Govt. has nothing to hide on Human Rights - President

Rohan Mathes reporting from Hambantota

Categorically denying State sponsored human rights violations of any nature, President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday asserted that the doors are wide open for all local and international Human Rights (HR) organisations to visit the country, investigate and ascertain the veracity of the alleged human rights violations if any.

He was addressing a rally after inspecting the progress of the construction of the giant international sea port in Hambantota in the deep South.

"In a country threatened by terrorism, there could be isolated incidents of kidnappings, abductions and human rights violations.

This is inevitable so long as terrorism exists in our land. We are deeply concerned about this .

There could be minor shortcomings. We will seek to eradicate them totally or at least minimise them. Nevertheless, I could assure you, that we are innocent of all allegations levelled against us", the President said.

He called upon all HR organisations to come to the country, travel to all the nooks and corners of Sri Lanka, investigate and prove their allegations. "Today you will not see the dreaded 'tyre-pyre' burnings, floating bodies in rivers, 'torture chambers' of Batalanda fame", he added.

"If our Government was guilty of so-called HR violations, we would have closed our doors to these organisations and denied them entry to our country.

We are not scared of them", the President declared. He was of the view that certain media institutions were propagating slanderous, malicious and mischievous news to incite the masses and create communal violence and hatred.

Opposition parties were consistently betraying the country in the international arena, to deprive the country of international aid and tarnish its good name.

"This is treachery and a gross betrayal of one's Motherland.

This should be stopped . At the end of the day, it is the ordinary people of this country who are the losers.

“Our Opposition leaders should learn from the example set by the Myanmar Opposition leader who appealed to the global community to refrain from cutting aid to Myanmar, for the flaws of the military regime there, as otherwise, it would be the people there, who would have to suffer the consequences,” the President noted.

President Rajapaksa further said, “we need an ‘Honourable Peace’ to launch mega development projects in the country. We do not like to breach the trust of the people who brought us to power, and break the pledges given to them. We are just two years in office. Give us more time. Elections will be held at the appropriate time. I appeal to all parties to join hands, co-operate and rally round the Government”.

President Rajapaksa pointed out that although there were times in the past where the governments blamed the war situation and did nothing to develop the country, his government had embarked on mega infrastructure projects such as the Norochcholai coal power project and the Upper Kotmale project which were crucial to solve the growing power crisis and the major irrigation projects such as the Weheragala and Moragahakanda projects which were vital to uplift the agricultural sector.

The development which was solely confined to Colombo, has now permeated to the entire country, including the remotest villages, he said.

Referring to the construction of the International Hambantota Port, the President observed that the construction of the port will revolutionise the livelihoods and the lifestyles of the people of Hambantota for the better. “Its benefits will not only help the people of Hambantota, but would also trickle down to the entire country. It would give rise to new industries and generate

direct and indirect employment for many”, he said.

With the development of the port, Hambantota city too will be developed systematically according to a plan with the assistance of local and foreign expertise. It will be an environment-friendly city full of vegetation, unlike Colombo which has evolved into a concrete jungle. Other industries too will come up soon, including an oil refinery for which agreements have already been drawn up.

He thanked the Chinese government for their assistance in the development process of Sri Lanka, especially in connection with the Norochcholai power project, the Hambantota port project and the proposed Cultural Centre in Colombo.

Responding to the criticism levelled at the Government by the Opposition parties as to the US $ 500 million loan taken by the Government, he claimed that the loan was taken from the ‘open bank’ under severe criticism, to develop the country. “We have the strength to settle this sum,” he said.

Stressing on the need to move forward with the developing world, and to enhance computer literacy towards this end, the Government launched the ‘Nenasela’ programme and increased the rate from 9 to around 20 per cent. “This is also a great victory”, he added.

The Sri Lanka Ports Authority Vice Chairman Priath Bandu Wickramamunige, Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, CMC opposition leader Vasudeva Nanayakkara, Ministers Chamal Rajapaksa, Rohitha Bogollagama, Sumeda Jayasena, the Chinese Envoy in Sri Lanka Ye Dabo and several others also spoke.