Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa during the acceptance of “Parliamentary Order Merit Democratic Rep. Marcelo Quiroga Santa Cruza” on 16 June 2014 at the Plurinational Legislative Assembly La Paz, Bolivia expressed these views.
President Rajapaksa further said, "Sri Lanka has entered into an era of peace and stability after defeating terrorism of nearly thirty years. Despite many challenges, my country has been successful in addressing several post-conflict humanitarian issues. My government is committed to strengthen the democratic process and address political issues in Sri Lanka, in consultation with all political parties through a Parliamentary Select Committee, which has been established.
“Sri Lanka firmly believes that the national reconciliation process should be homegrown for it to be sustainable. A mechanism has been established in the Presidential Secretariat to monitor the implementation of the recommendations of this domestic process the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission, in a structured manner, through a National Plan of Action.
“We are saddened by a growing practice at the international level to adopt double standards in respect of the application of human rights. My country is legitimately proud of its achievements, within a very short period, in restoring the democratic rights and freedoms of our people in areas that were ravaged by terrorism.
“We have resettled hundreds of thousands of displaced persons, and returned to their parents nearly 600 child soldiers almost immediately after eliminating terrorism. We also released to their communities large numbers of ex-combatants, within a few months of the dawn of peace, as we believe it is the society that can best rehabilitate them. We rebuilt the battered economy of the Northern Province to grow at 22 per cent while the national growth was around 7.2 per cent. We also held local and provincial elections, after almost three decades, ensuring the restoration of democratic rights to hundreds of thousands of people.
“It is much to be regretted that these achievements have gone largely unrecognized because of a sustained effort on the part of the West to use human rights as a political tool, with adverse consequences for many of our countries in the developing world.
President Rajapaksa also said, “I count on your country’s continued support to Sri Lanka, on this issue.”
President further said that the two countries share a common legacy and both have suffered for long periods, under the yoke of colonialism. The historical experience enables both countries to understand with stark clarity the importance of developing solutions in harmony with the values and traditions, deeply rooted in the life of its local communities. He said we are sensitive to the need to pay special attention to the more vulnerable sections of our people and that they must not be left behind in the race for advancement.
“I am also keen to strengthen people-to-people contact between our countries. Although the two countries are located rather a long way from each other, I believe we can have joint initiatives to promote tourism and cultural exchanges. We must promote people-to-people links which will deepen the understanding of our respective cultures”, added President Rajapaksa.(KH/SI)
