September 2015 NEWS Embassy of Sri Lanka, Washington DC

RANIL WICKREMESINGHE VISIT TO SRI LANKA BY SWORN IN AS U.S. ASSISTANT SECRETARIES OF STATE PRIME MINISTER February, this year, we agreed to rebuild our multifaceted bilateral relationship. Several new areas of cooperation were identified during the very successful visit of Secretary Kerry to in May this year. Our discussions today focused on follow-up on those understandings and on working towards even closer and tangible links. We discussed steps U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for taken by the Government of President South and Central Asian Affairs Nisha to promote recon- Biswal and U.S. Assistant Secretary of ciliation and to strengthen the rule of State for Democracy, Human Rights law as part of our Government’s overall Following the victory of the United National Front for and Labour Tom Malinowski under- objective of ensuring good governance, Good Governance at the general election on August took a visit to Sri Lanka in August. respect for human rights and strength- 17th, the leader of the Ranil During the visit they called on Presi- ening our economy. Wickremesinghe was sworn in as the Prime Minister of dent Maithirpala Sirisena, Prime Min- Sri Lanka on August 21. ister and also In keeping with the specific pledge in After Mr. Wickremesinghe took oaths as the new met with Minister of Foreign Affairs President Maithripala Sirisena’s mani- Prime Minister, a Memorandum of Understanding as well as other festo of January 2015, and now that (MoU) was signed between the Sri Lanka Freedom government leaders. we have achieved political stability through one of the most free and fair Party (SLFP) and the United National Party (UNP), to The meeting with the Foreign Minister elections held in this country, I out- work together in the next Parliament. on August 25, was followed by remarks lined measures being taken to address to the media by Minister Samaraweera Prime Minister Wickremesinghe who contested from concerns regarding alleged human and Assistant Secretaries Biswal and the Colombo District in the election consolidated his rights violations, including through in- Malinowski: victory by polling a record 500,506 votes. It is the high- dependent domestic mechanisms. est number of votes polled by a candidate in Sri Lanka’s Minister Mangala Samaraweera: We have agreed on prioritizing closer election history. Good Morning Ladies & Gentlemen. economic cooperation. The United I have just concluded discussions with Ranil Wickremesinghe has served as Prime Minister States is Sri Lanka’s single largest export Ms. Nisha Biswal, Assistant Secretary thrice before: first, from May 1993 to August 1994, then market. 23% of our total exports enter of State for South and Central Asia and again from December 2001 to April 2004 and most re- the US market. We want to enhance Mr. Tom Malinowski, Assistant Sec- cently he was appointed as Prime Minister for a third our trade and business relations and retary for Democracy, Human Rights time following the election of President Maithripala encourage more US investors to take and Labour of the US State Depart- Sirisena on January 8. Prime Minister Wickremesinghe advantage of the economic opportuni- ment. I also welcomed Ambassador has been the leader of the United National Party since ties in Sri Lanka. 1994 and a for the Colombo Atul Keshap who just assumed duties District since 1977. He is also the leader of the United as the ’ Ambassador to Sri We look forward to regular high level National Front for Good Governance. Lanka. interactions at all levels, reflecting the current trajectory in the US – Sri Lanka We have continued the dialogue that Prime Minister Wickremesinghe was educated at Royal relationship. College, Colombo. Later he entered the Faculty of Law at began following the election of Presi- the (now ). dent Sirisena in January and my ap- Later today, Assistant Secretary Biswal After graduation, he completed the law exams at the Sri pointment as Foreign Minister then. will call on President Sirisena and on Lanka Law College and took oaths as an in 1972. During our previous meetings and fol- Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesin- lowing to my visit to Washington in ghe. Cont. on Page 05 NEWS - SRI LANKA: The Embassy of Sri Lanka MANGALA SAMARAWEERA DEP. FOREIGN MINISTER APPOINTED TO FOCUS ON FOREIGN MINISTER ECONOMIC DIPLOMACY

