Mangala warns Govt.

By Chaminda Silva

Former Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera yesterday said that Sri Lanka couldn’t afford to act like North Korea, Venezuela or Eritrea in responding to UN resolutions after it had voluntarily become a signatory to all human rights conventions, passed at the UN over the years.

Addressing the media at Pitakotte, the former minister said that the incumbent government should place its trust in diplomacy without being confrontational. “That is step number one, because diplomacy can help you find all kinds of solutions. If you are going to accuse those who criticise you as your enemies, Sri Lanka is not going anywhere. Sri Lanka has voluntarily become a signatory to all human rights conventions passed at the UN and other entities over the years and therefore, now it can’t be acting like North Korea, Venezuela or Eretria.”

Samaraweera said Sri Lanka was a country which had always dealt with the world in equal terms. “The world loves us. Even in those four years, because once we started dealing with them, they were willing to go out of their way to help us. In fact, even at this moment when Sri Lanka’s economy is in doldrums and maybe falling towards the abyss, I think our foreign relations are more important than ever.”.

Responding to criticisms that the former yahapalana government had failed to take substantial measures to implement pledges made in the 30/1 Resolution, Samaraweera said they took several measures had to be adopted step by step to achieve reconciliation.

“We brought the Office on Missing Persons Bill. When it was presented in Parliament, the government MPs and ministers had to protect me from the then opposition MPs. We set up the OMP. In the 2019 final budget, we allocated funds for an allowance to be paid for the families of the missing persons. The Reparations Office was set up. The Cabinet paper on a Truth Commission was completed, but it got delayed due to President Maithripala Sirisena’s various requests.”said.

Samaraweera said the UN could not impose sanctions on Sri Lanka based on the resolution but individual countries could. “I always say that regardless of the decision making at the top level, the common citizens should not be oppressed. I request any country not to impose such sanctions that would affect the citizens.”