Address of Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera at the US Institute of Peace

February 27, 2016

Advancing Reconciliation and Development in Sri Lanka 

Last February, soon after the election of President Maithripala Sirisena at the Presidential Election held on 8 January 2015, I stood before a similar audience in this great city and outlined our plans and our vision for Sri Lanka.

It has been just a year. But, looking back, it seems as if several years have passed since then. A year on, much has happened and much has been achieved.

The relationship between our two countries alone has experienced a veritable renaissance since the visit of Assistant Secretary Biswal in early February 2015 weeks after the Presidential elections and after my visit to Washington exactly a year ago. In such a short period of time, our relations have been strengthened to unprecedented heights. In fact, although our countries have maintained cordial ties since Independence, we can be proud that this cordiality has now blossomed into a very special friendship.

In addition to Assistant Secretary Biswals’s four visits this year, we have had the honour of hosting a number of very senior US leaders this year. May 2015 saw Secretary Kerry visit Colombo, the first official visit by a US Secretary of State in over four decades. His visit was followed by a visit by Ambassador Samantha Power. Her visit in November, marked by her trademark style of interacting actively and freely with all whom she encountered, infused US – Sri Lanka relations with renewed energy. Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Rights and Labour, Tom Malinowski, also visited us and has remained consistently engaged with our progress. Finally, Ambassador Thomas Shannon’s visit in December saw us firm up the details of the Partnership Dialogue between our two countries which is what brings me back to this wonderful city for its inaugural meeting tomorrow.

My topic today is ‘Advancing Reconciliation and Development in Sri Lanka’. I will not attempt to list the many steps that have been undertaken to foster reconciliation, strengthen good governance, the rule of law, accountability and human rights since January 2015. This audience is an informed audience and I am sure you all follow Sri Lanka with a keen eye. Therefore, I will try to focus more on the specific topic.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

‘Reconciliation and Development’, as you would agree, are intertwined. It is difficult, almost impossible, to have one without the other.

At the time we gained Independence, in February 1948, Sri Lanka, then Ceylon, was in a unique position among the countries in the developing world as she had experience of representative government and development indicators that were unparalleled in the developing word. In fact, An editorial published in London on the day of Sri Lanka’s independence predicted that in a short space of time Ceylon would become the Switzerland of the East.

The different communities in the country showed promise of being able to live and work towards common national goals in peace, harmony and unity. They had worked together in the past, to gain independence from the British despite the fact that they followed different faiths, spoke different languages and followed different customs.

However, what followed is something that the world knows only too well. We made mistakes which saw our country plunge into torment and conflict for well over three decades.

The failure to manage such justifiable grievances led to conflict and violence. Sri Lanka’s post-independence leadership was unable to terms with her diversity as a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-religious and multi-lingual country. As a result these grievances were transformed into inter-communal resentment and feelings of discrimination and unfair treatment. Our post-Independence leaders, who were acutely aware of the diverse character of our island, sadly faltered at decisive moments and failed to stand up to extremists.

As a result, unmet grievances led to violence and ultimately created the conditions necessary for terrorism, which then transformed into a brutal war. By the time the war ended there were serious allegations of violations of human rights and war crimes hurled against both parties to the conflict and Sri Lanka was facing virtual isolation internationally.

Nonetheless, there was a collective sigh of relief across the entire country too and many hoped that it would be the beginning of a new era of democracy and reconciliation in Sri Lanka. An unprecedented window of opportunity to win the hearts and minds of the suffering people of the North and East suddenly opened.

However, that was not to be. The Rajapaksa regime, emboldened by their military victory over the LTTE, went on a rampage of triumphalism alienating the Tamil people even further. Instead of using the good will generated in the war victory for healing, that historic opportunity was cruelly squandered to further the dynastic ambitions of the ruling family at the time and establish a one-party state.

