Asian Human Rights Commission .............................................................................................................................................................................................
Anews report published on June 11th from Colombo stated, "Members of the vanquished Tamil Tiger terrorist organization, Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) are posing as beggars in the cities throughout the country to gather information, Sri Lanka's Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne said today. Addressing a ceremony held in his office this morning to launch welfare loan schemes for the families of war heroes, the Premier said the government intelligence services have identified that these beggars having been trained and deployed by the LTTE. The Prime Minister stressed that the intelligence units should be constantly vigilant on such movements.
This week a disabled person who moved on a wheelchair was found dead in Colombo with severe head injuries. Five other similar killings of beggars have been reported recently.
Is this the way intelligence units carrying out the Premiers instructions to be "constantly vigilant?"
What was the need for the Premier to make such a statement? Has there been such overwhelming information about terrorism by beggars? If not, why does he place such information before parliament?
On the occasion of the IIFA also, the government created propaganda about beautifying the city by removing beggars.
It is difficult not to link such statements and the sudden occurrence of a series of killings of beggars in Colombo.
It is not necessary for any thief to kill a disabled man in a wheelchair in order to steal whatever he may be possessing. Regarding the other five killings of beggars, it is hard to imagine anybody wanting to steal anything from beggars as, by their very nature, they are the ones who have the least. As no accidental circumstances have surfaced, these killings are not accidents. Besides, the injury on the heads of the disabled lottery ticket seller was a severe injury, most probably caused by hitting with a heavy stone. The circumstances suggest deliberate intention to kill.
It was not long ago that those who were alleged to be criminals were killed at police stations. That, too, was a program. The Sri Lankan society seems to have gotten used to the idea of killings as the solution to everything.
When the Prime Minister of the country himself creates the psychological impetus for intelligence agencies to act against the poorest sections of society, the beggars, is there any point in calling for inquiries and crying out for justice? When the government itself creates the climate for killing, where is the possibility for inquiries and justice?
By Editor | Asian Tribune .............................................................................................................................................................................................
Rajapaksa who is on an official tour to Ukraine stated that Sri Lanka has now been ranked as South Asia's most liberalized economy.
President Rajapaksa, on a three-day tour of Ukraine, expressed this view while attending the Sri Lanka, Ukraine business forum which was held to strengthen the longstanding economic ties both countries had developed.
The President went on to say that Sri Lanka had also been rated as one of the world's best performing financial markets.
Addressing the forum yesterday, the head of state further said that with the elimination of terrorism from Sri Lanka, there was security and stability in every part of the country.
He added that attention had been focused on transforming Sri Lanka into a major center of shipping, trade, air, energy and knowledge.
Following is the full text of the speech made by Sri lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa the Sri Lanka-Ukraine Business Forum:
Let me at the outset thank President Yanukovich for your words of introduction. I am pleased to speak a few words on this occasion which convenes the Ukraine –Sri Lanka Business Forum.
In my view this Forum is one of special significance to the relations between Sri Lanka and Ukraine, as its objective is to widen the scope of our bilateral relations beyond official contacts between our two governments, and to stimulate direct interaction between the private sector and the business communities through the promotion of economic and trade cooperation.
In today’s globalized and integrated world, participation in the global economy is necessary to generate national wealth and create employment in domestic economies. It is my intention to transform Sri Lanka into a major centre of naval, trade, air, energy and knowledge.
We have encouraged the private sector to take a leading role in this process. In the future too we will follow the same policy. It is for this reason that I have invited a delegation of key members of the private sector of Sri Lanka to accompany me in this visit.
Our vision for Sri Lanka`s development is apparent. It integrates the positive attributes of market economic policies and economic growth with our own domestic aspirations for social justice and human development. I believe that this has much in common with your Excellency President Yanukovich’s own stated agenda for Ukraine.
I am pleased to inform you that we have succeeded in establishing stability in the country and ensuring investment protection. The Economist Magazine stated a year ago that Sri Lanka is among the few countries with the speediest economic growth. Furthermore, with the elimination of terrorism there is security and stability in every part of the country.
