SENIOR ADVISOR TO H.E. THE PRESIDENT BASIL
RAJAPAKSA, MP IS ON A GOODWILL VISIT TO INDONESIA
Senior Advisor to H.E. the President
of Sri Lanka, Basil Rajapaksa, MP is presently in Indonesia
on a good will visit on the personal invitation extended
by Dr. Hassan Wirajuda, Minister of Foreign Affairs
of the Republic of Indonesia. He was accompanied by
Mr. Dhammika Perera, Chairman, Board of Investment of
Sri Lanka.
Senior Advisor Basil Rajapaksa called
on Dr. Hassan Wirajuda, Minister of Foreign Affairs
of the Republic of Indonesia, on 29th June 2009 and
had cordial discussions on a wide range of issues, which
are beneficial to Sri Lanka. Ambassador of Sri Lanka,
Nanda Mallawaarachchi was also present at the discussions.
GOVERNMENT HAS DONE BEST TO IDPS --
JAPANESE ENVOY FOR PEACE BUILDING, REHABILITATION AND
RECONSTRUCTION
Sri Lankan government has done its
best to provide facilities to the Internally Displaced
Persons (IDPs). With the establishment of the fifth
camp, the congestion had been reduced to a great degree,
said Japanese envoy for Peace Building, Rehabilitation
and Reconstruction in Sri Lanka, Yasushi Akashi.
He said so at the meeting with President
Mahinda Rajapaksa, yesterday June 30, at Janadhipathi
Mandiraya.
President Rajapaksa briefed Akashi,
referring to the IDPs accommodated in Vavuniya, he stated
that the government has taken action to improve the
conditions of the welfare villages. The President noted
that the resettlement of over 287000 people will be
a considerable challenge while clearing land mines and
attending to the infrastructure facilities.
SRI LANKAN TRADE MINISTER PREDICTS
INVESTMENT GROWTH DURING U.S. VISIT
Prof. G. L. Peiris, Minister of Export Development
& International Trade and Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya
with Rep. Sander Levin (D-Michigan)
Prof. G. L. Peiris, Minister of Export
Development and International Trade visited New York
and Washington DC last week to encourage United Nations
and U.S. government support for the post-conflict economic
projects and foreign investment.
Prof. Peris met with Susan Rice, U.S.
Ambassador to the United Nations, as well as an Assistant
U.S. Trade Representative and the Acting Under Secretary
of the Department of Commerce.
Prof. G. L. Peiris, Minister of Export Development
and International Trade and Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya
with Mr. Michael Delaney Asst. USTR
for South Asia
During two busy days of meetings, Minister
Peiris also consulted with Rep. Sander Levin, (D-Michigan),
who is Chairman of the Trade Subcommittee of the influential
House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee.
Rep. Levin said that Sri Lanka would
be considered during his subcommittee’s examination
of future trade agreements.
Minister Peiris told Congressman Levin
and other U.S. government officials that now was the
time for renewed investment in Sri Lanka, as the country
resettles those displaced by the 25-year-long conflict,
rebuilds the north and launches a political process
that will give the Tamil population a new voice.
Prof. G. L. Peiris, Minister of Export Development
& International Trade, Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya
with Ms. Michelle O’Neill Actg. Under Secretary
for International Trade Administration
Outside investment, Minister Peiris
said during an interview with a Washington correspondent
for the Reuters news service, “will enable Sri
Lanka to take advantage of the opportunity that has
presented itself. We must have an atmosphere of contentment
and well-being. What we want is access to markets. We
would expect more support on this.”
The World Bank earlier in the week
approved a $24 million, 20-year loan to bolster Sri
Lankan Healthcare efforts, especially in the Eastern
and Northern Provinces, both areas that have been affected
by the recent conflict and victory over the Liberation
Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
The U.S. State Department also announced
an additional $6 million in aid to help pay for de-mining
operations in Northern Sri Lanka.
ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE
CALLS FOR RESETTLEMENT, ELECTIONS AFTER "IMPORTANT"
VICTORY OVER LTTE
Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya with Ambassador
Robert Blake, Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia
and Central Asia
Ambassador Robert Blake, new Assistant
Secretary of State for South Asia and Central Asia told
at the hearing of the Congressional Subcommittee on South
Asia, today that Sri Lanka won an “important victory
in the North” when it defeated the Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Eelam.
Assistant Secretary Blake, testifying
before the House of Representatives Subcommittee on the
Middle East and South Asia, called on Sri Lanka to quickly
resettle the 300,000 internally displaced persons in the
North and to hold provincial elections. “The action
the Sri Lankan government takes now,” Assistant
Secretary Blake said, “in the aftermath of the war,
with respect to both humanitarian relief and political
inclusion for minorities, will be important to securing
an end to terrorism and a lasting peace.”
