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Sunday, 17 July 2011

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Don’t be swayed by emotions - G.L

Extracts from the speech by Minister of External Affairs Prof. G.L. Peiris in Parliament responding to the Opposition motion on ‘Indo-Sri Lanka relations’

“Mr. Deputy Speaker, this is basically a debate on Indo-Sri Lanka relations. That was the manner in which the Motion was presented to this House by Mr. Vijitha Herath MP. I would like to say that the first requirement at this time is rationality. We must be cerebral. We must not be ruled by the emotions or by the heart. We owe it to our country at this critical juncture in our contemporary history to think dispassionately and calmly. That is the first requirement.

“The most striking characteristic of the contemporary situation, it seems to me, is the magnitude of the opportunity that is available to us after three decades of pain and anguish.

“The military action is over. We can go home at the conclusion of these proceedings without any anxiety as to our safety, which was not the case some years ago when Hon. Members of this House were attacked. That part of it is over and today we are in a situation where we can derive the fullest advantage from the inherent strengths and resources of this country, in particular, the unique calibre of our human resources. We have that opportunity.

Mr. Lakshman Kiriella asked the Government not to fall into a trap. I am not in any way imputing motives of an unworthy character. But, a Member of this House tries to draw a parallel between the situation in Sudan and Sri Lanka, and talks of referenda which may culminate in secession. There is no parallel at all. That would be a very unfortunate approach to this situation, and that is exactly what the members of the so-called transnational government of Tamil Eelam would like.

“No country on this planet has recognised or dreamt of recognising what they are calling themselves - the “Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam.” It is an organisation without any credibility. Are we going to dignify such a treacherous, illegal organisation by sanctifying it through references of the kind made by Mr. Kiriella in this House? That is why I say in all sincerity, without any rancour whatsoever, that this is really a matter in respect of which we need to adopt a different approach. The speech that was delivered on the Floor of this House, by Lakshman Kiriella,is I think very unfortunate because it contains certain features that can be built upon by people who wish to do real harm to this country.

It is in that context that we must view our relationship with India. Just ten days ago, the Foreign Secretary of India, Srimathi Nirupama Rao, addressing the International Institute of Strategic Studies in London which I myself addressed last year, had this comment to make. She said, “Mahatma Gandhi called Sri Lanka India’s nearest neighbour. It is through that prism that we see our ties with this Island nation.” My distinguished predecessor in the office of Minister of Foreign Affairs, the late Honourable Lakshman Kadirgamar, had this to say about the relationship between India and Sri Lanka. This is a multi-faceted relationship; it permeates every sector of our lives; it is, therefore, neither practical nor necessary to try to delineate the contours of this relationship and, in the picturesque words of the late Honourable Lakshman Kadirgamar, this relationship goes so far back that it is lost in the mists of time.

I would like to tell my friend Mr. Vijitha Herath that, important as history is, because we cannot fully understand the present in isolation of the past, it is perhaps a mistake to dwell excessively on the past. Let us rather concentrate on the present and the future. Let us look at last year, 2010. What is the economic reality with regard to Sri Lanka and India? Mr. Deputy Speaker, the position is that India today is Sri Lanka’s largest trading partner. India is first in terms of Foreign Direct Investment. The largest number of tourists who come in to this country come from India. In all three sectors, trade, Foreign Direct Investment, and tourism, India occupies a dominant position in relation to our economy.

“Mr. Deputy Speaker, we are all citizens of Sri Lanka, whatever party we belong to. And, we therefore, unreservedly subscribe to the sentiment that was so convincingly articulated by the President Mahinda Rajapaksa in the Budget Speech which he delivered to this august Assembly on the 22nd of November, 2010. The President stated, I quote:

“The global economy is slowly recovering with a growth rate of around 5 percent. More encouragingly India, China and all other major countries in Asia are providing a major impetus for regional and global growth that is beneficial for us. This is why in Mahinda Chinthana and Vision for the future” we projected Sri Lanka as a dynamic global hub. Taking advantage of Sri Lanka’s strategic location, our next massive leap forward is to develop our motherland as a naval, aviation, commercial, energy and knowledge hub being a key link between the East and the West”.

The President refers to a naval, aviation, commercial, energy and knowledge hub. If we are to achieve this objective, let us evaluate India’s relevance. Mr. Deputy Speaker, it is a fact, whether we like it or not, that 70 percent of the container transshipment business that the Port of Colombo deals with comes from India.

“Then, take the manufacturing sector. We are very proud of the performance of some of our companies which have brought in very large volumes of foreign exchange. One of these companies is Colombo Dockyard. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Colombo Dockyard has contracted with an Indian company. That is Greatship (India) Limited. Look at the benefits to Sri Lanka and the large volume of foreign exchange that we have earned as a result of these contractual arrangements with the Indian company. This company has ordered 11 vessels. We must be proud of it as Sri Lankans. This country has produced a company of international stature that is capable of building ships which are being ordered by India and Mr. Deputy Speaker, the value of this one contract for 11 vessels is US Dollars 240 million.