Sri Lanka has today reached the status of a middle-income developing country with free market liberalized economic policies. Today, Sri Lanka is ranked as the most liberalized economy in South Asia. With the post-conflict stimulus, our economy is expected to grow at a rate of 7% this year, and Sri Lanka was rated one of the world’s best performing financial markets in 2009 as investor confidence grew.
One of Sri Lanka’s greatest assets is our highly skilled and educated labour force. The policy of free universal education and international schools has further strengthened this highly skilled Human Resource base.
Sri Lanka and Ukraine are geographically situated in strategically important locations in the world. Strategically located at the cross roads of both East and West sea routes and as the point of entry to South Asia, Sri Lanka since ancient times is an important centre in the trading routes.
Any visitor to Sri Lanka would see that the country is ready for a giant leap in the sectors of port, transport, energy, commercial and knowledge. At present, a port in South Colombo is being built. The Hambantota Port is also being built in the South of Sri Lanka.
Everyone agrees that Sri Lanka is becoming the Wonder of Asia. Sri Lanka is not far away from the day of becoming a major logistical hub offering advanced support services.
Sri Lanka is in the midst of revolutionizing the road network. Networks of modern highways and railway services are being constructed speedily. This network will instantly link all parts of the country. We are ready to provide surface electricity with the construction of massive electricity generation plants at Norochcholai and Upper Kothmale. These projects are undertaken in collaboration with international partners. With all these developments we are not surprised that Sri Lanka is ranked with the best countries in world for foreign investments.
All this gives much scope for expansion of economic relations between Sri Lanka and Ukraine. I hope that the Business Forum will provide an opportunity to exchange information about each others markets, business climate, and opportunities. I hope it will also enable you to make the initial contacts with each other.
Let me conclude by extending an invitation to you to visit Sri Lanka in the near future together with a business delegation from Ukraine!
By Siddharth Srivastava | Asia Sentinel .............................................................................................................................................................................................
Sri Lanka, battered by four decades of Tamil separatist violence that ended a year ago, appears finally able to begin to exploit its sizable domestic oil and gas sources and reduce its crippling dependence on imports.
In one of the latest moves, Cairn Lanka, a subsidiary of the Edinburg-based Cairn Energy PLC, will begin a three-well drilling campaign off the Mannar Basin, located between southwestern Sri Lanka and the Indian coastline in the first quarter of next year, according to the British High Commission in Colombo.
This will mark the onset of petroleum exploration in the island country after a gap of 25 years. Cairn Lanka already has 3D seismic survey data on 1,750 square kilometers in the basin. The UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) section of the British High Commission in Colombo, has been advising British players about exploration opportunities in Sri Lanka.
The revelation of large oil and gas reserves is welcome news to an economy long crippled by strife and outdated unfortunate economic planning. Inward remittances from Sri Lankans working overseas form too much of GDP. Government spending for public administration and defense has remained high because of the now-concluded hostilities. But President Mahinda Rajapaksa has reversed a policy of selling off state-owned enterprises. Rajapaksa won a resounding re-election bid in January and has since been seeking to reinvigorate the Lankan economy, which is heavily dependent on tourism to earn foreign exchange. Tourism, given the country’s magnificent beaches and pleasant climate, is expected to recover with the war concluded.
Colombo has been looking to tap resources commercially that were largely inaccessible during the war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels. The conflict ended following a huge offensive in May last year that resulted in the killing of the Tiger chief Vellupillai Prabhakaran.
Gulf of Mannar
The Mannar Basin is a frontier petroleum province that has been virtually unexplored. Preliminary estimates indicate the presence of 1 billion barrels of oil in areas that had been under the LTTE’s control during the decades of conflict.
If proven, the reserves would provide a sizeable boost to Sri Lanka, which produces no oil and imported nearly US$3.5 billion worth in 2008.
Hopes of striking oil have risen with India’s success on the other side of the maritime boundary. Colombo holds eight oil and gas exploration blocks in Mannar, two of which have been granted to the governments of China and India, which backed Colombo’s war against the rebels.