However, the victory of President Sirisena in 2015 and the victory of the United National Front for Good Governance at the Parliamentary Election in August last year enabled the formation of a National Unity Government, unexpectedly heralding a new era for Sri Lanka. Traditional rivals in Sri Lankan politics – the United National Party (UNP) and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) came together to form a grand coalition for the first time since Independence, heralding a new culture of consensual politics with the determination to create much needed political and policy stability. One has to only look at Sri Lanka’s modern history with its countless missed opportunities to realise that what held us back, what plunged us into cycles of conflict, and what prevented the many attempts of saving our nation from such adversity was the nature of adversarial politics that was followed in the past. Whenever one side tried to find a solution, the other side got in the way.

Today, for the first time in our country’s history, under President Sirisena and Prime Minister Wickremesinghe, this myopia that plagued our nation since independence has been set aside: the temptation of political parties to follow a path of confrontation in order to achieve short-term political gains over the long-term interests of the people is now over. We also have in our Leader of Opposition, the Hon. R. Sampanthan, a wise, committed and respected politician with the resolve to work together to ensure that we do not let our country lose yet another opportunity.

Fortunately, today, with the demise of the LTTE, no one in our country believes that violence is a solution to our problems. The desire for peace, the desire to ensure non-recurrence is clear. The people of our country, in every walk of life, the rich and the poor, those living in the North, South, East, West and Centre, desperately want peace to last. They have all suffered too much bloodshed and unimaginable agony.

The National Unity Government therefore, is focused on fostering a national consensus around the “never again” principle which everyone in our country relates to.

The National Unity Government has not wasted any time in making the fullest use of this historic opportunity. In September last year, the Government made a commitment in the form of co-sponsoring a resolution at the Human Rights Council in Geneva to strengthen good governance, foster reconciliation, promote human rights, establish accountability under the rule of law and ensure non-recurrence.

Our government is totally committed to the successful implementation of this resolution, not because of any desire to appease international opinion, but because of our conviction that Sri Lanka must come to terms the past in order to forge ahead and secure the future the Sri Lankan people truly deserve. As President Sirisena said in his Indpendence Day message on the 4th of February this year,

“It is now time for us to seize the current opportunity that is before us to implement the provisions of the Resolution, not because of international pressure, but because, as a nation, we must implement these provisions for the sake of restoring the dignity of our nation, our people, and our military, in order for Sri Lanka to regain her due position as a strong democracy among the community of nations.”

In that resolution we outlined a four-pillared strategy based on the principles of truth-seeking, accountability, reparations and non-recurrence. This strategy resulted in a commitment to form a Commission for Truth, Reconciliation, Justice and Non-recurrence; an Office on Missing Persons; a Judicial Mechanism; and an Office for Reparations which will be set up by Statute.

We also said that the design of mechanisms will be preceded by a process of Consultations involving all stakeholders, including victims on all sides, which will inform the design of the mechanisms. A Consultation Task Force consisting of 11 eminent public figures has been appointed by the Government to carry out the public consultations. The Task Force is currently working on consulting experts in finalizing the questions for the process and will be appointing Provincial and District Task Forces to conduct face-to-face consultations.

In the meantime, with the assistance of the UN Peacebuilding Fund, the Office of National Unity and Reconciliation (ONUR) and the Ministry of Resettlement are carrying out reconciliation related projects including programmes aimed at creating understanding among communities, psychosocial and livelihood support.

Another important and essential component to ensure non-recurrence, we said, is the introduction of a new Constitution – a Constitution that guarantees, among other democratic reforms, the rights of minorities. This process is vital for our country’s future. On the first anniversary of President Sirisena’s election, on the 9th of January this year, a Special Session of Parliament was convened where a Resolution was tabled to enable the Parliament to sit as a Constitutional Assembly for the purpose of adopting a new Constitution. Public Consultations on the drafting of the Constitution are currently underway.

Addressing Parliament on the 9th of January, the President urged all Members of Parliament to extend their support to the adoption of a new Constitution, and to those who argued that the Executive Presidency should be retained because that was the only means by which Sri Lanka was able to combat terrorism successfully, he responded Sri Lanka rather than continuing with the Executive Presidency anticipating a war in future Sri Lanka should to complete the reforms that are necessary to ensure that war and violence will never occur again.

