The Sri Lankan government has hired yet another lobby firm based in the United States, reports the Sunday Times.
The firm, Sandler, Travis and Rosenberg (ST&R), has reportedly been hired with the blessings of Sri Lanka’s Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrema to “educate officials on a non-existent peace process, increase economic ties and market access”. The firm is charging a monthly fee of US$ 30,000.
Lobby firms were used extensively during Sri Lanka’s previous government, with one group even claiming to have scripted the former president’s address to the United Nations. In 2014, it was reported that over $100 million had been spent on US lobby firms.
After criticising the former Sri Lankan government, the current government seems to have continued the practise, with the Cabinet Committee on Economic Matters (CCEM) reportedly haven given the go-ahead for the latest hiring.
Sri Lanka’s foreign ministry meanwhile denied all knowledge of retaining or hiring any new firms. “We were not informed of an agreement with ST&Rs,” an official told the Sunday Times. “We have not been told.”
“At least as a matter of courtesy, we should have been informed,” the official continued.
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