Russia, another ally, has also been invited by Colombo to explore the oil & gas sector. Cairn India has one block for which it has set aside US$100 million for the first three years of exploration.
Colombo decided to allow foreign and private investors access to its offshore oil and gas fields as long ago as 2003. However, progress has been possible only now with the end of the ethnic violence.
India's Role
India believes that as an overall strategy, China, with the help of Pakistan, is keen to check India’s influence in the Indian Ocean. India has thus been unhappy about a deep-water port in Hambantota on Sri Lanka’s south coast that is being built with the help of the Chinese.
After being bested in Burma by the Chinese, who have largely tied up Burmese energy exports despite a concerted campaign by India to win concessions, New Delhi is also wary that Chinese energy firms are going to make a dash for the Mannar Basin oil and gas reserves that have been offered by Colombo for exploration.
Colombo recently sounded out India about its intentions in the Gulf of Mannar which might extend to the waters of both across their maritime boundary. The matter was discussed during the visit in June to India by Rajapaksa with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
A joint statement reads: “Sri Lanka proposed discussions on establishing a joint information mechanism on the possibility of oil and gas fields straddling the India-Sri Lanka maritime boundary. The matter will be discussed further between the two sides.”
No Privatization in Lanka
Colombo reiterated that it will not allow privatization of its oil sector, highlighting that the government will keep close control over its natural resources, royalties, pricing and regulation.
A cabinet statement recently said, “The government of President Mahinda Rajapaksa promised to stop privatizations and we will use every opportunity to buy back sold assets.”
In this context, Colombo has decided to buy back the local unit of Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe’s largest oil company. The state currently owns 49 percent of Shell Gas Lanka, the island’s largest retailer of liquefied petroleum gas. Shell bought the Colombo Gas Company for US$37 million 15 years ago. Privatization of the state-owned Ceylon Petroleum Corporation has also been stopped.
Cairn in Asia
Cairn Energy is one of Europe's biggest independent oil and gas exploration and production companies. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange with assets in India, Greenland, Bangladesh and now, Sri Lanka.
In India, the company recently raised crude oil reserves estimates at its Barmer fields located in the Thar Desert north western Rajasthan by 37 percent. It is on course to contribute one-fifth of India’s current oil production and bring down the oil import bill by nearly US$10 billion.
“The new estimates are at 2,40,000 barrels per day (bpd) which translates into equaling production from Mumbai High fields (India’s largest oilfield and run by state run ONGC),” Cairn India CEO Rahul Dhir told local media. “Based on our review, we estimate that the potential resource in the (Rajasthan) block is now estimated to be 6.5 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe).”
The lone offshore Sangu gas field in Bangladesh was discovered by Cairn in 1996 and production started in 1998. The company supplies 35 million cubic feet gas per day. The field stands almost depleted now and is expected to last till 2011.
Ateam from the British High Commission in Colombo along with the Acting British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Mark Gooding and United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID) is currently visiting Sri Lanka's war-torn North.
During their 4-day visit from June 28 to July 1, the team will be exploring the investment opportunities in the region. They will visit the Northern cities including Jaffna, Vavuniya, Mullaitivu, and Kilinochchi to observe the economic development, investment opportunities, and humanitarian requirements in the area.
The group will also meet key government, military, political and religious figures in the area, as well as commercial and local and international humanitarian organizations, the High Commission reported.
According to a High Commission press release the DFID has allocated £13.5 million of humanitarian assistance to Sri Lanka between September 2008 and July 2009, in response to needs on the ground arising from the final stages of the conflict between the Government of Sri Lanka and LTTE, and its immediate aftermath.
According to statistics from the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka, UK companies comprise a 10.2% share of FDI in Sri Lanka - the second largest - with investments totaling approximately $300 million at the end of 2009.
The Acting High Commissioner is accompanied on his visit by Malcolm Lewis (1st Secretary - Migration), David Ashley (1st Secretary - Regional Advisor), Jane Barham (1st Secretary - Development), Michael Jefferson (Commercial Attaché) and Neil Barry of the Department for International Development (DFID), London.
