By Bate Felix | Reuters
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For more than a year Sri Lanka has defied Western pressure over accountability for potential war crimes and human rights violations in the last stages of its quarter-century war with the separatist Tamil Tigers, which it won in May 2009.
"The Commission would be grateful to receive from your government, by July 1, a letter containing a firm undertaking to address by the end of the year, the principle outstanding issues," said the letter, seen by Reuters.
"Over the longer term, the European Commission looks forward to addressing the full range of human rights issues with the government of Sri Lanka," it said.
The letter, signed by EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht, had urged Sri Lanka to lift wartime emergency laws that grant the government wide powers of arrest.
Sri Lankan officials rejected the request from the 27-nation EU, saying demands for accountability were fuelled by supporters of the Tamil Tigers.
"To suggest that any decision by the EU in respect of GSP+ (trade concessions) and Sri Lanka is politically motivated and to link it to the elections of this year is entirely false," said John Clancy, the European Commission's trade spokesman.
"The government of Sri Lanka is very well aware that this is a legal process that began several years ago and to suggest otherwise is simply misleading," he said.
DEADLINE LOOMS
As the July 1 reply deadline looms, the European Union has warned that Sri Lanka risks losing access from Aug. 15 to its biggest export market if it fails to comply.
In February, EU states said they would temporarily withdraw preferential tariff benefits to Sri Lanka under the Generalised System of Preferences Plus (GSP+) scheme because of concerns about Sri Lanka's human rights record.
The potential loss, worth about 100 million euros ($122 million) annually in exports, would be a blow to Sri Lanka as the country is focused on resurrecting its $42 billion economy.
"We were not prepared to obtain these concessions at any cost. That's not the attitude of a self-respecting government," Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris said.
Peiris had said Colombo would not reply to the EU's letter.
© Reuters
Thursday, July 01, 2010
Sri Lanka could lose trade concessions in EU spat
Thursday, July 01, 2010
UN defends Sri Lankan civil war panel
By James Reinl | The National
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This month, the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, made a long-awaited decision to appoint experts to advise him on “accountability issues” relating to abuses committed last year during the violent end to almost three decades of conflict.
Sri Lankan nationalists protested the move noisily this week, while government officials in Colombo rejected the UN’s “unwarranted and uncalled for” intervention and said they will refuse the experts visas to enter the South Asian island.
Speaking with The National, Farhan Haq, a spokesman for the UN chief, rejected claims that the world body was trespassing on Sri Lankan sovereignty and insisted that Mr Ban was not exceeding his powers by creating the panel.
“The secretary general has all the authority he needs to name a panel of advisers,” Mr Haq said.
“Whereas commissions of inquiry have normally required a mandate, the panel of experts for Sri Lanka is an advisory panel limited to advise the secretary general.
“It is not a fact-finding or investigative body that would determine the facts or scope of the alleged violations in Sri Lanka, and nor is it intended to make visits to Sri Lanka that would require the consent of the government.”
The defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in mid-May last year ended a conflict that claimed the lives of 100,000 people since rebels began fighting for an independent homeland in 1983. Rights groups are pressing for accountability for thousands of civilian deaths in the final months of the conflict, when government forces shelled a “no-fire zone” while encircling the rebel’s final stronghold on a sandy strip of north-eastern Sri Lanka.
The Tigers were accused of using child soldiers and human shields among myriad violations, but since their defeat by Sri Lankan security forces, allegations have centred on the military’s excessive use of force during the final offensive.
The UN has repeatedly urged Sri Lanka’s president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, to probe abuses but has also been criticised for failing to ratchet up enough pressure against his increasingly gloating and nationalistic government.
The president’s own probe – a Commission on Lessons Learned and Reconciliation – was announced in May, but it is widely regarded as lacking legal powers. Even Mr Ban’s panel is seen as an attempt to increase political pressure on Mr Rajapaksa rather than uncover evidence of violations.
Marzuki Darusman, a former attorney general of Indonesia, will head the panel, supported Yasmin Sooka, who served on South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and Steven Ratner, a professor specialising in international law at the University of Michigan Law School. The panel is expected to wrap up its responsibilities within four months.
Members will examine the “modalities, applicable international standards and comparative experience with regard to accountability processes, taking into account the nature and scope of any alleged violations in Sri Lanka”, said a UN statement.
