It was alleged that the President had gone to England with a large group of people for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II. This matter was also discussed in Parliament yesterday.

The Presidential Media Division has issued an announcement clarifying the allegations. It is stated in the announcement that members of parliament and social media activists are working to mislead the public by highlighting various false information regarding the President’s visit.

According to an official invitation, the official delegation that attended the Queen’s funeral included only the President’s personal secretary Sandra Perera, the President’s Director of International Relations Dinuk Colombage and the President’s doctor.

The announcement also states that the First Lady participated in the trip at her own expense.

In addition, Ruwan Wijewardena, Presidential Adviser on Climate Change, was present for the meeting with the Sri Lankan Diaspora held on the 19th, and Wijewardena joined the discussion while he was on a private visit to Britain, according to the Presidential Media Division.

“Minister Manusha Nanayakkara hands over the vehicle import permit to the first recipient’s nominee”

The nominated representative of the first recipient of the newly introduced programme to allow Sri Lankan migrant workers to import an electric vehicle after remitting money through official channels received the relevant vehicle import permit from Minister of Labour and Foreign Employment Manusha Nanayakkara today.

Daham Perera the authorized representative of the Sri Lankan migrant worker who imported the vehicle received the vehicle import permit from Minister Nanayakkara.

 The minister on the occasion noted that the decision to allow Sri Lankan migrant workers who remit money through official channels to import an electric vehicle has been much appreciated and inquiries in this regard by workers are increasing on a daily basis.

Any Sri Lankan who lives, works or holds dual citizenship in a foreign country are eligible  to import an electric vehicle under the scheme. Those sending USD 20,000 or more between May 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022, can obtain a permit to import an electric car. Those who remit USD 3000 or more via official channels from  May 1st 2022 to May 2023 are eligible to import an electric motorcycle.

The minister emphasized that it is mandatory remittances directed to Sri Lanka are sent through the legal channels such as the banking system to be eligible for this benefit. The minister further said that it was also mandatory that 50 percent of the money sent has been converted into rupees. He said the motorcycle or the car can be imported for a value not exceeding 50 percent of the amount remitted.

Minister Manusha Nanayakkara further said;

Importing vehicles to Sri Lanka is currently prohibited. But only foreign workers who send dollars to the country have the facility to import an electric vehicle. So make the most of this opportunity. Enjoy this reward. As a ministry, we fully support it. Similarly, the tax levied on the import of luxury vehicles will also be revised in the future.

But the permission is only to import electric vehicles. These vehicles should be unused vehicles. Either brand new or mileage should be ‘0’. Similarly, it is mandatory to import within one year of the first registration.

As the ministry, we hope that the battery pack and electric motor of this imported vehicle should have a warranty of at least three years. This should be ensured by the manufacturer, importer and exporter. It should also be ensured that the battery is disposed in accordance with international electric vehicle road safety standards and approved standard procedures. The remittances sent to Sri Lanka can be converted into rupees and the taxes for this can be paid. They must also be subject to Department of Motor Vehicles compliance. A car should have at least 200 kilometers mileage after charging once. Similarly, a report of all money remitted to Sri Lanka should be submitted through the relevant bank.The minister further said that the relevant application and information can be downloaded from the website of the Ministry of Labour or the Foreign Employment Bureau. He said after producing proof that money has been remitted through official channels and the documents related to the importation of the vehicle, the measures to initiate providing the vehicle import permit can be carried out.The vehicle imported in this way cannot be transferred to a third party until two years after its registration. The minister also said for persons wanting to transfer ownership before two years facilities have been provided to do so by making a payment in USD equivalent to 10 percent of the CIF value of the vehicle.

S. V. Kirubaharan, France 

The United Nations definition of ‘victims’ is as follows: “Victims” means persons who, individually or collectively, have suffered harm, including physical or mental injury, emotional suffering, economic loss or substantial impairment of their fundamental rights, through acts or omissions that are in violation of criminal laws operative within Member States, including those laws proscribing criminal abuse of power…..”  

If this is the case, then who is not a victim in Sri Lanka? From top to bottom, I mean from so-called executive presidents to normal citizens everyone remains a victim. Here, I can quote several examples but to be brief – the President, the Chief Justice, members of civil society (human rights defenders, journalists, parliamentarians, lawyers, religious leaders, academics and others) are/were victimised in Sri Lanka.  

A Tamil proverb says:  “One will know the effect of a fever and headache only when he/she gets it”.  (காய்சலும் தலை வலியும் அவர் அவருக்கு வந்தால் தான் அதன் தாக்கம் விளைவு தெரியும்!). In Sri Lanka, we have experienced the fact that victims have become horrendous violators of human rights and then again become victims.   

In an earlier session of the UN Human Rights Council – UNHRC, I have listened to a representative of Sri Lanka as he related in meetings how at one time he had been in hiding in Sri Lanka because the security forces were looking for him. Unfortunately, later he was defending the state violations to the maximum in the same forum – the UNHRC.  