By Muttukrishna Sarvananthan | Perambara.org .............................................................................................................................................................................................
The European Commission (EC) introduced a Generalised Scheme of Tariff Preferences (GSP) in 2003 for low and middle-income countries to mitigate the impact of the removal of quotas in 2001 for garments exports to the European Union (EU) countries. While the least developed countries had duty free access to the EU markets, middle-income countries like Sri Lanka had a very low tariff barrier under the GSP.
By mid-2005 the EC introduced a new GSP plus (GSP+) to contribute to poverty reduction, promote ‘sustainable development’ and ‘good governance’ in low and middle-income countries, which afforded duty free access for circa 6,400 goods to the EU markets (see the regulation European Council No.980/2005 of June 27, 2005). The least developed countries were afforded duty free access for 7,200 goods. In 2008 there were fourteen GSP+ beneficiary countries. The GSP+ scheme is renewable every three years.
Three core objectives of the GSP+ are poverty reduction, promotion of ‘sustainable development’ and ‘good governance’ in beneficiary countries. Though what ‘good governance’ specifically means is defined clearly (ratification and effective implementation of 16 core conventions on human and labour rights and ratification and implementation of 11 conventions on good governance and environment), what constitutes ‘sustainable development’ is defined loosely as meeting the Millennium Development Goals set in 2000 and the Johannesburg declaration of 2002.
Fundamentally, the GSP+ scheme is an incentive scheme and NOT a conditionality to get access to the markets of the member countries of the EU. Unfortunately, some people mistakenly argue that the eligibility criteria set for the GSP+ scheme by the EC are conditionalities and therefore non-tariff barriers. The EC has not violated any WTO rules of trade by setting eligibility criteria for the GSP+ scheme. The issue is not access to markets but DUTY FREE access to markets, which is a privilege and NOT a right and entirely a prerogative of the EC. Thus, countries cannot demand the privileges of GSP+ scheme, but could make a request through an application process which includes an undertaking to fulfill the eligibility criteria.
There are several countries queuing-up to get into the GSP+ scheme and thereby gain duty free access to their exports to the EU markets. Therefore, the EC is duty bound to enforce the eligibility criteria in order to be fair by all applicants. Suppose one (or more) country is exempted from certain eligibility criterion/criteria, then there could be demands from other countries those do not fulfill the eligibility criteria (such as China), in which case the objectives of the GSP+ scheme would be lost. In certain instances the United States and the EU have had trade deals with countries like China without any non-trade or non-economic conditions (like labour/human rights and governance) because of reciprocity (i.e. those are bilateral trade concessions). That is, such trade deals are reciprocal whereby both trading partners agree on preferential access to each other’s markets. However, the GSP+ scheme is non-reciprocal (i.e. beneficiary countries need not provide duty free access to goods from EU countries in return for duty free access to their goods in EU markets) and therefore EC has the moral and legal right to lay down eligibility criteria to make avail of this one-sided concession (unilateral trade concession).
Further, GSP+ scheme did result in loss of market for same or similar products produced by member countries of the EU. Loss of market for locally produced goods also means loss of employment to the nationals of EU countries. In fact, there is a strong lobby against the schemes such as the GSP+ by the European trade unions because of the loss of jobs resulting from import of cheap goods from the developing world. Therefore, the EC should be 2 able to justify to its citizens that granting of duty free access under the GSP+ scheme to developing countries would be beneficial to the citizens of the beneficiary countries, especially the marginalized labour and the poor, and therefore worth the losses incurred by the domestic labour.
Moreover, the eligibility criteria of the GSP+ scheme are meant to benefit the citizens of the beneficiary countries and not the citizens of the EU. Therefore, how come a democratic government object to the eligibility criteria of the GSP+ scheme that are meant to benefit its own citizens? Every game in sports has rules and all the teams that participate in different games agree to abide by the respective rules. Any team or member/s of the team violating any rules of the game could be expelled from the game. Therefore, no team or member of a team could morally or legally argue that it has been unfairly treated by the game referee because of its expulsion due to violation of the rule/s of the game.