About 58 per cent of the growth of Sri Lanka’s economy today, comes from the services sector. What is India’s contribution to the development of our services sector, Mr. Deputy Speaker? You are aware that SriLankan Airlines operates nearly 100 flights a week into seven Indian cities.

SriLankan Airlines, I am sure we are all proud, is one of the major airlines flying into and out of Indian cities. Mr. Deputy Speaker, the Indian company IndiGo, has just placed the largest order in the history of civil aviation for passenger aircraft. This company IndiGo has contracted with Sri Lankan Airlines to provide services. So, are you seriously asking us to dismiss India?

I am asking my friend, Mr. Lakshman Kiriella, how we should envision the future of our economy and the destiny of this island. What about India’s intimate role in the development of all these vibrant components of Sri Lanka’s economy, be it the manufacturing sector, the services sector or the knowledge and the technology sector?

“The largest collection of PhDs under one roof is not in the United States, it is not in the United Kingdom, it is in India. It is in the State of Karnataka in Bangalore, and General Electric have that distinction. Because of this inherent suspicion which is clouding his judgment, all that Mr. Herath said, is conditioned by a certain attitude to India which is basically fallacious. Is he then asking us not to factor in India? Will we gain from that? Will we lose from that? The loss to our country will be incalculable.

“Then, look at tourism. What is the future of tourism? And what is India’s specific role in that sector? The Government of Sri Lanka hopes to attract two million tourists by the year 2016. 25 per cent of that two million, that is 500,000 tourists, will come to us from India.

“According to the World Tourism Organization - these are not our figures; these are the World Tourism Organization figures - the number of outbound Indian tourists today is 11 million. The World Tourism Organization estimates that by the year 2020 that figure will increase to 50 million. By far the largest source of tourists into Sri Lanka is India. The World Tourism Organization also states in their formal records which you can verify at any time that Indians today are the seventh biggest spenders in the world when they come on holiday. So, can we realistically think of developing tourism in our country without taking fully into account the Indian dimension of that relationship? That is why I exhort all Members, truly and sincerely, bereft of political partisanship, to consider the vital interest of this country, so that our people who have suffered so much can raise their heads, live in dignity and enjoy a standard of life to which they are morally and legally entitled. We cannot do it by cutting ourselves off from India, hating India, suspecting India. That is not a sensible course of action for us to adopt if we are really dedicated to serve the cause of our people.

There is one other point I should mention. Nobody must run away with the impression that Indians are coming here, filling their pockets and going away. That is what Mr. Herath said. Today, as Sri Lankans, we must all be legitimately proud of the fact that this is two-way traffic; it is no longer one-way traffic. Large Sri Lankan companies like Brandix, MAS Holdings, Hayleys, Aitken Spence, Damro, John Keels are major investors into the Indian market. They are major players in India.

The whole Indian market and the increasing appetite of the Indian middle-class, which is today approximately 350 million people, are clamouring for higher quality goods and services. How well has Damro done with plastic products? Siddhalepa with herbal preparations? Aitken Spence and John Keels with hotels? Brandix and MAS Holdings with garments? Is it unreasonable to exploit to the full the potential of the markets of India in the cause of the economic prosperity of this nation?

“Then, this idea that “India is dictating terms” - these words, “Loku Aiya”, “Chuti Nangi” these are emotional, not cerebral. They are intended to evoke certain responses. Then, again, “Adhipathya” in the words of the Mr. Tissa Attanayake - what is the reality of this situation? I can honestly say that during my visit to New Delhi, nobody in the Indian Government from the Prime Minister of India downwards made the slightest attempt to impose any particular view on us. Nobody told us “we demand that you do this”, “we want you to do it” or else. There was no threat: no undue pressure. There was nothing of that sort.

“Shri Shivshankar Menon, the National Security Advisor of India, whom we all know served here as the Indian High Commissioner. What did he say in his press briefing at the conclusion of his visit just three weeks ago to Colombo ? He said it is for Sri Lanka to chart a course with regard to her destiny. We are there to help. But these are Sri Lankan issues which call for Sri Lankan responses.

“Nothing whatsoever was signed. This is a fundamental misconception. I have not said this earlier. It is so obvious. This is a media statement.

There is no grand signing with a flourish. Let us first of all understand what this is, before we frighten ourselves and frighten others. Mr. Kiriella exhorted me with great passion to educate our people. We must educate our people about the truth, not about fiction. It is not a treaty which is a source of rights and obligations at international law. That is not what this document is all about. It is self-evident. But sometimes the self-evident also needs explicit statement, and this is one of those occasions.

