝ රුකට අනිමිස ලෝචන පූජාව පවත්වමින් කළගුණ සැලකීමේ උත්තම ගුණාංගය පෙන්නුම් කළේ උදුවප් පොහොය දිනයකයි. 🌳✨

බුදූන් වහන්සේගේ සිරි පා පහස ලද පූජනීය වූ ශ්‍රිපාද වන්දනා සමය ආරම්භ වන්නේද වර්ෂාවසනයේ යෙදෙන මේ උදුවප් පුර පොහෝ දිනයෙනි. 🦶🌄

වසරක් ගෙවී නව වසරක ආරම්භයට පෙර යෙදෙන උතුම් වූ උදුවප් පොහොය දිනය ඔබ සැමගේ ජීවිත ධර්මාලෝකයෙන් බැබළේවා...! ✨🙏🌕

ජාත්‍යන්තර ආබාධිත දිනය 2025

දෙසැම්බර් 03 ජාත්‍යන්තර ආබාධිත දිනය

ලෝකය පුරා ආබාධිත පුද්ගලයන්ට සමාජයේ සාමාජිකයින් ලෙස අවකාශ සහ අයිතිවාසිකම් ලබා දීම සඳහා සැලකිය යුතු දිනය ලෙස ජාත්‍යන්තර ආබාධිත දිනය හැඳින්විය හැකිය. මෙම දිනය ජාත්‍යන්තරව ආබාධිත පුද්ගලයන්ගේ අභියෝග, සාර්ථකත්වයන් සහ ඔවුන්ගේ දායකත්වය පිළිබඳව අවධානය යොමු කරයි.

මෙම දිනය ආබාධිත පුද්ගලයන්ට අවකාශය, අවස්ථා සහ සමාජ සහයෝගය ලබා දීම සඳහා ජාත්‍යන්තරව පිළිගැනේ. 1992 සිට මෙය එක්සත් ජාතීන් විසින් නියම කර ඇති අතර, ඔවුන්ගේ දියුණුව සහ අභියෝග පිළිබඳව සමාජය තුළ දැනුවත් බව වැඩි කිරීම අරමුණු කරයි.

ආබාධිත පුද්ගලයන් බොහෝ විට සමාජයේ අඩු අවස්ථාවන් සහ අභියෝගවලට මුහුණ දෙයි. ඔවුන්ගේ දියුණුව සහ අයිතිවාසිකම් ආරක්ෂා කිරීම සඳහා නීති, ප්‍රතිපත්ති සහ සමාජ සහයෝගය අත්‍යවශ්‍ය වේ.

අන්තර්ජාතික ආබාධිත දිනයේ ප්‍රධාන පණිවිඩය වන්නේ ආබාධිත පුද්ගලයන්ගේ අභියෝග පිළිබඳ ලෝකය පුරා අවබෝධයක් ඇති කිරීම, ඔවුන්ගේ අයිතිවාසිකම් සහ අභිමානය ආරක්ෂා කර ගැනීම සහ සාර්ථක සමාජ සහයෝගය ගොඩනැගීමයි. ඒ අනුව මෙම දිනය ආබාධිත පුද්ගලයන්ගේ අභියෝග සහ ඔවුන්ගේ දායකත්වය පිළිබඳව සමාජය තුළ දැනුවත් බව වැඩි කිරීමට උපකාරී වේ. ඔවුන්ගේ අවස්ථා සහ අයිතිවාසිකම් ආරක්ෂා කිරීම සඳහා සියලු දෙනාම එක්ව කටයුතු කළ යුතුය.

දෙසැම්බර් 03 ආබාධිත දිනය ආබාධිත පුද්ගලයන්ට අවකාශ සහ අයිතිවාසිකම් ලබා දීම සඳහා ලෝකය පුරා එක්ව කටයුතු කිරීමේ අවස්ථාවක් ලෙස සැලකිය යුතු අතර, ආබාධ සහිත ප්‍රජාව හුදෙක් ආබාධිතයින් ලෙසින් නොව විශේෂ හැකියාවන් සහිත ප්‍රජාවක් ලෙසින් සමාජයට වැඩදායී මානව සම්පතක් ලෙස දායාද කිරීමට ක්‍රියාමාර්ග ගත යුතු වේ. එසේම ආබාධ සහිත ප්‍රජාව පිළිබඳව සලකා බැලීම හුදෙක්ම එක් දිනයකට පමණක් සීමා නොවිය යුතු කරුණකි.

