FM hails US government

Foreign Minister, Rohitha Bogollagama appreciated the US Government role in stemming illegal fund-raising and money laundering by the LTTE front organisations in the USA.

The Minister was in praise of the US Government when he met US Democratic Party Congressman Heath Shuler last week. Congressman Shuler was on a three-day visit to Sri Lanka. The Foreign Minister however stressed the need for wider support on counter terrorism issues, due to restrictions imposed by the US on Sri Lanka.

He advocated the re-examination of the relevant regulations. Minister Bogollagama, while pointing out the requirement of wider engagement in this area, emphasized that Sri Lanka was not seeking rewards, but an acknowledgement of its success in countering terrorism.

The Minister further opined that in the present context, Sri Lanka’s position needs to be looked at sympathetically, in order to enable it to work out its agenda after defeating terrorism. In this regard, it would be more appropriate if the international community desisted from prescribing punitive measures, since what is required is a greater understanding of the ground situation.

Congressman Shuler explaining his objectives of the visit stated that this visit would enable him to obtain a better assessment of the situation in the North and the East of Sri Lanka.

He appreciated the opportunity to meet representatives of political parties, humanitarian agencies and observe at first-hand ground realities in Sri Lanka. He said that the information gathered would be useful in reporting back to his colleagues in the Congress, and so would the information collected through co-operative mechanisms also help in contributing to the examination of legislative mechanisms in the Congress. Shuler highlighted the importance of engaging closely with the Sri Lankan polity and pointed out the opportunity for reconciliation is now present and that it was timely to move forward in the economic sphere. He hoped that industries such as tourism would recover quickly now that terrorism was over.

The Foreign Minister outlined that the Government has now entered the process of reconstruction of the North and the East and reconciliation of the aspirations of the people.