The Government’s resolve to secure reconciliation, win the peace and ensure reoccurrence is firm. But in order to win the peace, development and rising living standards for each and every Sri Lankan are a sine qua non.

All good intentions and political will not succeed unless all stakeholders feel that their development is being cared for and their lives are improving. Therefore, winning the peace is just as much about jobs, education, healthcare and infrastructure for all Sri Lankans as it is about political reforms. The peace dividend must be felt in economic terms by all sections of Sri Lankan society; the peace dividend for the unemployed youth must be greater and better job opportunities, for the housewives better living standards, for the farmers a higher prices and access to markets, for the students more schools, technical colleges and universities with better-trained teachers and lecturers, for the elderly greater access to hospitals and medicine.

The government of Sri Lanka has no doubt that as the necessary political and economic reforms take place, investments and trade and ultimately jobs, growth and economic development will follow. But as the relationship between peace and development is holistic and dynamic, the faster the peace dividend the greater and faster the likelihood and durability of peace. In a nutshell, the people’s purseses must feel the benefits of the reconciliation, peace and ethnic harmony. And they must feel them fast.

Just as the world rallied around Sri Lanka with advice and support for our reconciliation process, at this critical time of transition it also imperative that the world rallies around us to kick-start the economy and catalyze our development journey.

The government is working hard on this front too. We are putting in place the framework to sustain and accelerate Sri Lanka’s six percent plus growth rate, create a million jobs and improve living standards through an ambitious economic development drive.

The government’s economic strategy is based on attracting foreign direct investment, making Sri Lanka’s exports more competitive, promoting tourism and improving productivity through education and knowledge transfer.

Sri Lanka is at the centre of the rapidly growing Indian Ocean region, astride the main East-West shipping route and next to one of the world’s largest markets, India. We are leveraging this unique geo-economic location to accelerate growth: negotiations are already underway to deepen our existing free trade agreement with India, which we hope to complete by the middle of this year. We plan to do the same with Pakistan with whom we also have a free trade agreement. These agreements – combined with our excellent air and sea connectivity to the sub-continent – will help cement our position as a Gateway to the sub-continent.

We are also improving our market access further abroad. Due to the previous government’s human rights violations we lost GSP+ concessions to the EU. Following the successful visit of the EU Working Group on Human Rights to Sri Lanka we are now finalizing our formal application for GSP+ reapplication and we hope to regain the facility by the end of the year. We are also already in discussions to sign a free trade agreement with China.

The United States is our single largest export market accounting for a quarter of Sri Lanka’s exports. Sri Lanka has some concessionary access to the US market through the GSP facility and has also signed a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement. Upgrading these ties by signing a free trade agreement will go a long way in propelling Sri Lanka to achieving its economic and development.

In addition, the Government is very seriously exploring the possibility of applying to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership. A leading government think tank is preparing a feasibility study and we will be continuously evaluating developments on this front.

A concerted effort is also underway to improve the business climate domestically. Far-reaching governance reforms that are creating a rules based have structurally made investment and business more secure and certain. Sri Lanka is taking measures to increase investor’s ease of doing business and confidence more directly. For example, we are bringing a number of government agencies together to create a one-stop investment and trade-facilitation shop under the Agency for Development. We are reviewing our laws and regulations to create a simple rules based business environment: including those related to land ownership, as well as tariffs and para-tariffs. We have adopted policies that enable private enterprise to thrive: for example, Sri Lanka has one of the lowest income tax rates in the world – at 15 percent. Together these reforms – alongside our educated workforce and solid infrastructure – are making Sri Lanka the most attractive, secure and competitive investment destination in the region.

As a result, during meetings with investors and businesses over the last few months, such as Prime Minister Wickremasinghe’s meetings at the World Economic Forum at Davos and during Presient Sirisena’s state visit to Berlin and Vienna we have seen extraordinary and unprecedented interest in Sri Lanka. The interest was well beyond our own expectations and we are confident that interest will quickly materialize into tangible commitments over the coming year. Sri Lanka is also experiencing a tourism boom, with arrivals last year growing by nearly 20 percent compared to 2014, which also saw double digit growth.

