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Sri Lanka voters hand Rajapaksa strength to face India and China

Published

5 years ago

2020/08/16

Washington tweets its
concern of the strategic island’s indebtedness to Beijing

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and his brother have a difficult economic path ahead of them but can count on financial favors as China, India, the U.S. and Japan vie for influence.

MARWAAN MACAN-MARKAR,

Asia regional correspondent , Nikkei Asian Review

BANGKOK — Sri Lankan voters have already detected a whiff of what the electoral landslide won by the country’s most influential political clan earlier this week means to the international community, or at least what it means to India, the U.S. and Japan.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi set the tone by going on a charm blitz. He called and tweeted at his counterpart, caretaker Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, part of that political clan, even before the final results were in, giving the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, a Rajapaksa political vehicle, 146 seats in the 225-member legislature.

“We will work together to further advance all areas of bilateral cooperation and to take our special ties to ever new heights,” Modi tweeted on Thursday, one day after the general elections.

Hours later, the U.S. embassy in Colombo, the island’s commercial capital, reached out, also on Twitter. “As the new parliament convenes,” the tweet says, “we hope the government will renew its commitments to building an inclusive economic recovery, upholding human rights and the rule of law, and protecting the country’s sovereignty.”

That “sovereignty” nudge was a reminder of the massive amount of loans Sri Lanka has taken from China for infrastructure projects, one of which two years ago prompted The New York Times to write this headline: “How China Got Sri Lanka To Cough Up A Port.” That was a dig at the $1.5 billion southern port in Hambantota, built with Chinese loans, that the debt-strapped Sri Lankan government gave to the Chinese on a 99-year lease as part of a $1.1 billion debt swap.

The Sri Lankan public was not privy, however, to the mood inside the Chinese embassy on Friday, following the pro-China Rajapaksas’ triumph. They are “so happy,” was the sentiment making the rounds within some Colombo-based diplomatic circles.

Foreign policy insiders in the country regard these rhetorical cues as a hint of the “diplomatic balancing act” that looms for the new government in Sri Lanka, increasingly wooed by China, India, the U.S. and Japan, all covetous of the island’s strategic location in the Indian Ocean.

Yet, the foreign policy insiders are sanguine. The decisive electoral mandate won by the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, or SLPP, will afford the Rajapaksas enough political stability to chart a firmer diplomatic course.

“One thing out of the way with the general elections is we will not have partisan quarrels over foreign policy,” said a veteran Sri Lankan diplomat, referring to the previous coalition government, one marked by disunity when it came to foreign relations with China, India and the U.S. “The people’s mandate gives the government a stable domestic platform to deal with foreign powers.”

The elections cemented the Rajapaksas’ political comeback after a five-year lapse. In November, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Mahinda’s younger brother, won a sweeping mandate in the presidential election. The brothers had risen to dominate the country for a decade during Mahinda’s two terms as president, which came to an end in January 2015.

It was during Mahinda’s presidency that Sri Lanka tilted

toward China, ending decades of influence that India had enjoyed. Beijing poured in military assets that enabled the Rajapaksas to end Sri Lanka’s 30-year civil war and followed it up with billions of dollars worth of infrastructure loans to help revive the war-shattered economy.

The general elections also serve as a reminder: Foreign-funded infrastructure projects and foreign assistance have become political fodder and will pose an early foreign policy challenge for the Rajapaksa brothers’ new administration.

On the eve of the elections, a Colombo port trade union with ties to the Rajapaksa camp launched a protest to stop the development of a container terminal that India, Japan and Sri Lanka agreed to build last year.

Likewise, speakers on SLPP platforms during the campaign opposed Sri Lanka signing a deal for a $480 million grant from the U.S. government under its so-called Millennium Challenge Corporation, which is aimed at improving logistics and transportation on the island. Anti-U.S. sentiment was also stoked by Washington’s Indo-Pacific strategy, which mentions Sri Lanka and a need to counter China’s presence in the nation.

According to Palitha Kohona, a former Sri Lankan foreign secretary, it will be difficult to ignore the national mood laid bare during the elections. “There is pressure on the government not to hand over the terminal to Japan and India … and the political mood is entirely against the MCC,” Kohona said. “It is also a reaction that you cannot conduct foreign policy by giving out bits and pieces of our real estate.”

