CPA Vice President impressed by developments in North :

South Africa, Lanka ties to be strengthened

By Uditha KUMARASINGE

Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA)Vice President Mninwa Johannes Mahlangu said South Africa is happy to have bilateral relations with Sri Lanka. “Trade issues are very important to us,” he said and added that as South Africans, they are very pleased to have a relationship with Sri Lankan people.

"In future, South Africa will do more trade than what it is currently doing with Sri Lanka. Bilateral ties between South Africa and the Sri Lankan Government will continue on a more successful note. South Africa will be of great assistance to Sri Lanka wherever it can.

“I hope Sri Lanka will also assist South Africa in dealing with trade and bilateral issues”, Mahlangu said in an interview with the Sunday Observer.

Commenting on the manner in which the 58th sessions of the CPA conference were organised by Sri Lanka, as the host country, he said the conference and all workshops were organised to international standards. Every delegate that he spoke with was very happy about the way that the conference had been organised.

He said he also appreciated the generous hospitality extended by Sri Lankans. The robustness demonstrated during the CPA deliberations is also commendable, he said.

Excerpts of the interview:

Q: How do you look at the progress of the CPA sessions during the workshops?

A: The conference was opened by President Mahinda Rajapaksa on September 11 and was attended by dignitaries and representatives of civil society.

The Commonwealth Secretary General and CPA officials were also present and everything went very well. At the Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) program, the women delegates discussed their issues and that session was also led by many dignitaries and Speakers. I think that session also ended very successfully.

Several other workshops were also conducted. One workshop dealt with the role of Parliamentarians in conflict resolution and peace building. Another workshop was centred on ‘Engaging political parties to improve gender-responsive governance’. Deliberations also focused on tackling youth unemployment which is also very important in our current work.

Issues discussed

The other issues discussed at the workshops were ‘empowering future generations through access to health, education and vocational training’ which was hosted by the Sri Lankan branch. The discussion went very well. Another topic discussed was ‘Should the Commonwealth establish a Commissioner for democracy, the rule of law and human rights?’ ‘The politics of constitution- making, the role of parliamentarians in relation to the people’ was another topic discussed during the deliberations. The last topic, which was very absorbing and important, was ‘Ensuring adequate parliamentary scrutiny of foreign and Commonwealth affairs”.

You can see that the topics have been selected to cover the Commonwealth community for us to generate discussions and concerns on the general understanding on all these matters that were before the conference.

Debates were generated and engaging dialogues came from different countries so that we could also learn from the perspective of each country. Those issues that benefited other countries can be used in our own countries which will enable the people to lead better lives.

Q: After the eradication of terrorism, Sri Lanka has been subject to a great transformation. What is your assessment of Sri Lanka as the host country for the 58th sessions of the CPA conference?

A: I have been following the trends of the summits. I think summits are very important. In our case, when you look at the situation as the CPA, we encourage summits in any country of the Commonwealth community. Because when a summit starts, it puts the people together and they discuss issues of common interest that affect the country. At the end of the day, you are in a position to discover or to find each others’ differences by engaging in issues, whether you represent government authorities, business, youth or ordinary people in society.

Then you put all those ideas together and come up with some ideas and systems that will make residents of a particular country lead better lives and move forward as a society that has been able to develop itself and deal with and resolve its own challenges. I would encourage the Commonwealth community in any country to get involved in the summits. Because only dialogue can make us prosper and succeed in running our governments and making the lives of our citizens better.

Q: How do you view the standard of organising the CPA conference by Sri Lanka as the host country and the hospitality of Sri Lankans?

A: Let me say that this is one of the first class CPA conferences. I have participated in many CPA conferences and other international conferences held all over the world and the African continent.

This is one of the best organised conferences. I want to thank not just the Sri Lankan Government which assisted the proceedings but also the Sri Lankan Parliament, its Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Secretary General. I think they have done a tremendous job to organise this international conference. You could see the way the opening ceremony of the CPA was organised. It was of an international standard.

You could also see the way in which the conference and workshops had been organised. They were all upto international standard. I also really appreciate the generous hospitality extended by Sri Lankans. The robustness demonstrated during the CPA deliberations is also commendable.

Bilateral ties

Q: What action has been taken to further strengthen bilateral ties between Sri Lanka and South Africa specially in the field of trade activities?

A: South Africa is pleased to have this relationship with Sri Lanka. Trade issues are very important to us. I always say that it is not normal for a country to live in an island. You can’t live in an island because you are not an island.

The people can live in the island, but the island cannot live alone. So we live in an international community where we have to trade with each other and ensure that we will make the lives of other people better.

As South Africans, we are very pleased to have our relationship with Sri Lankans. I think in the near future, we will be doing more trade than what we are doing with Sri Lanka right now.

Unfortunately, I don’t have the figures with me right now, but bilateral ties between us and the Sri Lankan Government will continue and they will move forward.

We will be of great assistance wherever we can. I think Sri Lanka will also assist South Africa in dealing with trade and bilateral issues.

Q:Can you brief us about the proposal which came at the CPA deliberations on the appointment of a commissioner for democracy, the rule of law and human rights for the Commonwealth countries? What is the main reason behind some Western countries taking up such a motion once again, especially for Asian or African countries who are trying to rebuild after ending their internal conflicts?

A: What I can say is, the topic ‘Should the Commonwealth establish a commissioner for democracy, the rule of law and human rights’ was brought up during one of the CPA’s workshops, but there was no consensus reached on that topic. Many countries rejected that view and there were a few who supported that. Therefore, a consensus on the topic was not reached. The majority view was that this issue should be postponed for further discussions.

Q: What was the impression that you gained during your visit to Jaffna and Kilinochchi?

A: We were very glad about the Jaffna and Kilinochchi visits. What we witnessed was a tremendous commitment made by the Government to develop those areas. We could see that roads have been carpeted, new hospitals built, agricultural projects taking place and the children back in their schools.

Sri Lanka has gone through a difficult period of time and it is a pleasure to see that it is now recovering and developing rapidly. The nation building and reconciliation process taking place within the country is commendable.

***************

Mninwa Johannes Mahlangu, MP is the Vice President of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) and Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces South Africa.

Between 1991 and 1994, he served as a negotiator at the Congress for Democratic South Africa (CODESA) and the Multiparty Negotiation Forum. From 1993 to 1994, he served as a member of the Transitional Executive Council (TEC), which governed South Africa before the first General Elections of April 1994.

He was a member of the Constitutional Assembly that drafted the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa in 1996. He has represented South Africa at a number of international conferences and seminars including CPA conferences. He has been a member of the Pan-African Parliament since 2003.

***************