Mangala Samaraweera was he would “build, with even Dr. assumed and efforts in the diplomatic appointed Sri Lanka’s Foreign greater vigour, on the tremen- duties as the Deputy Minister field with the increasingly Minister on Augsut 24th. dous goodwill the interna- of Foreign Affairs on Septem- important area of economic ber 11th. The Deputy Minis- Taking oaths in the presence tional community extended diplomacy. ter was received at the Min- of President Maithripala Siri- to Sri Lanka after the Janu- istry by the Secretary of the He stated that he would fo- sena at the Presidential Sec- ary 8 revolution”, adding that, Ministry and other senior of- cus on the four areas of trade, retariat, he re-affirmed his “this intensification of en- ficials. A religious ceremony investment, growth and busi- commitment to “faithfully gagement and strengthening was held at the Ministry prior ness and noted that it would perform the duties and dis- of relations will be made pos- to his assuming duties. be through enhancing and strengthening these areas charge the functions of the of- sible by the political stabil- Speaking to the media after ity arising from the decisive that Sri Lanka would be able fice of the Minister of Foreign assuming duties, the Deputy to address its challenges in mandate given by the people Minister said that he would Affairs in accordance with the the years ahead and move the Constitution”. in the general election”. immediately focus on eco- nomic diplomacy in his work trade agenda forward. This is the third time Min- He said that he would “place at the Ministry to help move He noted that his immedi- the country forward from ister Samaraweera will hold economic diplomacy at the ate focus would be on trade peace to prosperity. the portfolio, having held centre of Sri Lanka’s foreign agreements, both bilateral it for the first time between affairs - focusing on promot- He stated that Sri Lanka had and multilateral and that he would bring his wealth of November 2005 and January ing trade, tourism and invest- fallen behind by not hav- ment”. Minister Samaraweera ing been able to focus on knowledge, proven experi- 2007, and for the second time ence in economic and finan- also noted that “restructuring the global economic agenda, between January 2015 and while tackling the political cial issues to bear on his work August 2015. the Foreign Ministry and the aspects of foreign policy and and tasks ahead at the Foreign rationalization of Sri Lanka’s that he looked forward to Ministry, so that Sri Lanka After the ceremony, Minis- diplomatic missions abroad join and complement Foreign could move ahead resolutely ter Samaraweera said that was an urgent priority”. Minister Samaraweera’s work and confidently.

U.S. CONGRATULATES SRI LANKA ON HOLDING FREE AND FAIR PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS The US hailed the holding of free and fair parliamentary elec- The United States applauds the Sri Lankan elections commis- tions on August 17th. A statement read out by the Spokesperson sioner, Sri Lankan civil society, and the candidates themselves for of the US State Department said: The United States commends holding free and fair elections that were widely hailed as among the Sri Lankan people and government for yesterday’s election, the most peaceful in Sri Lanka’s history. The United States looks which demonstrated their enduring commitment to democracy forward to working with President Sirisena, the prime minister, and the rule of law. and the new government. 02 NEWS - SRI LANKA: The Embassy of Sri Lanka U.S. AMBASSADOR TO EDITORIAL: SRI LANKA AND MALDIVES PRESENTS CREDENTIALS NO MORE BARRIERS Checkpoints are usually found though on a somewhat reduced at border crossings between two scale. This was the right thing to do, countries, such as USA and Can- because one cannot afford to take ada. This is to ensure that visi- chances with national security im- tors travelling from Country A mediately after a war. to Country B have all the correct However, six years after the war papers and would not pose a secu- when the North and the South rity or other threat. But here in Sri have been completely integrated Lanka, there was a unique situation and the people are free to move as where a “border crossing” in all but they please anywhere in name operated for nearly two dec- (a right guaranteed by the Con- Atul Keshap, the new U.S. Ambassador ades at Omanthai near Vavuniya, stitution itself), there