Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa

Mr Speaker,

With regard to the current state of the economy and the Way Ahead, I would like to recall the speech I made in the House on the 05^th of November 2015.

We can once again become the resplendent nation we were under Manawamma and Parakramabahu. But it is a path that must be pursued with determination, commitment and patience. Only then can we create the country that we can confidently pass on to the future generations.

Read Full text of the Statement in English.pdf and  Sinhala.pdf.

Hon. Karu Jayasuriya, Speaker of the Parliament, attending the 135^th Session of the Inter Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly in Geneva, was invited to chair the emergency session on Syria called by the IPU Assembly on 25^th October.  The Session had before it a Resolution titled “The war and the severe humanitarian situation in Syria, particularly in Aleppo” presented by Germany and Mexico. Pursuant to the General Debate, a Drafting Committee was mandated to discuss and present the finalized Resolution on 27^th October 2016, for the consideration of the IPU Assembly.

Read more: Speaker Karu Jayasuriya Chairs IPU Emergency Session on Syria and holds bilateral meetings on the side lines of the Assembly

Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera called for the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) to move into a new era of dynamism, when he addressed the 16^th Council of Ministers Meeting (CoMM) of IORA held on 27^th October 2016 in Bali, Indonesia. 

Read more: “Sri Lanka wishes to see the Indian Ocean Rim Association move into a new era of dynamism”- Foreign Minister Samaraweera

Leading a high-level Sri Lankan Parliamentary delegation to the 135^th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) being held from 23-27 October 2016 in Geneva, Hon. Karu Jayasuriya, Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka addressed the General Debate this morning (25 October 2016). The theme of this year’s debate was ‘Human Rights abuses as precursors of conflict: Parliaments as early responders.’ 

Read more: Speaker Karu Jayasuriya addresses the IPU Assembly in Geneva

The 39^th tri-annual Assembly of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) was held in Montreal, Canada from 27^th September to 07^th October. The Sri Lankan delegation was led by Ahmed A. Jawad, Representative of Sri Lanka to the ICAO and High Commissioner to Canada. The ICAO is a UN specialized Agency established in 1944 to manage the administration and governance of the Convention on International Civil Aviation also known as the Chicago Convention and comprises 191 member states. Sri Lanka became a member in 1948.

Read more: Sri Lanka at the 39th Tri-annual Assembly of ICAO

Sri Lanka regrets that the prevailing environment in the region is not conducive for holding the 19^th SAARC Summit in Islamabad on 9^th and 10^th November 2016. 

Read more: Sri Lanka’s participation in the 19th SAARC Summit scheduled for November 2016 in Islamabad