This is to say that Sri Lanka should learn to take the grievances of victims seriously and with sincerity. Victims vary from the youth uprising to capture the whole of Sri Lanka, to the failure of thirty years of non-violent struggle to achieve political aspiration that consequently turned into an armed struggle. Today, where is Sri Lanka? It has become an international arena for super-powers, the regional super-power and peace-loving states and groups.   

Socrates said, “Mankind is made of two kinds of people: wise people who know they’re fools and fools who think they are wise”. The stubborn, ego-centred attitude of politicians, under the pretext of patriotism, led Sri Lanka to today’s situation.  

Impending resolution 

Now let me discuss the impending resolution in the 51^st session of the UNHRC in Geneva. The damning comprehensive report of the UN High Commissioner of Human Rights – UNHCHR was published. As part of the follow-up procedure, the member countries of the UNHRC are now working on a resolution on Sri Lanka. The first draft dated 12 September 2022 known as ‘zero’ draft, is in circulation. Well and good. This present draft is not very different to the last resolution (46/1).  

For the victims who have waited since the independence of Sri Lanka or since the end of Mullivaigzhal in May 2009, this zero draft does not give any encouraging messages. For those who organised demonstrations against the government in various venues including in Galle Face Green and brought a change of government in Sri Lanka – this draft is not giving any good message either. Some of the demonstrators travelled to Geneva to find justice for their call and cause.  

The zero draft has 23 preamble paragraphs (PPs) and 18 operational paragraphs (OPs). The Core group on Sri Lanka – (UK, USA, Canada, Germany, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Malawi) who drafted it, find it very difficult to accommodate every request by the government of Sri Lanka, their pied pipers and the victims. When drafting a resolution, countries have to consider many factors; otherwise it may end up in a disaster.  

I still remember why neither the European Union countries nor Canada tabled a resolution on Sri Lanka, until the United States became a member of the UN HRC in 2012. I don’t want to elaborate more on this matter.  

‘Informal consultation meetings’ on the zero draft, organised by the Core group, have taken place in the UN building on 16^th Friday. These have been well attended by the concerned country Sri Lanka, several other countries and various members of civil society. Here I should say that not all members of civil society are working genuinely to strengthen this zero draft. We are finding it difficult to understand what they say and what is in their mind. The reason is that they have a deep link to any government in power in Sri Lanka. Therefore, their presence in the UN HRC is to observe what is happening there. In the UN, this style of work goes on, not only with Sri Lanka, but with many other countries. They are known as Government NGOs – or Gongos.  

Leaving this never-ending Gongos business to one side, the world should know what has happened in the last two informal consultations. On the morning of Friday 16th, the first informal consultation regarding the zero draft took place. It focused mainly on the ‘Preamble paragraphs – PP1 to PP23’ and general comments. The UK representative, Mr. Bob Last, presided over the meeting on behalf of the Core Group and read out the zero draft. He said that it is based on the last resolution on Sri Lanka. Also, he made a note of the crisis in the country, demonstrations and change of government. The Sri Lankan representative then expressed the opinion of the concerned country.  

So, the Sri Lankan representative read a statement which presumably was received from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Colombo. The statement said that Sri Lanka rejected the zero draft and Sri Lankan will not accept any resolution other than a resolution passed by consensus. This surprised everyone because even the resolutions passed in 2015, 2017 and 2019 by consensus in the UN HRC were not implemented.   

The statement also said that the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights’ report goes beyond her mandate and that in the past two High Commissioners have visited Sri Lanka. Yes that’s true, but what happened to the reports that they published after their visit to Sri Lanka? The SL representative also said that the UNHRC is always moving the goalposts and requested the member countries to reject this resolution. This raises the serious question as to whether there is any ground in Sri Lanka to find justice – I mean are there any visible goalposts? However, the speech of the Sri Lankan representative is as usual like that of any other concerned country when facing a resolution addressing their human rights violations. 

Attending UN H/R Forums for 32 years 

Following this, many countries spoke generally about the zero draft. Some were supportive of the resolution and some were not. There were a few countries against the resolution, out of which only China, Cuba, Pakistan, Russia, Venezuela are current members of the UN HRC. At the same time, countries supportive of the resolution were mostly members of the council. This gives a clue to the eventual outcome of this resolution.  

Before the closure of the morning session, some members of civil society had an opportunity to make their remarks. These people were mostly those who had come directly from Sri Lanka. They were – Mr Ameer Faaize, Attorney at Law; M. A Sumanthiran M.P. and Attorney at Law; Santhiya Elaniyagoda, spouse of missing journalist (2009) Prageeth Elaniyagoda  and Bhavani Fonseka, researcher and Attorney at Law. Faaize touched on the issue of Muslim burials and displacement of Muslims.   