is no need to Sri Lanka and Maldives, presented his physically separating the North to maintain a checkpoint, even credentials today to President Maithripala and the South. Worse, it not only in reduced form, that harks back Sirisena in a ceremony in Colombo. The physically distanced but also emo- to the era of division. That could ceremony marks the official beginning of tionally divided the various com- somehow give the impression that Keshap’s tenure as the U.S. Ambassador to munities in the island. the North is a separate part of the Sri Lanka. This military checkpoint came into country. This is the last thing our being as a result of the Liberation country needs as the Government Tigers of Tamil (LTTE) is working towards achieving gen- EVENT: ELECTIONS IN dominating most of the North in uine reconciliation among the dif- SRI LANKA & NEW the 1990s. It was vital, from a na- ferent communities. tional security point of view, to Fortunately, the defence authorities PROSPECTS FOR ensure that the LTTE would not have come to the same conclusion U.S.-SRI LANKA RELATIONS have access to materials that could and dismantled the entire check- be used for purposes of terroris- point complex with effect from Sat- On August 17, just a few months after the ing the Southern populace. Hence urday. The checkpoint was redun- election of Sri Lanka’s President Maithri- baggages and personal belong- dant for some time anyway because pala Sirisena, Sri Lankan voters confirmed ings of North-bound persons were the Northern rail passengers and their support for a broad-based national checked. Persons coming to the goods are not subject to any checks unity government with Prime Minister South from the North were also at all. Ranil Wickramesinghe at its head. By checked to block the entry of hard- decisively rejecting former President Ma- core terrorists and items such as ex- It is a step in the right direction hinda Rajapaksa’s comeback bid, voters plosive devices. It was a necessary that will give a correct signal to the also validated the new government’s for- evil in the context in which it came International Community that Sri eign policy orientation and opened the into being and operated thereafter. Lanka is no longer a nation divided way for a greater rapprochement with the Beyond the checkpoint was a so- on ethnic lines. To Sri Lankans, it West. In May, U.S. Secretary called “No Man’s Land”, followed will mean they are free to travel to became the first United States secretary by Tiger-controlled territory. the North and South without even a minor hassle. It will bring the of state to visit Colombo in over a dec- This checkpoint was so deeply in- ade. However, much more must be done communities even closer together. grained in our psyche over a period With the Omanthai checkpoint to rebuild the U.S.-Sri Lanka relationship. of time that many people referred Ambassador Kariyawasam will discuss gone, only a very few checkpoints to villages bordering the North as manned by the Police are still being the future of U.S.-Sri Lanka relations. “Border Villages”, an anachronism Carnegie’s Frederic Grare will moderate. maintained in Colombo primarily of the highest order. It became an to check heavy vehicles entering REGISTER accepted fact of life that no one dis- the city. At some point in the fu- DATE Tuesday, September 15, 2015 puted. The checkpoint somehow ture it may be possible to remove reminded the people that they were them as well, but such matters are TIME 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. living in a physically and emotion- best left to the security analysts and LOCATION 1779 Massachusetts Ave ally divided nation. experts who know what they are NW, Washington, DC 20036 Even after the complete liberation doing. of the North from the LTTE in May SPEAKER Prasad Kariyawasam It must be stressed that the re- 2009 and the re-opening of the moval of military checkpoints or -Jaffna to civilian posts does not compromise na- CONTACT Rachel Osnos traffic, the military continued to +1 202 939 2292 | [email protected] tional security in any way, because operate the Omanthai checkpoint the defence authorities are taking Cont. on Page 05 03 NEWS - SRI LANKA: The Embassy of Sri Lanka FIRST GENUINE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT IN LANKA’S HISTORY - Mangala Samaraweera, Minister of Foreign Affairs