UN spokesman Mr Haq said this week investigators will focus on the final stages of the conflict, when abuse allegations centre on the government’s excessive military force causing the deaths of thousands of Tamil civilians.
“The conflict ran for decades, and during that period many atrocities took place,” said Mr Haq. “While there is a legitimate need for a through inquiry into the entire conflict, it was felt that as a first step it would be necessary and practical for the secretary general’s panel to focus on the final stages of the war.
“During that time, grave violations of humanitarian and human-rights law by both sides are alleged to have taken place despite strident appeals and warnings from the international community for the protection of civilians.”
© The National
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
"Surround the UN office and take Sri Lankan staff hostage " : Govt minister urges public
By Lakna Paranamanna | Daily Mirror
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Weerawansa told reporters today that the appointment of the three-member advisory panel by UN General Secretary Ban Ki Moon is the primary step that would prompt the Sri Lankan leaders to be produced to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
“This appointment should not be perceived upon as a simple act because the next step of UN would be to appoint an investigative committee to look into the possible violations of human rights and war crimes. This would eventually lead to the leaders and war heroes of Sri Lanka to be produced to the ICJ,” Weerawansa, who is also the leader of the National Freedom Front, said.
Weerawansa who also spoke of Democratic National Alliance (DNA) Leader Sarath Fonseka’s agreement to talk with the UN panel, described of it as a revolting move towards betraying the country’s sovereignty.
© Daily Mirror
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Q+A: Sri Lanka's 2010 budget finally lands
By C. Bryson Hull | Reuters
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The IMF released a delayed $408 million loan tranche right before the budget was presented, saying the spending plan would "significantly address past fiscal slippages" if executed.
Here are some questions and answers about the budget impact:
THE 2010 BUDGET DEFICIT FORECAST IS FOR 8 PERCENT OF GDP, AGAINST AN IMF TARGET OF 7 PERCENT. WILL THAT CAUSE SNAGS IN FUTURE DISBURSEMENTS OF THE LOAN?
Not really, as long as the government is acting in the spirit of the reforms pledged under the $2.6 billion loan. The global lender has been accommodating to Sri Lanka, as it views it as a success story since the end of the war.
Sri Lanka's government recognises that is has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reform the economy after nearly three decades of war, so it has greater incentive to act than nearly any other previous administration.
WHAT ABOUT GOVERNMENT BORROWING?
It's down 7.8 percent overall. Total domestic financing this year is forecast at 315.3 billion rupees, down from 392.5 in 2009, while foreign financing is estimated at 123.5 billion versus 83.9 billion last year.
Lower domestic financing means interest rates in Sri Lanka should remain low for the near term and help a nascent rebound in private sector credit growth. Foreign investors who want Sri Lankan government securities still face a 10 percent foreign holding limit that is all but topped out. [nSGE64H0F7]
WILL REFORMS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR BECOME A REALITY?
Like the IMF said, it is all about execution. The budget speech announced the creation of a new Ministry of Management Reforms to make the public sector a revenue generator.
The ministry faces a tall order in creating efficiency and accountability in a bloated, notoriously slow-moving public sector that remains a major source of patronage. Many are sceptical Rajapaksa will resist the temptation to dole it out.
WHAT ABOUT THE EXPECTED TAX REFORMS?
A number have been announced over the last month, so the budget had nothing new. But a presidential commission tasked with streamlining the tax structure is expected to announce its recommendations by August. Look for the panel to propose a simplified personal and corporate tax regime, replacing one that is a byzantine, costly mix of Sri Lanka's history as colonial trading outpost and a post-independence socialist state.
© Reuters
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
General Fonseka 'ready to talk' with UN panel
Gen Sarath Fonseka told BBC Sandeshaya that even President Mahinda Rajapaksa has agreed with the UN to investigate alleged human rights violations during the last phase of the war.
The UN secretary general has set up a panel to look into alleged human rights abuses during the final stages of Sri Lanka's civil war in 2009.
Ban Ki-moon's spokesman said the three-man panel would advise on how to deal with alleged perpetrators.
Rights groups accuse both sides of war crimes - a claim which has been denied.
"I think this committee is a result of that agreement with President Rajapaksa," Gen Fonseka told BBCSinhala.com.
He stressed that any country should take steps to resolve issues with the international community if there are any question marks over the conduct of the said country.