Seasoned geopolitical observers reckon that New Delhi, Tokyo and Washington recognize the edge China will enjoy under a Rajapaksa administration. “India, Japan and the U.S. have long been concerned that Sri Lanka may go down Pakistan’s path: become another country in South Asia that is heavily indebted to China,” said Aparna Pande, director for the Initiative on the Future of India and South Asia at the Hudson Institute, a Washington-based think-tank.

“[But] what Delhi-Tokyo-Washington will need to understand is that Colombo has access to a constant tap of dollars from Beijing,” Pande added, “and that they will need to be willing to disburse more money if they want to play the game.”

Well-placed sources within Sri Lanka’s financial sector point to the country’s need for a financial lifeline as the $88 billion economy teeters on the brink of a worsening crisis. The island’s international reserves have shrunk to $6.5 billion, and growth is forecast to contract by 1.3% this year, a further drop from the 2.5% in 2019, the worst in 18 years.

Gotabaya has already made desperate appeals to India and China for relief from mounting external debt payments that will average over $4 billion a year until 2024. China has already stepped forward with a $500 million loan. India has pledged $450 million.

“We need every dollar we can lay our hands on,” said the head of a Colombo-based financial sector company. “The Rajapaksas cannot antagonize our allies — they need foreign friends, not foreign enemies, to tap funds.”

Japan, which holds 10% of Sri Lanka’s debt, a share matched by China, will matter in this equation. It appears not to have been lost in Tokyo’s tweet to congratulate the new Rajapaksa administration.

“Japan, as a long-standing friend of Sri Lanka, will continue to support Sri Lanka’s effort towards further development as a hub of the Indian Ocean region,” it said.

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The aim of the Government is to ensure a safe life for every citizen -President

Published

3 hours ago

2025/12/9

Priyan

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake stressed that the aim of the Government is to ensure a safe life for every citizen and that it is everyone’s responsibility to act with proper supervision during the resettlement of the people.

The President instructed the relevant sectors to complete all necessary repairs before 31 December by utilising the allocations given by the Government for infrastructure development for this year and not to return any part of those allocations under any circumstances.

The President said that there is no shortage of funds required for relief to the people and for restoring normal life and that what is necessary in this emergency situation is for all institutions to fulfil their responsibilities through proper coordination without limitations.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake made these remarks while participating on Monday (08) afternoon at the District Coordinating Committee meeting held at the Uva Province Library Auditoriam to review the programme being carried out to restore normalcy in the lives of the affected people in the Badulla District and to develop essential infrastructure. Due to the disaster situation, 64,140 individuals belonging to 19,133 families in the Badulla District have been affected. A total of 418 houses have been completely damaged and 7,703 houses have been partially damaged.

The President inquired separately into the programmes being carried out to restore essential infrastructure such as repairing damaged roads, electricity, water supply, communication, irrigation, restarting agriculture, the livestock sector, inland fisheries and restoring the health and education sectors, among others.

The President pointed out the need to carry out all road repairs simultaneously without dividing them as roads under the Road Development Authority, provincial roads, or local authority roads. He informed officials that if the funds allocated for this purpose are insufficient, they should request the required additional allocations.

The President also instructed that an estimate be prepared and submitted for all roads in the district requiring permanent repairs and noted that funds can be provided to commence this work by January.

Officials stated that, 90% of the district’s damaged electricity supply due to the disaster situation has already been restored and the remaining supply is also being restored swiftly. They further pointed out that steps have been taken to ensure the district’s water supply is provided as required.

The reopening of schools was also discussed and the President instructed that the Government’s allowance of Rs. 15,000 granted to affected schoolchildren be paid promptly through the intervention of Divisional Secretaries.

Due to the disaster situation, 6,711 acres of agricultural land in the Badulla District have been damaged. The President instructed that the relevant farmers and the extent of damaged land be identified, compensation be provided swiftly and they be directed back into cultivation.

He further instructed officials of the Irrigation Department to provide water to agricultural lands at least temporarily, so that the farmers will be able to harvest the Maha season. The President stated that the allowance of Rs. 25,000 provided for the cleansing and restoration of damaged temples and religious sites will be granted through the Department of Cultural Affairs and that a Cabinet decision regarding this matter is expected this week.

Lengthy discussions were held on providing compensation to destroyed and damaged houses and on the resettlement of the affected people. The President also highlighted the need to implement programmes aimed at improving the mental health of people living in camps.