Similarly, markets do have rules and regulations in order to foster fair play (perfect competition) and prevent anti-competitive and unfair practices. Under preferential and free trade agreements there is a conditionality called “rules of origin”. There is usually a requirement that at least a certain proportion of the value added of any product should accrue from the country of origin. That is, any product that is exported from one country to another should have a minimum value addition in the country of origin in order to be eligible to get concessional (preferential) duty or duty free access to its partner country. No country could cry foul if its goods have been barred from obtaining the privilege of concessional duty or duty free access to foreign market/s due to violation of the rules of origin conditionality.
The same analogy applies to the GSP+ scheme as well. In fact, currently the biggest threat to Sri Lanka’s exports is not the suspension or withdrawal of the duty free access to the EU markets under the GSP+ scheme. Deliberate or intentional overvaluation of the rupee due to the myopic exchange rate management policy of the Central Bank is the biggest threat facing exports from Sri Lanka. In pursuit of building up the foreign exchange reserve of the country the Central Bank of Sri Lanka has resorted to wanton short-term international private capital market borrowings in the past few years (since 2006). In order to keep the amount of repayment of these short-term loans low, the rupee is prevented from depreciating (according to the market forces) through purchase of foreign currency by the Central Bank in the open market. Instead of correcting its own policy mistakes it has become a national sport for the present Sri Lankan government to evoke the bogey of foreign conspiracy against Sri Lanka on issues of critical importance to its citizens.
This note of clarification should not be misconstrued as batting for the European Commission; rather the author is batting for the hapless citizens of Sri Lanka who are misled by various interest groups.
By Jamila Najmuddin | Daily Mirror Online .............................................................................................................................................................................................
The European Union (EU) is attempting to establish contact with the Sri Lankan government over the GSP+ trade benefits to the country after the deadline by the EU for the government to respond to its conditions ended today.
EU Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Bernard Savage speaking to Daily Mirror online said that the government had not met the deadline which was issued in order to enable the Commission to revise its recommendations on the status of the GSP plus.
However the Ambassador said that it was not a fixed deadline and the Commission would continue to seek dialogue with the Sri Lankan government.
“We still hope that we will be able to reach a dialogue with the Sri Lankan government. We issued the deadline simply because of the fact that if the Council did not meet in August it would enable us then to engage in the administrative process of providing that recommendation if we did have a positive response. So it is not a fixed deadline,” Ambassador Savage told Daily Mirror online.
He added that the EU still remained hopeful that the government would respond to the Commissions proposals in writing.
Meanwhile a spokesman for the EU in Brussels also said that the EU was still seeking contact with the Sri Lankan authorities and it may take a few more days before contact could be established between the two sides.
The EU official also clarified that the offer to address outstanding issues through a six month extension was made in good faith but it was an option the EU could pursue only if the Sri Lankan government was ready to continue engagement.
“It normally takes at least 4 to 6 weeks to get a political proposal through EU decision-making, hence the invitation for a response by 1 July. The 15 February council decision could be reversed only through a new proposal,” the EU spokesman in Brussels told Daily Mirror online.
The EU had written to the government putting down 15 conditions to be addressed in order for a recommendation to be put forward for the EU to temporarily extend the GSP plus trade benefits to Sri Lanka which ends next month.
The government has so far rejected the conditions and said it will also not formally respond to the EU letter.
AFP | Khaleej Times .............................................................................................................................................................................................
The European Union urged Sri Lanka’s government on Thursday to cooperate with a UN panel probing alleged war crimes during the country’s civil war.
“The European Union encourages the Government of Sri Lanka to cooperate fully, including through the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission appointed by President Rajapakse, with the members of the Panel, in the interest of all concerned,” said EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton.
“The European Union hopes that these initiatives can contribute to an inclusive and sustainable political solution addressing the legitimate concerns of all the communities on the island,” she said in a statement.