Rejecting the appointment of the panel, the government said the panel members will not be allowed to visit the country.
In an interview with Times of India newspaper, President Rajapaksa has dismissed the panel.
"We should not try to get involved in a conflict with the UN," Gen Fonseka said.
"As a citizen of Sri Lanka, if I get an opportunity to support such an inquiry, I think we shouldn't hesitate to do that."
The former military commander who is facing two military trials says that the conditions imposed by the European Union to extend the GSP+ facility are fair.
"I don't think it is an intervention in internal affairs," he said.
"The EU has demanded the release of political prisoners which includes me," Gen Fonseka added.
© BBC Sinhala
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
No pay hike this year, revenue proposals dropped
By Saman Indrajith | The Island
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Presenting the 2010 budget on behalf of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who holds the finance portfolio, Dr. Amunugama said in the post-LTTE era, priority would be given to combating crime, the underworld, narcotics trade and the illicit liquor trade.
Categorising yesterday’s presentation as a medium-term road map, which outlined the entire range of on-going government programmes, Minister Amunugama said that it would be the basis for completing all preparatory work and finalising action plans to be implemented beginning next month.
As speculated in political and financial circles, the government did not present revenue proposals prompting a section of the Opposition to stage a boisterous protest. Led by UNP MP Dayasiri Jayasekera, a group of MPs displayed placards targeting the government over rising cost of living and failure on the part the Rajapaksa administration to grant the promised Rs. 2,500 salary increase.
It was not clear how the MPs had managed to smuggle in placards into Parliament. Dr. Amunugama assured that the revenue proposals and other important issues, including a salary increase to the public sector, would be submitted in November 2010, when the government would present the 2011 budget.
The Opposition repeatedly interrupted Dr. Amunugama as he presented the budget speech.
© The Island
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Tigers lurk in the shadows after 14 months of peace
By Mick O'Reilly | Gulf News
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A soldier with a whistle stops traffic on the A9 allowing visitors to cross the road.
Elephant Pass, 2.5 metres above sea level, as the sign on the A9 says, is now a tourist attraction.
Brightly painted Lanka Ashok Leyland buses are parked on a gravel parking lot which is replete with corrugated steel latrines for men and women. The latrines, however, are not sponsored by the Colonial Group of Colombo.
Sixteen months ago, this stretch of highway, a vital junction between north and south, and at a vital crossroads on the Jaffna Peninsula, was the scene of a bloody battle between LTTE forces and Sri Lankan army forces.
In May, President Mahinda Rajapakse unveiled a large monument here to commemorate that struggle. These words are carved into granite plinths at the base of the monument:
"Place where enormous strength, force, power and determination concentrated from four directions."
It continues: "With the objective of engarlanding the reconciled persons, the valiant, heroic and valorous troops of the 57th and 58th Divisions approached diligently, courageously with might and main and without a wink of sleep from the Southern direction and tranversed scrubs, impassable moats, quagmires and demolishing dreadful traps and the troops of the 53rd and 56th Divisions advanced from the Northern Direction, converged on this historical place of Elephant Pass and liberated the long path of brotherhood with a magnitude of force annihilating terrorism and social disparities on the 10th January 2009."
‘Important time'
It's also repeated in Sinhalese and Tamil, just in case there's any doubt.
For the majority of his 50 years, Bluda Awickermansanghe has lived with violence and war. A manager at a garment factory in Jaffna, Awickermansanghe is using this Friday afternoon holiday as an opportunity to visit the war memorials here and at nearby Kilinochchi and pay tribute to all who died in 37 years of civil war.
"It's an important time for us all now in Sri Lanka," he says, looking out over the flat landscape and joining roads from the new memorial raised 50 metres above the army checkpoint.
"We have all endured so much suffering from all sides and we have to learn to work together and rebuild Sri Lanka. It has great potential for tourism up here in Jaffna but now there is nothing — only landmines. You are the first foreigner visitor I have met in Jaffna in years," he tells me.
He also looks at his 20-year-old daughter, Tajan.
"I never want her to have to live what we have lived through. Thankfully the government managed to defeat the LTTE and now that is behind us. We must look to the future but we must never forget the terrible war we all suffered through."
Little Sanduni, 11, a friend's daughter, also accompanies them on this pilgrimage.
"She is our hope for the future," Awickermansanghe says.