exercise in ‘Power Politics’ based on Lanka’s history: forming a genuine na- political opportunism and self-inter- tional government through consensus est, or a coalition of the unwilling put rather than subterfuge will help en- together through intimidation, brib- trench good governance and create a ery and blackmail. Opposition Mem- new political culture in Sri Lanka. bers of Parliament were spirited away to the Government benches without The reset in political culture was also the consent of the political parties they demonstrated in the unanimous ap- represented, leaving a trail of splin- pointment of the Opposition Lead- tered political parties in the country er. The upholding of Parliamentary weakening the very fabric of democ- convention and tradition marks a racy. departure from the divisive and self- interested partisanship which was a During the last Presidential election, hallmark of our politics since inde- both Mr. Maithripala Sirisena and Mr. pendence. The appointment of Mr. R. Ranil Wickremesinghe promised to Sampanthan, one of the most senior depart from this unsavoury and un- and respected politicians in the coun- democratic practice. In the first 100 try, as Opposition Leader also reflects Today, the 3rd of September 2015, will days itself, the 19th amendment was Sri Lanka’s commitment, resolve and be remembered as a red letter day in passed which, along with many other determination to the reconciliation Sri Lanka’s political history. For the important constitutional reforms, in- process and the establishment of a Sri first time since Independence a Na- troduced the contours of a National Lanka where every citizen feels that tional Government has been formed Government. they are free and equal. In the new Sri with Parliamentary approval: Sri Lan- Lanka no one would be denied their ka’s two main political parties can now That dream has turned into reality. rightful place in society due to race, work together to address the many Today, on the 3rd of September, Par- religion, caste or gender. unsolved challenges facing our coun- liament recognized and approved the try. The recognition of Mr. R. Sampan- National Government as proposed by The National Government will ensure than as Leader of the Opposition has the Prime Minister. Gone are the days the formation and implementation of also made this a red letter day; herald- when the numbers of Ministers were urgently needed national policies. In ing a new era of unity, consensus and decided according to the whims and particular, we will pass a new Consti- reconciliation. fancies of the executive. Today Par- tution that will include a Bill of Rights. liament consented and approved to This is the first genuine National Gov- increase the size of cabinet from the This constitution will not only take ernment in post-independence Sri constitutionally stipulated 30. into account civil and political rights Lanka. The so-called ‘National Gov- but economic, social and cultural ernments’ of the past were either, an We have opened new chapter in Sri rights as well. It will be a Constitution that addresses the requirements of all citizens and communities; one which will allow greater public participation LOS ANGELES SPECIAL OLYMPICS 2015 in decision-making processes. SRI LANKA RETURNS WITH These measures will enable more ac- 3 GOLDS, 2 SILVERS, 3 BRONZES countable and more responsible gov- ernment in the country. Such a Con- The Sri Lankan contingent com- ry two years in the summer. Over stitution, with electoral reform and the peting at the Special Olympics 6,500 athletes from 165 countries restoration of stronger Parliamentary brought honour and fame to Sri arrived in Los Angeles to show the government, will be essential to en- Lanka by winning three gold, two true meaning of courage, joy and sure reconciliation and durable peace silver and two bronze medals. determination. with justice and rule of law. The games concluded on August The athletes competed in 25 dif- 2nd in Los Angeles, US. Sri Lanka ferent sports at venues throughout The bipartisan consensus intrinsic to a fielded seven athletes at the Special Los Angeles, including USC and national government will also be able Olympics who competed in athlet- UCLA. The 2017 Special Olympics to secure the legislative reforms, policy ics and badminton. will be held in Austria from March stability and level playing field that are 14-25. urgently needed for our economic de- The Special Olympics is held eve- FULL STORY AT: http://ft.lk velopment.

