President's Annual Report – 2004 / 2005

The past twelve months started with great hopes of peace, and has ended with high levels of anxiety and concern for the future. To add to the trauma, our people in the North and East have also been hit by the greatest natural catastrophe imaginable in this same year and continue to face the travails of homelessness, poor health and education with no sign of respite. Truly, this must have been one of the most traumatic periods for Tamil speaking people.

We started the year with hopes of a just peace in the North and East, however faltering the progress towards this, and a safe future for our people to live their day to day lives. The sterling efforts by the international community, led by the Norwegians, to bring about a negotiated settlement, and the willingness of leaders on the ground to discuss the issues, gave us cause for optimism. Even though negotiations continued to be hampered by extremist nationalist and religious fundamentalist elements, Tamil people continue to have faith in the negotiation process and the desire for peace amongst many Sri Lankans.

Fate dealt many Sri Lankans, including the folk of East and North, the worst natural blow in known history when the tsunami struck the island on Boxing Day last year. Media coverage, mainly of the effects of the tragedy in the South and West uncovered the growing death toll and devastation. Word of mouth and Tamil media channels had to suffice initially until anxious relatives and the world learnt the enormity of the tragedy along North-East coast as well. There were signs early on that the tragedy might indeed bring our communities together when politicians and community leaders committed to work together to ease the suffering for everyone.

This optimism has since been shattered but we continue to hope for the necessary support from the Government for NGOs and community organisations who work under very trying circumstances to help alleviate hardship and suffering amongst our people. As we move on to a new year for SCOT, we are conscious of the “winds of change” that are blowing over the peace process in Sri Lanka. We look to the international community to continue their efforts to bring about a just peace as we move towards the Presidential elections which no doubt will influence the short term future of this troubled island.

SCOT, although not a big league charity, has extensive contacts at the grass roots level and has been very active over the last year in funding many tsunami related projects while continuing to support other ongoing projects. Last year, we remitted a record £28,750 to fund a variety of projects as detailed by our Projects Officer in his report. Many projects sponsored by SCOT are led by community members in the North-East who do not always have the resources or time to approach the bigger international donors. We, through our extensive network on the ground, have been identifying and supporting many such projects. In the coming year, we have set ourselves a target to raise a further £15,000 in addition to our on going activities to fund a comprehensive community project.

Your General Council meets monthly and spends a Sunday morning putting in great effort and time vetting and approving these projects. Their time, and often their out of pocket expenses, is given voluntarily and results in practically all your subscriptions and financial support going straight to deserving causes in the North-East of Sri Lanka. I am grateful for the support and help of the General Council I joined half way through their tenure and look forward to their ongoing support in the coming year.

We would not have achieved our objectives without the support of our long standing members in particular and the local community who have been our main source of funding and encouragement for nearly thirty years now. Some of us “younger” members admire the commitment of others who have attended regular meetings and participated in our activities for years. We hope many more members of the community who subscribe to our aspirations and our charitable objectives will also join us. The strength of an organisation like ours is in the strength of its membership. We hope you too will encourage your family and children to join SCOT and help ensure our work continues after we move on. We are constantly on the lookout for members to join the General Council and help actively in our work. Being a General Council member is challenging, rewarding and fun.

The annual Christmas Dinner Dance this year at Acton Town Hall on the 3rd of December promises to be a great occasion to meet with friends and family. Although it is an enjoyable occasion, it is also one of our primary fundraising events. All proceeds net of external costs are remitted to support projects in the North-East of Sri Lanka. Our “Dance Committee” spares no effort to ensure your enjoyment on this occasion. Your attendance and support will help us increase our support for the constant stream of deserving projects to help our people.

Finally, the Annual General Meeting is the occasion for our members to attend, to join in discussions, share their views and ask questions about our work. I hope many members will join us at this meeting.

Sri Srikanthan
President, SCOT
15th October 2005