On one side of the road, the hulk of a rusting armoured bulldozer sits on a plinth, flower garlands hanging off twisted wire and gaping blast holes. A plaque marks that a young Sri Lankan soldier was posthumously awarded with a medal of honour for stopping the LTTE bulldozer at it tried to take an army bunker. On the other side of the road, behind the army checkpoint sponsored by the Colonial Group of Colombo, a topless Prado sits on bricks, its bodywork riddled with bullet holes. This was Prabhakaran's car, and some senior LTTE leaders were killed in it as they tried to flee the battle here at Elephant Pass.
At Kilinochchi, flattened buildings hem the A9. A 20-metre wide and 100-metre tall concrete tower lies toppled in a twisted mess of rusting rebar and rocks. A platoon of young soldiers clamber into a tractor-drawn trailer, balancing awkwardly as it fires into life and pulls away.
After 14 months of peace, there is little sign of reconstruction in this small city that was the headquarters of the LTTE for nearly 20 years.
Instead, newly constructed sandbag emplacements are located every 100 metres down the main street, soldiers and armed police patrol the shops and stalls that are hawking vegetables, coconuts and dried fish and shrimp.
Every vehicle passing north to Jaffna or south to Maankulam on the A9 are stopped, identities checked, contents searched.
The only new construction visible so far as a peace dividend for the people of Kilinochchi is another new war memorial, opened by President Mahinda Rajapaske in May. It's a huge grey-painted concrete cube with a large crack running through it, dissected by a protruding brass shell. On top, a bronze lotus moves awkwardly in the wind. The monument is supposed to symbolise the struggle of all Sri Lankans in overcoming the LTTE terrorists. I can't help but think that with the size of the crack running through the concrete cube, it represents an island forever divided.
Further up the A9 near Chavakachcheri, the electricity company is planning to replace the concrete pylons along the road. The original ones are long since gone, blown up, knocked down, out of commission. The company has left the new concrete poles every 20 metres by the side of the road, waiting to be erected. The poles, however, won't be going up anytime soon, not until the land mines are gone.
All along this road, for kilometres on end, yellow tape is strung, written in Sinhalese, Tamil and English warning: MINES! More ominous red signs with skull and crossbones also warn of the landmine danger.
Hunt
I watch one young soldier move back gingerly from behind the yellow tape to the cleared roadside, wrestling with a large blast-proof shield as he does so. He pulls off a mask ever so much like that worn by a welder, only more Perspex than metal. He is covered in sweat — nerves not humidity. He sits and draws out a cigarette, a nicotine break well deserved.
It will be years before these paddy fields and palm groves are safe to use.
Demining programmes active on the Jaffna peninsula estimate that there are still some 25,000 antipersonnel mines to be located in this thin neck of land. Since they started demining programmes in earnest last year, the casualty rate has fallen to single digits per month.
Scrap metal recycling along this A9 is a risky business — the Sri Lankan army has organised one drop-off point. Mortar shell casings are in one pile, artillery shell casings in another, a third for bits of assorted shrapnel such as spent RPG rounds and rocket parts.
For all of this landscape scarred by nearly decades, there is every sign of the victor and none of the vanquished.
Every 150 metres along the A9, soldiers stand guard, with every village or town being home to a different battalion or detachment, welfare stores and rest stops being run by the military.
In Jaffna, a pokey and dirty bar sells beer in big bottles, cigarettes are stubbed underfoot, glasses are swirled in basins and arrak flows freely.
If you want to find LTTE fighters, this would be as good a place as any to start the hunt.
A wide-eyed off-duty police officer slurs his words; a driver hustles for fares, a jeweller smokes cigarettes too close to his yellowing fingers while a tall, quiet man with a steely stare listens a lot and says little.
I explain where I'm from, make small talk about different parts of the world, and try to explain what has taken me to this place where few foreigners venture.
"The LTTE are still here?" I ask quietly, out of earshot of the now drowsy and dosing off-duty policeman.
"Yes," the tall quiet one with the steely stare says. "We are. This is our home."
© Gulf News
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
The failure of international journalism in Sri Lanka
By Basil Fernando | Asian Human Rights Commission
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In recent years, Sri Lanka has undergone a systemic collapse, as the rule of law system and any semblance of democracy have crumbled. This is a story that has never been portrayed adequately by international journalists; instead, almost all journalists continue to refer to Sri Lanka as a democracy. Journalists focus on Sri Lanka as a war zone, and there is little reflection about the development of Sri Lanka outside of the discourse of war.