But we also need to rapidly improve living standards across the board, especially the most vulnerable, perhaps faster than the time-lags that inevitably accompany investment and trade led growth. At this critical time of transition demonstrating that there is a peace dividend is of fundamental importance. We are working closely with the Millennium Challenge Corporation, USAID and other US partners in this effort. We are also working closely with other bilateral and multilateral partners including the World Bank and Asian Development Bank. But we need further and faster support in poverty alleviation, urban development, infrastructure development, education – particularly vocational, technical and English language training – and agricultural productivity improvements.

As we in Sri Lanka strive to create a better tomorrow for all our people, we value the partnership with this great country with which we share democratic values. We look to the United States to assist us in our efforts in reconciliation and development and we are keen to work together with the US to promote peace, security, tranquility and economic and social progress, not only in Sri Lanka, but in the Indian Ocean region and beyond.

Ladies and Gentlemen, our aim is to succeed for the sake of all our people, vindicating the faith reposed on us by our friends in the international community but more than anything else, to do right by the people of our nation and future generations, and secure for them the destiny that we were unable to achieve 68 years ago at Independence.

I believe that the Government and people of Sri Lanka will, with the help of friends in the international community, including the United States, finally succeed in creating a country where each individual can live and work with dignity, with self-esteem and confidence in the future.

Allow me to conclude by quoting from speech at the Human Rights Council in September:

“Therefore, I say to the sceptics: don’t judge us by the broken promises, experiences and u-turns of the past. Let us design, define and create our future by our hopes and aspirations, and not be held back by the fears and prejudices of the past. Let us not be afraid to dream. Let us not be afraid to engage in meaningful dialogue aimed at finding solutions to problems as opposed to pointing fingers, heaping blame and scoring political points at the expense of future generations.

My plea to you Ladies and Gentlemen, is: trust us and join us to work together and create the momentum required to move forward and take progressive, meaningful and transformative steps to create a new Sri Lanka.”

49th Annual Commonwealth XI Vs DFAT XI Cricket Encounter – Anton Muthukumaru Trophy

February 24, 2016

The 49th Annual Commonwealth XI vs DFAT XI Cricket Encounter – for the Anthony Muthukumaru Trophy was jointly organised by the High Commission of Sri Lanka and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Australia, and the Royal Commonwealth Society on 21 February 2016 at Reid Oval Ground in Canberra.

The DFAT team won the match by 53 runs and retained the trophy. The Commonwealth team represented players from the High Commissions of Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Canada, Cyprus, Fiji, India, and New Zealand.

Mrs. Himalee Arunatilaka, the Deputy High Commissioner of Sri Lanka, Mr. Ric Wells, Acting Secretary of the Foreign Affairs and Trade Australia, H.E. Kazi Imtiaz Hossain, High Commissioner of Bangladesh, Mr. Kanti Jinna, President of the Royal Commonwealth Society and Mr. Anton Muthukumaru, the son of late General Anton Muthukumaru, Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner from 1963-1966 after whom the trophy is named, attended the event. Some members of the Sri Lankan Community, members of the Diplomatic corps and their family members also joined to watch the match.

The staff of the High Commission and family members played a significant role preparing food items for Gold Coin donations for a charity agreed upon by the organisers, as has been the past practice in the annual cricket encounter. A total of AUD 480 was collected at the end of the match for “Oru Paanai”, a charity that provides food to needy primary school children in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka High Commission at ACT Exporter’s Network: Embassy connect Seminar

February 24, 2016

High Commissioner and the Minister Counsellor participated at ACT Exporter’s Network: Embassy Connect Seminar- organised by the Canberra Chamber of Commerce on 16 February 2016 at its head office in Canberra.

Sri Lanka, Ethiopia and Mexico took part at this event and the respective Heads of Mission made presentations on their countries to attract Australian businessmen.

High Commissioner Skandakumar explained the new opportunities in the country particularly in the current context and corporate video of the Board of Investments of Sri Lanka which was shown to the participants, enriched the High Commissioner’s presentation at this event.