04 VISIT TO SRI LANKA BY U.S. ASSISTANT SECRETARY... Cont. from Page 01

I wish Assistant Secretary Biswal and As- United States is committed to walk down the world. With the most recent example, sistant Secretary for Democracy, Human with the people of Sri Lanka, and to pro- of course, of the election. Another prom- Rights and Labour Tom Malinowski and vide support. And it is in that spirit that ise made that was kept. the delegation a very pleasant stay here in Assistant Secretary Malinowski and I are Sri Lanka. here today, to reaffirm our support, the What is most important to us is the mes- support of the United States for Sri Lanka. sage that the people of Sri Lanka have Thank you. Just recently, we let President Sirisena sent. Twice now this year, the people of Sri know, that we would be supporting reset- Lanka, North, South, East and West, have And now may I invite Assistant Secretary told us that they support change. Twice Nisha Biswal to address you. tlement and education in Sampur with a commitment of 1 million dollars in now, they have voted, North, South, East Assistant Secretary Nisha Biswal: Good resources and we look forward to work- and West; for the rule of law, against im- morning and everyone and Mr. Minister ing with the President, with the Prime punity, for reconciliation, for building this thank you so much. It’s such a pleasure to Minister and with new government in country, developing this country for eve- see you again and to congratulate you on this and other endeavors to ensure that ryone, and against the politics of ethnic this very important election. We also had the country is able to realize its enormous and religious division, against extremism the pleasure of meeting with the Justice potential. on both sides. Minister, Minister Rajapaksa as well and They have set an important challenge for members of the Minister’s team. During this visit we will have an oppor- tunity to meet with senior leaders, with their government and for the interna- Tom Malinowski, Assistant Secretary for and civil society leaders tional community. They have told us that Democracy, Human Rights and Labour and with the private sector in the spirit of the promise of this transition now needs and myself are thrilled to be here, par- that partnership. And I simply want to at to be fulfilled. And what we hear from ticularly also on the heels of our newest this moment say that we are in incredibly the Government is a recognition that the Ambassador, Ambassador Atul Keshap, proud of the journey that is being under- work, the hard work must continue to having presented his credentials also just taken here. The story that is unfolding in meet their expectations. a couple of days ago. this great country is one that stands as a We recognize that some of the choices We are here at this very momentous occa- testament to the rest of world. ahead are going to be difficult. We recog- sion, to really re-affirm the strong support Thank you. nize that this process is going to take time. of the United States for Sri Lanka, for the Nobody expects miracles. But we do see Sri Lankan people and for the commit- Let me now turn to Assistant Secretary an extraordinary opportunity, so long as ment of the Sri Lankan Government and Malinowski. the forward momentum is sustained. Sri Lankan people towards this path of Assistant Secretary Tom Malinowski: We also see in the United States, an ex- democracy, of good governance, of peace Ministers, it’s been a great honour and traordinary responsibility to support this and of prosperity. pleasure for me to come back to Sri Lanka process. So as long as the government of I was here last May during the historic and to see you and to see the formation of Sri Lanka keeps making courageous de- visit of Secretary Kerry and since then, this new government and with all of the cisions, the United States will stand by its we have seen not only this enduring hope and promise that it represents. side and provide the support that is need- ed to keep this process going forward, un- commitment to democracy, but also just In just the short time since I was here last, a tremendous momentum of progress, til Sri Lanka succeeds in every respect, in and in the shorter time since Secretary of terms of security, economic development, towards institutions of good governance, State Kerry was here, we have seen steady towards combating corruption and to- democracy, and playing its rightful role as progress towards the forward looking a respected leader on the world stage. wards promoting reconciliation. As Sec- agenda this government has set. And it retary Kerry noted at that time, this is a has been heartening to people all around Thank you very much. long and difficult road, but one that the

NO MORE BARRIERS... Cont. from Page 03 adequate alternative measures. It is a North in the immediate future. terror outfits such as the ISIS. well-known fact that remnants of the overseas network of the LTTE are still Indeed, it is vital to make a pragmatic Here in Sri Lanka, as the results of the operating in certain countries, but the assessment of security needs in the recent polls indicate, the people have security authorities are taking cogni- context of emerging global threats and comprehensively rejected the politics zance of this and devising appropriate deploy appropriate security measures. of communalism and division. Their responses. Coincidentally, this is the theme of message is that all communities are the Sri Lanka Defence Seminar 2015 keen to live in harmony in one na- According to the Military Spokes- which begins tomorrow in Colombo. tion sans any barriers. Omanthai, that man, a new security system similar to Such a periodic review of security physical and psychological barrier to what is operational in the South will concerns is essential for our region reconciliation, is now no more and be adopted to maintain security in the due to the emergence of new global lasting peace is one step closer. 05