International Day of Persons with Disabilities - 2025

International Day of Persons with Disabilities: Building an Inclusive Future

Every year on December 3rd, the world observes the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD), a United Nations-sanctioned day dedicated to promoting the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities across all spheres of society. This global observance serves as a powerful reminder that inclusion is not just a moral imperative—it's essential for building stronger, more innovative, and equitable communities.

Understanding Disability in Today's World

More than 1.3 billion people worldwide live with some form of disability, representing approximately 16% of the global population. Disability is diverse and multifaceted, encompassing physical, sensory, intellectual, and mental health conditions. It's crucial to recognize that disability exists on a spectrum and can be visible or invisible, permanent or temporary, congenital or acquired later in life.

The social model of disability emphasizes that many barriers faced by persons with disabilities are not inherent to their conditions but are created by society—through inaccessible environments, discriminatory attitudes, and exclusionary policies. This perspective shifts the focus from "fixing" individuals to transforming systems and structures.

The Historical Journey

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1992, building on decades of advocacy and the UN Decade of Disabled Persons (1983-1992). This observance followed the adoption of the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons in 1982, which aimed to promote effective measures for prevention, rehabilitation, and equalization of opportunities.

A landmark achievement came in 2006 with the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), the first comprehensive human rights treaty of the 21st century. The CRPD recognizes that disability is an evolving concept and affirms that persons with disabilities should enjoy all human rights and fundamental freedoms on an equal basis with others.

Persistent Challenges

Despite significant progress, persons with disabilities continue to face substantial barriers:

Employment Disparities: People with disabilities experience significantly higher unemployment rates and are often relegated to lower-paying jobs with fewer advancement opportunities. Workplace discrimination, inaccessible environments, and misconceptions about capabilities create persistent obstacles to economic participation.

Education Gaps: Children with disabilities are less likely to attend school and more likely to drop out. Many educational institutions lack accessible infrastructure, assistive technologies, and trained teachers, limiting opportunities for learning and development.

Healthcare Access: Persons with disabilities often encounter barriers in accessing healthcare services, including physical inaccessibility of facilities, communication challenges, and providers' limited understanding of disability-related health needs.

Social Exclusion: Stigma, prejudice, and negative attitudes continue to marginalize persons with disabilities, limiting their participation in social, cultural, and political life. This exclusion is compounded for those who face intersecting forms of discrimination based on gender, race, age, or socioeconomic status.

Digital Divide: As technology becomes increasingly central to daily life, inaccessible websites, applications, and digital services create new forms of exclusion for persons with disabilities.

Progress and Innovations

Alongside these challenges, there have been remarkable advances in promoting disability inclusion:

Assistive technologies have transformed lives, from screen readers and voice recognition software to advanced prosthetics and mobility devices. Universal design principles are being integrated into architecture, product development, and urban planning, creating spaces that work for everyone from the outset.

Advocacy movements led by persons with disabilities themselves have driven policy changes and shifted public consciousness. The principle of "Nothing About Us Without Us" emphasizes that persons with disabilities must be central to decisions affecting their lives.

Employment initiatives, including supported employment programs and disability-confident employer schemes, are demonstrating that inclusive workplaces benefit everyone through diverse perspectives and talent. Meanwhile, accessible education programs and inclusive teaching practices are ensuring that children with disabilities can learn alongside their peers.

What We Can All Do

Creating an inclusive society requires collective action:

Challenge Your Assumptions: Examine your own biases and preconceptions about disability. Recognize that persons with disabilities are experts in their own experiences and should be consulted, not spoken for.

Prioritize Accessibility: Whether you're designing a website, planning an event, or creating content, consider accessibility from the beginning. Small changes—like adding captions to videos or ensuring wheelchair access—can make a significant difference.

Support Inclusive Employment: If you're an employer, actively recruit persons with disabilities and ensure your workplace is accessible and welcoming. If you're an employee, advocate for inclusive practices in your organization.

Amplify Disabled Voices: Follow, share, and support the work of disability advocates and organizations led by persons with disabilities. Listen to and learn from their perspectives.