In the south, the Sri Lankan government carried out one of the most ruthless acts of repression in history, killing tens of thousands of civilians between the 1970s and 1990s. The official number of disappearances at the hands of Southern rebel group, Janatha Vimuksthi Peramuna (JVP) is estimated to be around the figure of 30,000. Numerous civil society organizations and international agencies believe that this figure does not fully represent the magnitude of this repression. In terms of statistics, the scale of disappearances that took place in Sri Lanka is similar to what took place in Argentina in the late 1970s. However, while the disappearances in Argentina gained international outrage, the references to similar occurrences which took place in Sri Lanka have been few and far between. The disappearances took place in the south, and the Sri Lankan police and military were mobilized to kill Southern rebels, most of whom were Sinhalese. Since this story did not conform to the ethnic war story that international journalists were constructing about Sri Lanka, it was discarded in favor of a story that was more appropriate for their cause.
In 1978, Sri Lanka adopted a Constitution wherein the Executive President was raised above the law. It was a staggering change; instead of the Constitution being used to bring checks and balances to the Sri Lankan government. It obliterated checks and balances for the Executive President and effectively dismantled Sri Lankan democracy. This experiment has survived, and there has begun a discussion of removing the two-term limit of the President in power and creating a possibility for political transformation equivalent to that which took place under Suharto in Indonesia and in several African countries. However, for international journalists, this issue still did not contest the importance of stories about the war.
The transformation of the Sri Lankan democratic government into an authoritarian system has made freedom of expression an almost impossible function. Media agencies bow to the pressure of this repression. Disappearances and other kinds of attack continue to remain a threat to anyone who exercises their right to oppose this political transformation in the country. The murder of Lasantha Wickramatunga and the brutal attack on several other journalists as well as the fleeing of journalists from Sri Lanka remains a symbol of this vicious repression. Even these stories have been only a passing fancy to international journalists. The story of Lasantha Wickramatunga would have been entirely forgotten had he not received international awards for his actions. Even so, no justice of any kind has been dealt to the perpetrators of this murder. In fact, the identity of those who killed Mr. Wickramatunga remains a mystery. There was no credible investigation into the murder of any kind, demonstrating that the once sclerotic justice system is now entirely incapacitated. The story of the collapse of the administration of justice in Sri Lanka has still not been covered by the international press.
Today, what remains of democracy and the rule of law in Sri Lanka is no different to the dream that amputees have about the continued existence of their lost limbs. The phantom limb complex prevails, while in reality, justice is impossible for those who have been victims of political crimes, as well as those who have suffered serious crimes, such as murder or rape. One story which recently came to the surface was of a man traveling with his wife on a motorbike. The couple was stopped and the woman’s arm was cut off so that the thieves could steal her gold bangles, and her finger was cut off so they could take her gold ring. When her husband tried to resist, he was shot. Last week, a CID inspector who dumped the dead body of a murdered person into the sea was discovered. The magistrate had to issue a warrant to get the Deputy Inspector General arrested because he was avoiding court. Such difficulties which face ordinary Sri Lankans do not attract the attention of international journalists.
The collective failure of the international press has aided Sri Lankan authorities in consolidating an authoritarian regime in which the norms that were established to protect citizens have been broken down. Those journalists who believe in the importance of their role in disseminating information must question why the international media has failed to discuss and analyze the situation in Sri Lanka. There are many similar cases going on in other Asian countries and countries around the world. However, the issue remains that the international press has failed to reflect the depth of the crisis that ordinary Sri Lankan citizens continue to face.
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Basil Fernando is executive director of the Asian Legal Resource Centre, based in Hong Kong. His early career included teaching and practicing law at the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. He has held several United Nations-related posts, including appeals counsel under the UNHCR for Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong, officer-in-charge of the Investigation Unit under the U.N. Transitional Authority in Cambodia and chief of legal assistance at the Cambodia Office of the U.N. Center for Human Rights. He is the author of several books on human rights and legal reform issues. He was awarded the Kwangju Human Rights Prize in 2001 in South Korea.
© AHRC
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
"Sri Lanka budget will maintain economic stability": IMF Representative
“The key element is in ensuring macro-economic conditions remain stable,” said Koshy Mathai.
