Sri Lanka's Minister of Foreign Affairs Mangala Samaraweera addressing the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP) on Friday said although Sri Lanka has shown remarkable development in recent years, the "new" Sri Lanka under President Maithripala Sirisena is not without challenges.
Highlighting the achievements within the first 100 days of President Sirisena's government, the Minister said the Government is willing to deal with the issues and remains committed to the important and historic journey that it undertook on the 8th of January to ensure the realization of the aspirations of all the people of the country.
"We need the support of the international community especially to ensure that the gains that we have made in the last four months are not lost but built upon and strengthened further," he said.
The Minister acknowledged that Sri Lanka failed to address the causes of three-decade long armed conflict in a manner that would guarantee durable peace, meaningful reconciliation and non-recurrence.
Divisions in society were becoming deeper along religious and ethnic lines, freedom of speech and expression were curtailed, and fear and intimidation pervaded society, the Minister said.
Speaking of government's twin objectives of 'reconciliation and development', the Minister said the government has taken several important steps to achieve reconciliation.
The Minister pointed out that to name a few measures, the government has strengthened the civil administration conflict-affected areas and lands taken by the government are gradually being released.
At the highest levels of Government, deliberations are taking place on the best means to deal with Missing Persons issues and Accountability issues as the Government recognizes the importance of these processes to achieve meaningful reconciliation.
He added that the government is continuing the dialogue with the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The Government is also investigating into large-scale fraud, corruption and malpractices that had taken place in the past decade.
Highlighting that Sri Lanka has long been a paradise for German tourists, the Minister said the government is now making it a paradise for German investors. He pointed out that over 100,000 German tourists visited Sri Lanka last year and expressed hope that the number would rise.
"With relatively well developed infrastructure and human capital our immediate priority is to reset the investment climate by making Sri Lanka the most secure, efficient and competitive investment destination in South Asia," the Minister said.
He noted that the German model of social market economy is something Sri Lanka can learn from and the space and opportunities for the two countries to work together and cooperate have now expanded.
"In the ambitious yet essential journey that we have undertaken to ensure durable peace and prosperity for our people, we require your assistance more than ever before," the Minister stressed.
"We trust that the Government and the people of this country who have been working with Sri Lanka for very long years will continue to stand by us and intensify support for us in this important journey," Minister Samaraweera said.