Use Respectful Language: Person-first language (person with a disability) or identity-first language (disabled person) may be preferred depending on individual or community preference. When in doubt, ask.

Advocate for Change: Support policies and legislation that promote disability rights and inclusion. Contact your representatives about accessibility issues and funding for disability services.

Looking Forward

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities reminds us that building an inclusive world is an ongoing journey, not a destination. As we face global challenges like climate change, technological transformation, and social upheaval, we must ensure that persons with disabilities are not left behind but are recognized as essential contributors to solutions.

Inclusion benefits everyone. When we design for accessibility, we create products and spaces that are easier for all to use. When we welcome diverse perspectives, we make better decisions. When we remove barriers, we unlock human potential.

This December 3rd, let's commit to more than awareness. Let's commit to action, to solidarity, and to building a world where every person, regardless of ability, can participate fully in society and realize their potential. The future should be accessible to all—and it's up to all of us to make it so.

"Disability is not a brave struggle or courage in the face of adversity. Disability is an art. It's an ingenious way to live." — Neil Marcus, playwright and disability rights advocate

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

Breaking the Silence: Ending Violence Against Women in Sri Lanka and Beyond

Every year, November 25 is observed as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. This day is not just a symbolic gesture—it is a global call to action, urging individuals, governments, and communities to stand up against all forms of violence faced by women and girls.

Violence against women is not limited to physical abuse. It includes psychological, sexual, emotional, and economic violence. These acts can happen in homes, schools, workplaces, and even in public spaces. Sadly, in Sri Lanka, as in many other countries, gender-based violence (GBV) continues to be a serious and widespread issue, often hidden behind cultural silence and social stigma.

A Global Crisis with Local Roots

According to the United Nations, 1 in 3 women globally has experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. In Sri Lanka, surveys show alarming levels of violence too. A study by the Ministry of Women and Child Affairs found that 1 in 5 women had experienced intimate partner violence. However, many more cases go unreported due to fear, shame, or lack of trust in the justice system.

Domestic violence, child marriages, sexual harassment in public transport, and workplace discrimination are just a few of the many forms of violence that Sri Lankan women face regularly. The issue is deeply rooted in patriarchal attitudes, where men are seen as dominant and women are expected to be submissive.

The Role of Culture and Society

Cultural expectations often pressure women to remain silent. In many households, violence is seen as a “private matter.” Girls are taught to tolerate abusive behavior to protect the family's honor. Victims are often blamed rather than supported. This silence allows the cycle of abuse to continue from one generation to the next.

Even in cases of rape or sexual assault, victims face stigma, while perpetrators often walk free. Fear of social rejection, lack of legal support, and slow court procedures prevent many women from seeking justice.

The Power of Education and Awareness

One powerful way to fight violence against women is through education. Schools and universities must teach both boys and girls about gender equality, respect, and consent. Boys should be raised in environments that reject violence and promote emotional expression and empathy.

Media also plays a crucial role. TV shows, films, and social media can either reinforce harmful gender roles or challenge them. In Sri Lanka, efforts are being made to change narratives and highlight women’s voices through art, journalism, and activism.

Government Action and Legal Support in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka has laws such as the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act (2005), and the Penal Code Amendment (1995) which criminalizes sexual harassment. However, implementation is weak. Many police officers are not trained to handle GBV cases sensitively, and victims often face secondary trauma at police stations or hospitals.

More needs to be done to provide safe shelters, hotlines, counselling, and free legal aid for survivors. Community-based support systems—especially in rural areas—are essential.

Hope and Change

Despite the challenges, many Sri Lankan women and organizations are working tirelessly to break the silence. Activists, NGOs like Women In Need (WIN), and survivors themselves are leading awareness campaigns, support networks, and legal reform movements.

The “16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence”, which begins on November 25 and ends on December 10 (Human Rights Day), is a global campaign that is now widely observed in Sri Lanka too. Schools, universities, and workplaces conduct events, discussions, and marches to show solidarity and demand change.

What Can You/we Do?

• Listen to survivors without judgment.
• Speak out against sexist jokes, harassment, and violence.
• Support local women's shelters and organizations.
• Educate yourself and others about consent and gender rights.
• Demand better laws and stronger enforcement from the government.