M.A. Sumanthiran went into the history of the resolution on Sri Lanka in the UNHRC. He recalled how the present President then Prime Minister co-sponsored the resolution in 2015 and then Sri Lanka’s co-sponsorship was withdrawn in 2019. Sumanthiran reminded in the meeting that then Minister of Justice is the present Minister of Justice – so there shouldn’t be any problem in accepting this resolution. Sumanthiran also talked about the failure in implementing their own recommendations of the LLRC. He spoke further about the PTA, impunity and requested that this resolution be made stronger than it is at present.  

Santhiya Eelaniyagoda’s speech was translated from Sinhala to English. She said that she has attended the UNHRC for the last ten years and she asked how many more years does she have to attend the UNHRC to find justice for her disappeared husband. Also she said that an international mechanism is the right solution for the situation in Sri Lanka.   

In fact, when Santhiya was speaking about her ten years in the UNHRC, I was thinking about my thirty-two (32) years attending all UN Human Rights Forums – from UNHR Commission, Sub-Commission, Treaty bodies, Working Groups, UPR, all UN human rights conferences, seminars etc and I am still here without finding any justice for the victims. In fact, on many occasions I have become a victim myself, because of my active commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights in Sri Lanka.  

When Bhavani Fonseka spoke, she reminded those present that even after thirteen years since of the end of the war, there is no credible justice, no political solution, no abolishment of the executive Presidency, impunity prevails and there are economic crises. With their interventions, the morning session on general comments and discussion on preamble paragraphs was brought to an end.  

Hypocrisy about the PTA 

In the afternoon, the informal discussion started on ‘Operative Paragraphs’ OPs from 1 to 18. As usual, the Sri Lankan representative who rejected the resolution started to make comments on every paragraph. The main countries supporting Sri Lanka: China, Pakistan, Russia and Venezuela also gave their input on every paragraph. If we put all their interventions together, the message is to delete the whole resolution. One by one Sri Lanka, China, Pakistan, Russia and Venezuela wanted different operative paragraphs to be deleted.  

The usual pattern in the UN is that even though the concerned countries do not agree with the resolution, they prefer to contribute to the discussion.  

What was surprising was Russia said in this meeting that “this is interfering in the affairs of other counties”. I think Russia has forgotten what they are doing in Ukraine. Also, China seems to have forgotten that they are part of the present problem in Sri Lanka, when the representative said: “not to interfere in any internal affairs”.   

During the first week of the 51^st session, a meeting took place outside the UN. It was about the PTA. In this meeting, two speakers who justified the PTA when they were the Minister of Justice and a Sri Lankan representative to the UN in Geneva, now spoke about the difficulties and dangers of the PTA. This is called hypocrisy. Shame on them.  

If Sri Lanka ruled the country according to the constitution, there would be no need for any resolution by the UNHRC. Sri Lanka complains that the UNHRC resolutions are against their constitution. Many issues/affairs in the constitution for decades have never been implemented by Sri Lanka. 

When they talk about external involvement being against the constitution, how about the appointment of the International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) by President Mahinda Rajapaksa and led by former Indian Chief Justice P.N. Bhagawati? Also regarding foreign judges, what about the Commission of Inquiry appointed by Sirimavo Bandaranaike in 1963 to inquire into the political aspects of the Bandaranaike assassination? Two out of the three judges were foreign. They were Justice Abdel Younis from Egypt and Justice G.C. Mills-Odich from Ghana.  

In the same case, the first and the second accused: Buddharakitha Thero and H.P. Jayawardene, were represented in the Supreme Court by Phineas Quass, QC from the United Kingdom. Was this against Sri Lanka’s constitution? Come on… Please look at the grievances of the victims in a polite, decent and cultured way rather than all the time rejecting them blindly.  

In conclusion, victims seriously wonder why Sri Lanka should be given two (2) year period as an extension by the Core group, knowing very well that for the last many years – Sri Lanka has not implemented and is not going to implement the resolution. The operating paragraph (PP18) reads as follows:  

“Requests the Office of the High Commissioner to enhance its monitoring and reporting on the situation of human rights in Sri Lanka, including on progress in reconciliation and accountability, and on the human rights impact of the economic crisis and corruption, and to present oral updates to the Human Rights Council at its fifty-third session (June 2023) and fifty-fifths sessions (March 2024), and a written update at its fifty-fourth session (September 2023)  and a comprehensive report that includes further options for advancing accountability at its fifty-seventh session (March 2025), both to be discussed in the context of an interactive dialogue. (46/1 OP16)”.  

Those who understand the rulers in Sri Lanka well, will understand that Sri Lanka will do wonders in the North and East for the demography of those regions. Do wake up! 