A delegation from Sri Lanka undertaking a study tour

February 19, 2016

A delegation from Sri Lanka undertaking a study tour organised by the Australian Human Rights Commission, on behalf of the DFAT, met with High Commissioner S. Skandakumar and officers of the High Commission on 17the February. The tour will take place from 15-22 February and will include Sydney and Canberra. The focus of the visit is on “Policy and Legal Frameworks for Human Rights and Equality Promotion: The Australian Experience” and will involve a range of meetings with Australian government, non-government agencies and statutory authorities.

The delegation included Mr. Velayuthan Sivaganasothy, Secretary Ministry of Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Hindu Affairs (head of delegation), Mrs. Pearl Weerasinge, Secretary , Ministry of National Co-existence, Dialogue and National Language, Mrs Chandrani Senaratne, Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Affairs, Mr Murugesu Ganeshamoorthy, Secretary, Ministry of National Integration & Reconciliation, Mr Somasiri Ekanayake, Assistant Director Planning & Monitoring, Office of National Unity and Reconciliation and Mr Varuna Ponnamperuma, Assistant Director, Office of National Unity and Reconciliation.

Prime Minister of New Zealand to visit Sri Lanka

February 18, 2016

High Commissioner Skandakumar presents credentials in New Zealand

February 15, 2016

High Commissioner Somasundaram Skandakumar presented credentials to His Excellency Lieutenant General The Right Hon. Sir Jerry Mateparae GNZM, QSO Governor General and Commander-in-Chief, in Auckland New Zealand on 10th February 2016.

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68th Anniversary of Independence Celebrated in Canberra

February 5, 2016

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High Commissioner Skandakumar holds discussions with the PM, Foreign Minister and Attorney General of Fiji

February 5, 2016

Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner S. Skandakumar, who was in Fiji from 28th to 30th January 2016 to present credentials, met Prime Minister Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama, Foreign Minister Ratu Inoke Kubuabola and Attorney General and Minister of Finance Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum during his visit.

Prime Minister Bainimarama appreciated the support and cooperation extended by the Sri Lankan judiciary, by contributing their professional expertise during a difficult and challenging period in the country’s recent history. The Fijian judiciary is largely composed of Sri Lankan judges and magistrates. The Fijian Prime Minister also commended the significant number of Sri Lankan professionals who hold high positions in the Government and corporate sector in Fiji. These sentiments were reiterated by the Foreign Minister and the Attorney General during their discussions with the High Commissioner.

Foreign Minister Kubuabola recalled his meetings with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera in New York and Malta, and also commended the contribution to Fiji by both the former and present Honorary Consuls for Sri Lanka. The Foreign Minister also briefed on the recent developments in Fiji where a new Constitution was introduced in 2013 bringing equality to all citizens as Fijians.

High Commissioner Skandakumar thanked Fiji for their assistance to Sri Lanka in rugby, and suggested reciprocal assistance from Sri Lanka to develop cricket in Fiji. Tourism infrastructure is another area mentioned in which the Sri Lankan private sector in particular would be interested. The High Commissioner proposed the early conclusion of an agreement on bilateral consultations between the two Foreign Ministries which would provide a regular platform to discuss all aspects of the bilateral relationship. The Fijian Foreign Minister welcomed the idea while suggesting that a development cooperation agreement could provide a framework to pursue cooperation in specific areas. He expressed the desire to work towards strengthening the bilateral relationship and invited the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister to visit Fiji.

Attorney General Sayed-Khaiyum, who also holds the portfolios of Finance, Public Enterprises, Public Service and Communications, specifically expressed his appreciation to members of the Sri Lankan judiciary who carried out a difficult task on behalf of Fiji, during a challenging time. The Attorney General briefed on political developments his country had undergone in the recent past. He said the Fijian people wanted development and justice across ethnic lines and that is what the present Government is trying to achieve. The Attorney General added that Fiji being a hub in the Pacific region, there are opportunities for Sri Lankan companies in the hotel industry, housing and medical fields, as well as the services sector.

High Commissioner Skandakumar interacted with the Sri Lankan expatriates at a function organised by the Hony Consul, which was attended by the Chief Justice of Fiji as the Guest of Honour. The High Commissioner was accompanied by Deputy High Commissioner throughout the visit.

