Amaraweera: SL won’t succumb to Indian pressure

By Ifham Nizam

India had no authority to dictate terms to a sovereign nation like Sri Lanka, said Environment Minister Mahinda Amaraweera yesterday.

Speaking to journalists, Amaraweera expressed concern regarding a statement made by an Indian Minister that a government would be formed in Sri Lanka under the leadership of the Bharathiya Janatha Party (BJP).

“Sri Lanka is a free and independent country. Therefore, no one can interfere when it comes to our country’s matters,” he stressed.

Amaraweera said he did not know whether the news item was true or false, but that any country that did not wish external interventions would oppose it as the present government.

Journalists asked the Minister if the Indians had said so as the East Container Terminal of the Colombo Port was not handed over to an Indian company, Amaraweera said that he was always opposed to handing over state assets to foreigners.

The Minister said that perhaps such an opinion was expressed by an Indian politician because the ECT was not given to the Indian company.

He said that the country’s government had been elected by the people of Sri Lanka and not by the people of India and that the people of the country appointed a government to protect its territorial integrity and sovereignty.