Once the Core group finalises the draft, they will table it by the third week of the session (26-28 September). During the fourth week of the session (4-6 October) voting on the resolution will take place. (End) 

S.V.Kirubaharan 

France 

19/09/2022 

The Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with the concurrence of the Government of Sri Lanka has appointed Mr. Khalid Hamoud Nasser Aldasam Alkahtani as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to Sri Lanka based in Colombo. He has presented credentials to H.E. Ranil Wickremesinghe, President of Sri Lanka on 16 September, 2022 at 10.00 a.m. at the Presidential Secretariat, Colombo 01, a statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced.

The Ministry also announced that The Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands with the concurrence of the Government of Sri Lanka has appointed Ms. Bonnie Horbach as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Sri Lanka based in Colombo. She has presented credentials to H.E. Ranil Wickremesinghe, President of Sri Lanka on 16 September 2022 at 10.00 a.m. at the Presidential Secretariat, Colombo 01.

Support Compensation, Protection for Workers Who Built 2022 World Cup

By Meenakshi Ganguly

In just two months, the 2022 FIFA World Cup will kick off in Qatar.

While South Asian football teams won’t be participating in the tournament, World Cup fever is spreading across the region. Many South Asians will also be among the 1.2 million fans expected in Qatar.

But this year’s tournament is personal for many South Asians beyond love for “the beautiful game.” It is not just that the tournament ball is made in Sialkot, Pakistan. This year, even the stadiums and surrounding infrastructure were largely built by South Asians. Migrant workers from the region are also employed in the stadiums and surrounding hotels, malls, and airports. The money they send home to their families is critical to make ends meet. But at what cost?

Bangladeshis, for example, reportedly spend an average of  US$3,863 to go work in Qatar, which averages to around 18 months of earnings there. A significant portion of the money South Asians send home goes to simply paying off loans borrowed to get these jobs. This practice of paying to work in Qatar’s scorching heat is unfortunately routine.

Beyond debt burdens, migrant workers in Qatar have also faced serious abuses like wage theft, injuries, and unexplained deaths. Qatar’s sponsorship system, known as kafala, even after some reforms, still facilitates many abuses that go uncompensated.

Human Rights Watch and a coalition of rights groups have called on FIFA and Qatari authorities to provide remedy, including financial compensation, to migrant workers who have suffered abuses to make the World Cup possible.

During the past 12 years, South Asians have heard terrible stories from family members, friends, and neighbors of their experiences in Qatar. Families are still paying the debts for loved ones who died, were injured, or came home without their wages.

South Asian governments that have instituted welfare systems to support overseas workers or their families, including repatriation of the deceased or death compensation to families, are intimately familiar with the scale of unremedied abuse their citizens have faced in Qatar.

The multibillion-dollar World Cup is a crucial opportunity for all South Asian governments to collectively call for remedy and work together to ensure stronger protections for their workers.

    18 Sri Lankan students from all over the country have been offered a Government of India scholarship to study Hindi in India. As a part of the scholarship, the cost of their travel to India, academic fees and local hospitality for a one year course at the Kendriya Hindi Sansthan (KHS) or Central Institute of Hindi, Agra shall be borne by the Government of India.

2.     On 14 September, 2022, High Commissioner Gopal Baglay interacted with selected students before their departure to India and highlighted the role of Hindi language and literature in strengthening the millennia-old cultural, linguistic, literary, and religious ties between India and Sri Lanka. He conveyed his best wishes for their stay in India.

3.     Hindi, which is one of the most popular foreign languages in Sri Lanka, is being taught in almost 80 institutions, including renowned schools and Universities of Sri Lanka.

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Colombo

20 September 2022

In response to a recent request from the Government of Sri Lanka, the High Commission of India in Colombo held the first round of discussions on 16 September 2022 in Colombo with the Government of Sri Lanka on restructuring Sri Lanka’s bilateral official debt to India. The discussions held in a cordial atmosphere symbolize India’s support to early conclusion and approval of a suitable IMF Programme for Sri Lanka, for which financing assurances from creditors to make Sri Lanka’s debt sustainable are required. India will continue to remain closely engaged with relevant Sri Lankan stakeholders.

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Colombo

20.09.2022

The Sri Lanka Export Development Board, the Sri Lanka Board of Investment and the Colombo Port City Economic Commission, which were under the Ministry of Finance, were taken over by the Ministry of Investment Promotion, based on an extraordinary gazette issued by President Ranil Wickremesinghe on September 16.

Despite the three public institutions being taken away from the Finance Ministry, they will continue to operate under the President himself given that no person has yet been appointed as the Cabinet Minister of Investment Promotion.

As of now two MPs’ names have been nominated for the post, Vajira Abeywardena the Chairperson of the United National Party (UNP) and Dhammika Perera, an ex business magnet and a national list MP of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) who had previously served in the same position.

Accordingly, the most trusted person from the two will be given the position, according to political sources.

MIAP