Sri Lanka High Commissioner
Canberra
3rd February 2016

High Commissioner Skandakumar presents credentials in Fiji

February 1, 2016

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INDO-LANKA RELATIONS IN THE 21ST CENTURY: A TRYST WITH OPPORTUNITY ~ Address by Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera at the Sri Lanka – India Society

February 1, 2016

INDO-LANKA RELATIONS IN THE 21ST CENTURY: A TRYST WITH OPPORTUNITY
Address by Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera, MP
at the Sri Lanka-India Society
Colombo, 31 January 2016

Thank you very much, Mr. President, for inviting me to give this talk at a very propitious time for Indo-Lanka relations. In fact, the last year has been an excellent year for further cementing our friendship, which my predecessor said had already reached a state irreversible excellence. We had the opportunity of welcoming the Prime Minister of India to Sri Lanka, while the President and Prime Minister were accorded a warm welcome in New Delhi. My friend and counterpart, the Hon. Sushma Swaraj, will be making her third visit in a year and we welcomed the Indian Foreign Secretary a fortnight ago.

As India marches on to become a super-power of the 21st Century, Sri Lanka too has embarked on a Tryst with Opportunity that will undoubtedly be a catalyst for Sri Lanka’s resurgence and development.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this, I am sure, is no accident. The force of destiny has been such that from the most ancient of times, Sri Lanka’s fate has been intertwined with her sister India’s. Our island home, which sits at the centre of the Indian Ocean, has been nourished and fed from the haziest moments of history not from South East Asia, West Asia or Africa but from her closest neighbour India. With the exception perhaps of the Veddhas, the blood that runs in all our veins had its origins in the Land of the Ganges – whether from the Coromandel or Malabar coasts or from what was once known as the Kalinga country.

In fact, as Professor K.M. de Silva points out, the Indian origins of many Sri Lankans, particularly the low-country Sinhalese, are relatively recent, with waves of immigration continuing well into the 18th Century. Even the royal families of Sri Lanka were no exceptio. For as you know, many kings’ consorts were Indian princesses.

When the Sinhala dynasties came to an end, our ancestors did not hesitate to import their kings from India. Prince Kannasamy, crowned King Sri Vikrama Rajasinha – the last King of Kandy – and generations of Kandyan kings before him were of South Indian Nayakar descent, as were many scions of the Kandyan aristocracy. The language of the Kandyan Court was also Tamil, so much so that when the Kandyan Convention of 1815 was signed, all but one of the eleven chieftain’s signatory to the Convention signed their names in beautiful polyglot of Tamil, Sinhala and Malayalee characters. In fact, the flag which has become a fashion among the neo-fascist thugs was the flag of the very same Sri Vikrama Rajasinha of Nayakar descent.

Surveying the few thousands of years of our history, one of our most important turning points was the introduction of Buddhist civilization to Sri Lanka from India. The Mauryan ships that came with Mahinda and Sangamitta did not only bring monks and nuns, but also nobles and artisans, including gold-smiths, potters and weavers.

The Buddhist religion and Ashokan experts resulted in a far-reaching revolution in the beliefs, manners, customs and character of people. A fundamental change took place not only in the social fabric of Lanka, but from that point onwards our island made immense progress in literature, art and culture that has manifested itself in every aspect of day-to-day Sri Lankan life. These ties grew stronger with every passing century, as monks, scholars and artisans travelled to and fro between the countries right continuing right up to modern times. The dynamic combination of these cultures lead to a veritable outburst of creativity and cultural activity. This vibrant and ever evolving cultural landscape was further enriched by the arrival of the Marakalla seafarers from Arabia and India.

It is particularly fitting I think, that in a small way Sri Lanka has been able to repay the historic debt she owed India. Arumuka Navalar, the vanguard Sri Lankan Tamil educationist also helped create the modern Tamil publishing industry. While C.W. Thamotharampillai, another Sri Lankan, who was the first graduate of the University of Madras, played an instrumental role in the revival of the Tamil language editing and publishing key works of classical Tamil poetry and grammar.

