Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said his government had “consolidated democracy and revived the economy” in an essay published as the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos kicked off on Wednesday.
“A new era has dawned in Sri Lanka,” said Mr Wickremsinghe, adding that “peace has been consolidated” on the island.
Mr Wickremesinghe said his government was ready to “play its full role as a responsible member of the global community of nations,” and was “well placed to play a constructive role in addressing the pressing international issues of the day, such as terrorism, climate change, migration and strengthening democratic values”.
In his essay, Mr Wickremesinghe went on to add his government was bolstering Sri Lanka’s democracy by “reasserting the independence of the judiciary, combating bribery with the UN Convention Against Corruption and allowing a free and vibrant press to flourish”.
Yet, Sri Lankan continues to rank 6th in the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) 2015 Global Impunity Index published in October 2015, with both the Jaffna Press Club and Northern Provincial Council calling for justice for murdered journalists.
Outlining his vision for the island’s economic development, Mr Wickremesinghe said, “Sri Lanka is strategically placed to benefit from a changing global marketplace… the growth engine that is India lies just 20 miles away.”
However, his comments come amidst strident opposition to a free trade deal with India and a proposed bridge project linking the island to Tamil Nadu, with Mr Wickremesinghe denying that he had discussed the deals with the Indian government.
Sri Lanka’s “exposure to the problems of asylum-seekers” left the government “well placed to share lessons learnt in international fora,” added the prime minister.
Earlier this month the International Truth and Justice Project: Sri Lanka (ITJP) documented the testimonies of twenty Tamil torture survivors who had escaped Sri Lanka and sought asylum abroad, revealing evidence of on-going torture and sexual violence by Sri Lanka’s security forces.
In July last year, the US State Department also stated that “the Government of Sri Lanka does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking” in its annual ‘Trafficking in Persons Report’, placing Sri Lanka on the’ Tier 2 Watch List’ for a third consecutive year.
The Sri Lankan navy has also been accused of being directly involved with human trafficking, especially that of Tamil asylum seekers, looking to flee the island.
“A new era has dawned in Sri Lanka,” said Mr Wickremsinghe, adding that “peace has been consolidated” on the island.
Mr Wickremesinghe said his government was ready to “play its full role as a responsible member of the global community of nations,” and was “well placed to play a constructive role in addressing the pressing international issues of the day, such as terrorism, climate change, migration and strengthening democratic values”.
In his essay, Mr Wickremesinghe went on to add his government was bolstering Sri Lanka’s democracy by “reasserting the independence of the judiciary, combating bribery with the UN Convention Against Corruption and allowing a free and vibrant press to flourish”.
Yet, Sri Lankan continues to rank 6th in the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) 2015 Global Impunity Index published in October 2015, with both the Jaffna Press Club and Northern Provincial Council calling for justice for murdered journalists.
Outlining his vision for the island’s economic development, Mr Wickremesinghe said, “Sri Lanka is strategically placed to benefit from a changing global marketplace… the growth engine that is India lies just 20 miles away.”
However, his comments come amidst strident opposition to a free trade deal with India and a proposed bridge project linking the island to Tamil Nadu, with Mr Wickremesinghe denying that he had discussed the deals with the Indian government.
Sri Lanka’s “exposure to the problems of asylum-seekers” left the government “well placed to share lessons learnt in international fora,” added the prime minister.
Earlier this month the International Truth and Justice Project: Sri Lanka (ITJP) documented the testimonies of twenty Tamil torture survivors who had escaped Sri Lanka and sought asylum abroad, revealing evidence of on-going torture and sexual violence by Sri Lanka’s security forces.
In July last year, the US State Department also stated that “the Government of Sri Lanka does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking” in its annual ‘Trafficking in Persons Report’, placing Sri Lanka on the’ Tier 2 Watch List’ for a third consecutive year.
The Sri Lankan navy has also been accused of being directly involved with human trafficking, especially that of Tamil asylum seekers, looking to flee the island.
However, the prime minister stated that the government must “promote reconciliation, rehabilitation and reconstruction in the areas afflicted by the recent conflict”. He went on to add, “our message to all, is that in an international environment that is insecure and volatile, Sri Lanka has peace, has consolidated democracy and revived the economy”.
“It now stands ready for takeoff and to play its full role as a responsible member of the global community of nations,” he concluded.