President Dissanayake expressed his gratitude to the Tri-forces, Government officials and the public who are working with immense dedication in all these activities.

Participating in this occasion were the Chairman of the Badulla District Coordinating Committee and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Infrastructure, Samantha Vidyaratne; Chairman of the Badulla District Coordinating Committee and Governor of Uva Province, Attorney-at-Law Kapila Jayasekara; Deputy Minister of Trade, Commerce and Food Security, R. M. Jayawardena; Deputy Minister of Power and Energy, Arkam Iliyas; Deputy Minister of Youth Affairs, H. M. Dinindu Sampath Hennayake; Deputy Minister of Tourism, Professor Ruwan Ranasinghe; Members of Parliament Sarath Kumara, Ravindra Bandara, Sudath Balagalla, Kittnan Selvaraj, Ambika Samuel, Ajantha Gammaddege and Chamara Sampath Dasanayake, along with other ruling and opposition MPs; Chief Secretary of Uva Province, Ms. Anusha Gokula and representatives of Provincial Councils; Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, together with senior officials of the Ministry of Finance; Badulla District Secretary Panduka Sri Prabath Abeywardena and other Government officials of the district, as well as representatives of the security services

Latest News

Death toll 635 as at 06:00 AM today [09]

Published

10 hours ago

2025/12/9

Priyan

The Situation Report issued by the Disaster Management Center at 06:00 AM today [09th December] confirms that 635 persons have died due to floods and landslides that took place in the country within the past two weeks. The number of persons that are missing is 192.

News

Cyclone Ditwah leaves Sri Lanka’s biodiversity in ruins: Top scientist warns of unseen ecological disaster

Published

11 hours ago

2025/12/9

Sahan Weerasooriya

Prof Wijesundara

Sri Lanka is facing an environmental catastrophe of unprecedented scale in the wake of Cyclone Ditwah, with leading experts warning that the real extent of the ecological destruction remains dangerously under-assessed.

Research Professor Siril Wijesundara of the National Institute of Fundamental Studies (NIFS) issued a stark warning that Sri Lanka may be confronting one of the worst biodiversity losses in its recent history, yet the country still lacks a coordinated, scientific assessment of the damage.

“What we see in photographs and early reports is only a fraction of the devastation. We are dealing with a major ecological crisis, and unless a systematic, science-driven assessment begins immediately, we risk losing far more than we can ever restore,” Prof. Wijesundara told The Island.

Preliminary reports emerging from the field point to extensive destruction across multiple biodiversity-rich regions, including some of the nation’s most iconic and economically valuable landscapes. Massive trees have been uprooted, forest structures shattered, habitats altered beyond recognition, and countless species—many endemic—left at risk.

Among the hardest-hit areas are the Royal Botanical Gardens, Peradeniya, Seethawaka Botanical Garden, Gampaha Botanical Garden, and several national parks and forest reserves under the Department of Wildlife Conservation and the Forest Department. Officials describe scenes of collapsed canopies, destroyed research plots, and landscapes that may take decades to recover.

Prof. Wijesundara said the scale of destruction demands that Sri Lanka immediately mobilise international technical and financial support, noting that several global conservation bodies specialise in post-disaster ecological recovery.

“If we are serious about restoring these landscapes, we must work with international partners who can bring in advanced scientific tools, funding, and global best practices. This is not a situation a single nation can handle alone,” he stressed.

However, he issued a pointed warning about governance during the recovery phase.

“Post-disaster operations are vulnerable to misuse and misallocation of resources. The only safeguard is to ensure that all actions are handled strictly through recognised state institutions with legal mandates. Anything else will compromise transparency, accountability, and public trust,” Prof. Wijesundara cautioned.

He insisted that institutions such as the Department of Wildlife Conservation, the Forest Department, and the Botanical Gardens Department must take the lead—supported by credible international partners.

Environmental analysts say the coming months will be decisive. Without immediate, science-backed intervention, the ecological wounds inflicted by Cyclone Ditwah could deepen into long-term national losses—impacting everything, from tourism and heritage landscapes to species survival and climate resilience.

As Sri Lanka confronts the aftermath, the country now faces a critical test: whether it can respond with urgency, integrity, and scientific discipline to protect the natural systems that define its identity and underpin its future.

By Ifham Nizam