But one touching story that I would like to share with you is from Pundit Nehru’s autobiography, where he describes a holiday to what was then Ceylon,

“At Anuradhapura, I liked greatly an old seated statue of the Buddha. A year later, when I was in Dehra Dun Gaol, a friend in Ceylon, sent me a picture of this statue, and I kept it on my little table in my cell. It became a precious companion for me, and the strong, calm features of Buddha’s statue soothed me and gave me strength and helped me overcome many periods of depression.”

It is thus that we South Asians would like to see ourselves: as strong, calm, reflective and compassionate, and as source of solace to the oppressed and unjustly treated- just as the image of the Samadhi Buddha statue at Anuradhapura was to Pandit Nehru at his hour of need.

When speaking of Nehru it would be amiss not to touch on how our respective countries’ political consciousness too has been enriched by the other. We collectively struggled against the imperial yoke of colonialism – India’s leaders and Sri Lanka’s leader both spent their share of time in jail. The Ceylon National Congress and the Jaffna Youth Congress maintained very close ties with the Indian National Congress and their delegates would attend each other’s conferences – Gandhi and Nehru would visit Ceylon and in turn our political leaders would visit India.

India was also refuge for many of our Left leaders, including N.M. Perera, Colvin de Silva, Philip Gunawardene and Leslie Gunawardene, who were on the run from colonial persecution. There they worked in the collective freedom struggle for India and Ceylon as part of the Bolshevik Leninist Party of India, Ceylon and Burma which was formed out of the Lanka Sama Samaja Party and two Indian communist parties.

The indivisible unity of our destinies is also demonstrated by the fact that we won our freedom at the same point in history and by the close ties and personal links that have been maintained between our countries and our leaders since.

So it is strange that that the very people who should be most grateful to India – which so generously gave the majority of this country their great religion, Buddhism; those misguided Sinhalese Buddhists of this country who wear their ethnicity and religion on their sleeve and who claim blood relationship to a lion as related in the mythical history of the Sinhala people, the Mahavamsa, are the one’s who fear India the most.

It is true that most races have founding myths recounting the origins of their races, but these myths are designed to inspire and are not meant to be taken literally. Yet the neo-fascists of today’s political climate are claiming blood relationship to an Indian lion (there are and were no lions in Sri Lanka). But the danger of taking the Mahavamsa literally is then we must believe that the Sinhala race is a race created through bestiality, patricide and incest.

These neo-fascists seem to see an Indian under every busy and live in eternal fear of Indians swarming into Sri Lanka. Whenever a bridge over the Palk Straits to connect our two nations is proposed, they get into a paranoid frenzy that all of India is waiting drive over that bridge and make Sri Lanka their home, when trade agreements are discussed they see swarms of Indian doctors and barbers coming across to flood the Sri Lankan market. Now they claim that their IT specialists are all waiting to come and take the jobs of Sri Lankan engineers. This is when Indian IT engineers are some of the most sought after in the developing world.

This insecure, reactionary and muddled thinking does not do justice to the Sinhalese race’s great and long history, nor does it do justice to the gentle, compassionate and moderate majority of this country whose quiet observance of the Five Precepts and the best of Buddhist values in their daily lives is an example to the entire world. The Sinhalese, over the years, have had the courage and resilience to preserve the teachings of the Buddha in their most pristine form by having the wisdom and flexibility to change with the times and assimilate other cultural and religious influences into society as a whole – thus creating our island’s vibrant cultural diversity. Instead of being an example of hate, ignorance and violence as the neo-fascists would like Sri Lanka to be, we must be a shining example of the Eight Fold Path in a violent world that contains so much injustice and also a grand celebration of ethnic, linguistic and religious diversity.

But taking a longer term view, Sri Lanka and India have had the closest of cultural and political ties from ancient times and these bonds remain strong. When India flourished so did Lanka, when India was oppressed so was Lanka, when freedom dawned in India, it dawned Lanka too. So similarly, when India prospers, so will Lanka.