“Everything about this document has been grossly misinterpreted. Mr. Vijitha Herath seemed alarmed at some phrases. What do these phrases mean? Is there anything to be alarmed about? “Early withdrawal of Emergency Regulations”. That is the undoubted policy of the Government of Sri Lanka. All countries need special legislative provisions during times of crisis. They are not however a permanent part of the legal structures of a country. It is therefore, quite obvious that the Government of Sri Lanka wants to phase out the Emergency Regulations. What is wrong with that? There is nothing heretical in this. Of course, we want to scale down the Emergency and we have said so.

“Investigations into allegations of human rights violations”. This phrase was seized upon both by the Vijitha Herath and by Mr. Lakshman Kiriella. It is not, and it has never been, the policy of the Government of Sri Lanka to refuse to look at allegations of human rights violations. We are not accepting international inquiries. The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission was appointed by the President of Sri Lanka under the aegis of legislation applicable in this country, and part of the mandate of the Commission is to look at allegations relating to human rights violations.

“Restoration of normalcy in affected areas”. What is wrong with that? These are areas that have been affected by two decades of war. The infrastructure has been devastated. Irrigation systems, roads, railways, hospitals, schools all of these have naturally been affected by the war. Now we are committing ourselves to restoration of normalcy in affected areas. Surely, that is the obvious and inescapable duty of any government.

“The next phase is “the redress of humanitarian concerns of affected families”. Surely, all of us, whatever party we belong to, are deeply committed to the accomplishment of that objective. So what is all the fuss about? There is nothing ominous here. It is simply a creature of our own imagination. We create something. We get frightened about what we create. We react to the ghost that we create and then we expect to frighten other people on the same footing. That is exactly what has happened with regard to this Joint Media Statement.

“I would also like to tell this House about other vital areas of Indian co-operation. I dealt with the economy. But the Government of India has also decided to help us with security - with the armed forces.

They are giving more and more places in military schools to train members of the armed forces. Unless you want to tell me, “do not take that because they have ulterior motives” - unless you want really seriously to suggest that.

They are giving us their expertise. They are one of the largest armies in the world. This expertise is available to us and we are benefiting from it.

“Look at housing. Do you object to the restoration of normalcy? One crucial element of the restoration of normalcy is housing. We all want a roof over our heads. Shelter is a basic human need. They are building 50,000 houses, and it is a donation.

“So do you want to reject all of these saying India is bad, India is evil, India is the Loku Aiya who is trying to intimidate us? Does it make any sense at all? I seriously ask this. Is it a line of thinking that is worthy of Members of the most exalted legislative assembly in this country?

“What I have said so far is mainly about Government to Government dealings. Do not forget the community: people to people contacts. There is a project called “Dambadiva Vandana”. It is about to start and the purpose is to enable pilgrims from Sri Lanka who do not have much money to have the benefit of visiting all the places of religious importance in India.

“Then, in Pallekele in Kandy, the President, about four months ago, inaugurated an International Buddhist Conference. It was attended by scholars and vice chancellors from eight countries, principally from Buddhist countries. That was supported by the Government of India.

“There is, then, the Indian Cultural Centre. They are doing an enormous amount of work with regard to ballet, music, and the performing arts. Just a few days ago, Dr. Sarath Amunugama and I participated in a very moving ceremony to felicitate Pandith Amaradeva. This is the intensity and the depth of contact between India and Sri Lanka at the people to people level as distinguished from government to government level.

“I also want to tell Mr. Vijitha Herath who made a point of the fisheries issue that we are not afraid of anybody. There is no question of caving in to pressure where we need to raise our voice. We shall do so without fear or favour. There is a problem with regard to fisheries. The Government of Sri Lanka certainly agrees that killing fishermen is not the answer to any problem. However, the problem cries out for a just, reasonable and sustainable solution. We have raised this issue with the Government of India and they are responding. I have had discussions with the Indian High Commissioner in Colombo and also in Delhi. The current position is that the Government of Sri Lanka has requested an early meeting of the Joint Working Group. That is going to meet in Colombo in the first or the second week of August. So, when we need to speak out, we will.

“But there is no merit in being aggressive for the sake of being aggressive. There is no point in abuse, vituperation and conspiracy theories for their own sake, but where the vital interests of this country are concerned, we will certainly speak out loud and clear. We have emphatically said that the Tamil fishermen, in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka, are beginning to build the foundations of their economic life after decades of deprivation.

Is it then right and proper for Indian fishermen to come and take away these resources using methods like trawling which inflict very serious damage on the seabed, the ocean floor, the marine resources and fingerlings? Very large numbers of Indian vessels are coming into Sri Lankan territorial waters. We have raised that issue. We will intervene in an effective manner, talking to the Government of India and putting in motion a course of action which will bring us the results we desire.

“All of this is possible because of goodwill. It is very emotional on both sides. It is, by its very nature, a very volatile matter. But we were able to prevent a conflagration.

It did not implode in our face. Why was that? Because of the goodwill, the friendship, the understanding between the two Governments and the honest desire to solve problems by negotiation, by talking to each other, by understanding the true nature of a problem and by devising a pragmatic remedy. That is the reality of the situation.

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