During the hearing, Subcommittee Chairman
Gary Ackerman (D-New York) said that, “I think the
United States should offer its assistance to relieving
the suffering of the displaced as much as we can and,
while fully respecting the sovereignty of Sri Lanka, should
encourage true national reconciliation.”
WE HAVE ENDED NEED FOR TRAVEL
ADVISORIES THAT CRIPPLED TOURISM - PRESIDENT
This is a momentous phase for the Tourism
Industry. With terrorism defeated after three decades,
our people can now travel freely in our motherland. Tourists
should have no fear to visit our attractions. And, I believe,
we have ended the need for Travel Advisories that crippled
Tourism, said President Mahinda Rajapaksa in an address
to the launch of the new image of Sri Lanka Tourism.
“As we have assisted the Tourism
Industry through its most difficult period, I now assure
the industry of every effort and all resources to meet
a target of 2.5 million tourists by 2016,” he said
in a In his digitized address to the event at the Sirimavo
Bandaranaike Hall, Colombo, yesterday (23).
AMBASSADOR STATES THAT PROTECTING
HUMAN RIGHTS HAS LONG BEEN AN ESSENTIAL VALUE IN SRI LANKAN
CULTURE
Jaliya Wickramasuriya, Sri Lanka’s
Ambassador to the U.S., notes in speech that Sri Lanka
is “Asia’s Oldest Democracy”
Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to the United
States, Jaliya Wickramasuriya, assured a capacity Georgie
State University library crowd Monday that his nation’s
recent victory over the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
(LTTE) terrorists will ensure human rights and prosperity
for all Sri Lankans, especially those harmed by a quarter
century of conflict.
“Sri Lanka has no record of inflicting
misery on fellow human beings for the purpose of empire
building, commercial advantage or religious righteousness,”
the Ambassador said during a speech sponsored by the university’s
Center for Human Rights and Democracy in Atlanta. “It
simply hasn’t been done. In fact, Sri Lanka has
a strong democratic history. Ours is the oldest democracy
in Asia.”
Ambassador Wickramasuriya spoke of his
recent visit to Sri Lanka, which just a month ago concluded
its conflict with the LTTE by rescuing 145,000 civilian
hostages and dismantling the remaining LTTE leadership.
"There are really two Sri Lankas,”
the Ambassador said. “One is the country you read
or hear about in America, Europe and Canada. The other
is the Sri Lanka I just visited, which is more dynamic."
THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
FOUR PLEAD GUILTY TO CONSPIRING TO PROVIDE MATERIAL
SUPPORT TO THE LTTE, A FOREIGN TERRORIST ORGANIZATION
DEFENDANTS INCLUDE THE LEADER OF THE LTTE IN
THE UNITED STATES AND ONE OF THE LTTE'S SENIOR ARMS PROCUREMENT
AGENTS
Defendants’ Wide-Ranging Support
of the LTTE Included the Purchase of Arms and Explosives,
Attempted Bribery of U.S. State Department Officials,
Fundraising, and Covertly Financing a U.S. Congressman’s
Trip to Sri Lanka
Earlier today, at the federal courthouse
in Brooklyn, defendants Karunakaran Kandasamy, Pratheepan
Thavaraja, Murugesu Vinayagamoorthy, and Vijayshanthar
Patpanathan pled guilty to, among other crimes, conspiring
to provide material support to the Liberation Tigers of
Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a designated foreign terrorist organization.
The guilty plea proceedings were held before Chief United
States District Judge Raymond J. Dearie. Kandasamy and
Pratheepan face a 20-year maximum statutory sentence.
Vinayagamoorthy and Patpanathan face a 15-year maximum
statutory sentence.
The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Washington
DC wishes to announce the launch of the 24-hour service
to assist the public. Those who need assistance can
now call the hotline 202-352-0355 to reach an officer
24 hours a day, including weekends and holidays.
SRI LANKAN EXPATRIATES
IN THE U.S. INVITED TO CONTACT THE EMBASSY
The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Washington
DC is pleased to invite all Sri Lankans, Sri Lankan
Americans and Sri Lankan related groups throughout the
US to establish contact with the Embassy.
Individuals and groups are kindly requested
to provide details
relating to themselves and to their respective organizations,
in the attached format.
PUBLIC DAY FOR EXPATRIATE SRI LANKAN COMMUNITY
AT THE EMBASSY OF SRI LANKA, WASHINGTON DC
The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Washington
DC is pleased to inform the members of the expatriate community
that it will hold a Public Day every Thursday from 10.00
a.m to 1.00 p.m.The Sri Lankan diaspora in the United States
could meet the Head of Mission between 10.00 a.m to 1.00
p.m without prior appointment on this day.
The above arrangement is being launched
as part of the implementation of policy set out in the Mahinda
Chintana, to enhance ties with the expatriate Sri Lankan
community to promote Sri Lanka’s interests overseas.
The Sri Lankan diaspora may discuss any
matters in this context at these meetings.
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