In the essence, i would like to day that Violence against women is not a “women’s issue” — it is a human rights issue. It affects families, communities, and the progress of an entire nation. Let this November 25 not just be a day of remembrance, but a day of action. Every voice counts, and together, we can build a Sri Lanka where women live with dignity, safety, and freedom.

International Men’s Day - 2025

🌟 INTERNATIONAL MEN’S DAY – NOVEMBER 19 🌟

*Celebrating the Strength, Courage, and Heart of Every Man*

International Men’s Day is a moment to honor the men who shape our world with dedication, compassion, and resilience. Today, we recognize fathers who guide their families with love, brothers who stand by us with loyalty, sons who carry hope for the future, and friends who support us in moments when words aren’t enough.

This day also highlights the importance of men’s mental health, reminding us that strength is not about hiding emotions but having the courage to express them. Men deserve understanding, encouragement, and a safe space to grow.

International Men’s Day encourages positive role models, respect, equality, and the development of healthy values in boys and young men. It celebrates kindness, honesty, responsibility, and the quiet sacrifices men make every day without expecting praise.

As we appreciate their contributions, let us also inspire men to take care of themselves, build meaningful connections, and lead with empathy and purpose.

To all the men who uplift, protect, motivate, and inspire—today is for you.
Your strength builds families.
Your kindness builds communities.
Your presence builds a better world.

Happy International Men’s Day!
“Stronger Minds. Stronger Men. Stronger World.”

World Prematurity Day - 2025

World Prematurity Day, celebrated on November 17, is a global initiative dedicated to raising awareness about preterm birth, its challenges, and the importance of supporting babies born too early. Every year, millions of babies are born before completing 37 weeks of gestation, making preterm birth the leading cause of newborn deaths worldwide. The day highlights both the struggles and incredible strength of premature babies and their families.

Prematurity is the birth of a baby before 37 weeks of gestation. Premature babies often need special medical care because their organs - especially the lungs, brain, and nervous system - may not be fully developed. Premature births are classified as:

• Late preterm birth: 34–36 weeks
• Moderate preterm birth: 32–34 weeks
• Very preterm birth: less than 32 weeks
• Extremely preterm birth: less than 28 weeks

Each level comes with different challenges, but with the right care, most premature babies survive and grow up healthy.

Why is World Premature Birth Day important?

• Raises awareness: Helps communities understand the causes, prevention, and risks of preterm birth.
• Supports families: Encourages emotional and financial support for parents coping with the stress of preterm birth.
• Improves health care: Focuses on the need for better neonatal facilities, trained staff, and medical resources.
• Promotes global action: Reminds governments and health organizations to invest in maternal and newborn health.

Although the cause is sometimes unknown, several factors increase the risk:

• Infections during pregnancy
• High blood pressure or diabetes
• Multiple pregnancies (twins/triplets)
• Poor prenatal care
• Smoking, alcohol or drug use
• Stress or physical violence
• Previous preterm birth

Understanding these risk factors can help with prevention and early intervention.

Challenges faced by premature babies

• Breathing difficulties
• Heart complications
• Feeding problems
• Infections
• Vision and hearing problems
• Developmental delays

However, with advanced medical care - especially in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) - survival rates continue to improve.

The Role of NICUs and Health Professionals

World Premature Infant Day honors the doctors, nurses, and caregivers who work in NICUs. They provide:

• Constant medical monitoring
• Breathing support
• Temperature control
• Infection prevention
• Guidance and emotional support for parents

Their dedication plays a critical role in helping premature babies thrive.

How communities can support

• Educate others about premature birth.
• Wear purple, the official color of World Premature Infant Day, to show solidarity.
• Support families emotionally and financially.
• Encourage expectant mothers to attend regular checkups and adopt healthy lifestyle practices.

World Prematurity Day Theme (General Focus)

Each year the day highlights a specific theme, usually focusing on:

• Family Involvement in NICU Care
• Equitable Access to Health Services
• Parent Empowerment
• Prevention of Prematurity

World Prematurity Day is a reminder of the fragility of life, the strength of families, and the importance of quality health care for every mother and child. It encourages the world to stand together for the littlest warriors – babies born too soon – and to work towards a future that significantly reduces preventable prematurity.