Therefore, today I think it fitting to survey an area of interaction that has the greatest potential for our mutual destinies and yet remains perhaps the most undeveloped; namely our economic relationship.

India, growing at over seven percent a year, is set to return to her historical place in the top three global economies by 2030. In the next 25 years the middle class is forecast to go from the 10 percent of India’s 1.6 billion strong population it is today, to 90 percent.

Ladies and Gentlemen, now as India is forging ahead to reclaim her rightful place as a super-power, if Sri Lanka too is to benefit from the Indian Century we must see India not as a threat, but as a great opportunity to prosper and develop. Sri Lanka must realize that like Canada, Hong Kong or Vietnam, we are blessed with a historic opportunity by way of our location right next to one of the world’s largest and fastest growing economies – an economy that is thirty times our size. We must also realise that, as a small economy, being a Gateway to India is one of the most compelling reasons for the world to take notice of us.

India’s surging economic growth has created massive FDI and export opportunities. As annual investment by Indian companies abroad has rocketed from 6 million US dollars in 1990 to 9.8 billion US dollars in 2014, the total stock of Indian FDI in Sri Lanka has also grown by leaps and bounds – going from just over 100 million US dollars in the year 2000 to over 1.5 billion US dollars in 2014.

India is not only a direct source of FDI, with firms like IOC, the Taj Group, Ashok Leyland, making major investments in Sri Lanka; being a Gateway to India is one of the few ways in which we can secure FDI and ensure economic development. It is the prospect of entering the Indian market that leads to many global investors considering Sri Lanka as an investment destination. Consider the Port, we have been able to secure such large volumes of FDI because 70 percent of the Colombo Port’s entire container traffic is transshipment to India. Our financial services, IT, logistics and manufacturing sectors all have tremendous potential because they are geographically very well placed to tap the Indian market.

Securing investment directly from India and from other countries as a result of our position as a Gateway to India and the sub-continent, is not the only way Sri Lanka’s business and citizens can benefit from the gigantic Indian market. Sri Lankan firms are also increasingly making use of investment opportunities in India. A few examples include, Brandix India Apparel City, a thousand-acre apparel zone; MAS’ multiple factories and fabric parks; Aitken Spence’s 143 roomed hotel in Chennai.

Moving on to trade, Sri Lankan consumer firms are just beginning to penetrate the massive Indian market. Sri Lanka’s exports to India have increased by almost 10 times since the Indo-Lanka Free Trade Agreement came into effect. Sri Lankan consumer brands like Amante, Avirate, Munchee and Damro are rapidly expanding and on the industrial side Colombo Dockyard has orders worth over 250 million dollars to build ships for Indian companies. As a result of such successes, the ratio of imports to exports between India and Sri Lanka declined from 10:1 to 6:1 within ten years of signing the agreement.

With the proposed Economic and Technological Cooperation Agreement we will build on this Free Trade Agreement to put in place a rules based framework for services trade, enabling the services sector, which accounts for 60 percent of our economy, to benefit from the same market access and dynamism other sectors enjoy under the Indo-Lanka Free Trade Agreement.

In the 21st Century, as the world’s economic centre of gravity returns to the East, we cannot afford to think of India as a threat, rather we must think of her as our greatest opportunity. All our current superstitions and prejudices about India must not colour our thinking. Most of all Sri Lanka must get rid of its minority complex which seems to have been acquired by seeing India as a threatening and hostile neighbour, inimical to the interests of our country.

India in turn must be vigilant to the needs, hopes and aspirations of ordinary Sri Lankans, so that recurring issues, like the bottom trawling crisis in the North of Sri Lanka, which not only affects the livelihoods of thousands of poor families and results in dangerous environmental damage to the rich seafloor of the Palk Straits, are resolved and do not give cause to anti-Indian feeling.

Allow me to conclude by saying that we cannot afford to stand by and watch as what could be the Indian Century passes us by. We must leverage our proximity to the Indian economy, one of our greatest blessings, and become the Gateway to India and the sub-continent. Then as India prosperous, we will prosper even more. We have already embarked on this Tryst with Opportunity. The time has come to transform that Tryst into reality.