President Mahinda Rajapakse’s government has ignored calls to investigate allegations that thousands of civilians were killed along with surrendering rebels during the final months of the fighting that ended in May last year.
Sri Lanka has refused to cooperate with a panel named by UN chief Ban Ki-moon last week to advise on “accountability issues” during the conflict, which pitted government forces against Tamil Tiger separatists.
Rajapakse told the 'Times of India' in an interview published Monday that he did not care about damage to the country’s image as a result of resisting pressure from the United Nations and Western countries to submit to an enquiry.
“Why should I worry about others?” he told the newspaper. “If India and neighbours are good with me, that is enough for me.”
Asked about the risk of losing EU trade concessions worth an estimated 150 million dollars a year because of his resistance to EU pressure, Rajapakse replied: “I am not bothered.”
“If the EU doesn’t want to give it, let them keep it. I don’t want it. We have gone and explained what we have done.”
The UN has said that at least 7,000 ethnic Tamil civilians were killed in the first four months of 2009. The UN estimates that up to 100,000 people died in the fighting between 1972 and May last year.
China has backed Sri Lanka in its opposition to the setting up of a human rights panel by the United Nations to look into alleged rights abuses during the ethnic war, saying the government was capable of handling it.
China said on Thursday that Sri Lanka and its people were capable of handling the issue and asked UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and world community to help Colombo stabilise its internal situation.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said Colombo has appointed a 'Reconciliation Commission' of its own to probe the charges of human rights abuses during the last stages of the conflict against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in Sri Lanka.
"China believes that the Sri Lankan government and its people are capable of handling various issues. We hope the international community including UN Secretary General can create a favourable external environment for the Sri Lankan government to stabilise its internal situation and accelerate economic development," he said.
Sri Lanka has said the panel headed by Indonesia's former Attorney General Marzuki Darusman was "uncalled for and unnecessary" and warned that it will take "appropriate action".
China in recent years has emerged as a strategic ally and a leading donor of Sri Lanka and backed the country's military campaign against the LTTE a move interpreted by strategic analysts as an attempt aimed at countering India's influence in the region.
Since 2006, the Chinese government has provided Sri Lanka with $3.06 billion financial assistance.
China's financial clout has ensured its links with some of the most strategically located assets of Sri Lanka, including the Hambantota deep seaport in the southern part of the country.
On the political crisis in Nepal following the resignation of Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, Qin said China hopes that all political forces in the country to work out a consensus through dialogue and jointly proceed with the peace process to achieve stability and development. He also praised outgoing Prime Minister Nepal for his great contribution to establish China-Nepal friendship.
By Wijitha Nakkawita and Lakshmi De Silva | Daily News .............................................................................................................................................................................................
The panel of experts on Sri Lanka to advice UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon was an attempt to intimidate the weak and meek nations but was not called for by the member states of the UN body, Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative to the UN Dr. Palitha Kohona told Daily News yesterday.
Dr. Kohona currently in Colombo said the Non Aligned Movement too had protested to the UN Secretary General about this unacceptable decision as he seemed to be influenced by certain NGO lobbies but the UN was an organization of sovereign nation states and not NGOs.
Matters concerning Sri Lanka with regard to the final phase of the humanitarian operations were taken up at the appropriate UN organ the Human Rights Council and a motion was carried in favour of Sri Lanka with 29 member nations voting for us while only 12 members voted against us, he said.
There were other regions where thousands of human rights violations were taking place daily but the UN Secretary General seemed to be reluctant to take up these issues as some powerful and rich nations were involved in those regions.
But Ban Ki Moon seemed to have ignored such violations, he noted.
Dr. Kohona said there were only a handful of nations that may be in agreement with the move against our country but the vast majority of the member nations have expressed their opposition to this move.
NAM comprises 117 nations out of the 192 member states of the UN and NAM had objected to the move by the Secretary General.
In the case of appointment of panels by the UN it had been done either at the request of the UN legislative organs or at the request of the country itself. But in this case it was not so.
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