“Inflation, interest rates and the exchange rate must remain stable to create the environment for growth, investment and creation of employment.”
He said the IMF was pleased with the government’s 2010 budget presented to parliament Tuesday with the deficit reduced to eight percent of gross domestic products from 9.9 percent last year.
“It is critical to make sure the fiscal balance is kept under control,” Mathai said.
The government’s forecast of eight percent annual growth was “attainable” and not based on unrealistic revenue or capital spending forecasts.
Mathai said the IMF board had completed their second and third reviews of the program with Sri Lanka and made two disbursements and extended the programme to take into account the government’s medium-term growth strategy.
“This means the disbursement of 408 million dollars coming either today or tomorrow,’ he said.
“We have a fundamentally optimistic view on Sri Lanka’s economic prospects. For 30 years the country has grown at five percent (annually) despite the war absorbing so much human and economic resources.
“Now the burden has been lifted it seems obvious the economy is poised for great growth. But it presupposes that macro-economic conditions are kept stable.”
Sri Lanka’s ethnic war ended in May 2009 resulting in an economic revival.
Foreign exchange reserves have increased “dramatically” to over five billion dollars and there was room to build it further but it is no longer a short-term priority.
“Now the country has the luxury of thinking more about the medium-term economic prospects,” said Mathai.
“Monetary policy is going quite well – we think the central bank policy is absolutely appropriate for the current moment.”
Mathai said fiscal policy was the only area the IMF had raised some concern about given the government’s deficit which led to a “pause” in the IMF programme for Sri Lanka.
The IMF’s 2.5 billion programme was suspended last year when Sri Lanka failed to meet budget deficit reduction targets.
“The 2010 budget and related policy package of the government represents major progress towards strengthening Sri Lanka’s public finances,” Mathai said.
“The government’s aim to reduce the budget deficit is being done in a sensible way, not in an unrealistic reduction in spending, not through artificial curtailment in capital spending.”
The compression in the deficit is being achieved through a reduction in recurrent spending relative to growth in gross domestic product with capital spending kept constant in nominal terms.
As the scope for compressing current spending next year is limited the government plans to boost revenues.
“It is a very important element in the policy package that’s given us a lot of encouragement.”
These include tax reforms to simplify and broad base the system, and increase total revenue collection.
Government plans to reform its investment regime with a new strategy to promote important sectors and do away with tax breaks and reduce red tape for investors were also important, Mathai said.
“There’s also a lot of emphasis on measures to improve the efficiency of state enterprises so they are less of a drain on public finances.”
The extension of the IMF programme means there will more disbursements over a longer period of time. Disbursements are likely to be around 200 million dollars each.
© Lanka Business Online
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Sri Lanka proposes investment friendly budget
Deputy Finance Minister Mr. Sarath Amunugama who was sworn in as the Acting Minister of Finance hours before presenting the budget proposals said that the country seeks faster growth after the end of three decade old war mainly in the tourism sector.
This year’s budget has been delayed by about seven months as presidential and parliamentary elections were called after the government defeated the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam Main features of the budget proposals are:
• Budget deficit will be reduced to 8% of GDB by next year with a final target of bringing down the deficit gap to 5% of the GDP while reducing debt limit to 70 % of the GDP from the current 80% by 2012.
• Completing the resettlement of remaining 25000 IDP by the end of the year and to provide livelihood facilities with other required infrastructure
• 40,000 hectares of Fallow paddy lands will be cultivated in the North.
• Northern infrastructure including the A-9 and A-32 highways will be developed at a cost of Rs2 billion US dollars
• Revenue from Tourism will be increased to US D 2.8 billion by 2016 with 2.5 million tourist arrivals. Five fold and 9 fold increases targeted in the tourist arrival and the revenue respectively.
• US D 3 billion investment is expected in the tourism development with FDI/private sector and the govt investments
• Seven tourism Zones have been identified for the development of tourism sector.
• Vision of the govt. is to increase the GDP growth to two digits from expected 8 percent growth next year.
• Tax reforms will be introduced as per the recommendation of the Tax Commission.
• Regulatory Framework will be introduced to regularize the Private universities as the Government recognizes the role played by them.
• Public sector salaries will be increased from 2011
• A pension Fund will be created
• Social Security process will be strengthened
© News.lk
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