Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa

Foreign Minister Prof G.L. Peiris met the High Commissioner of Canada David McKinnon on 8 October at the Foreign Ministry. A number of areas of ongoing bilateral cooperation were discussed. The Minister also briefed the High Commissioner on Sri Lanka’s recent multilateral engagements in Geneva and New York.

The Minister updated the High Commissioner on progress related to Sri Lanka’s vaccination programme and the gradual opening up of the country. The Minister appreciated Canada’s contribution to Sri Lanka’s process of recovery from the pandemic. Sri Lanka continues to seek vaccine availability from all available sources.

The High Commissioner briefed the Minister on post- Covid recovery in Canada and economic collaboration between Sri Lanka and Canada, as well as other issues of mutual interest.

The Minister reiterated Sri Lanka’s strong concern regarding the Private Members Public Bill passed earlier this year in the Ontario Legislative Assembly including  Sri Lanka’s  objection to the unacceptable association of  genocide in relation to the past conflict in Sri Lanka . The Minister noted that this Act is being challenged in the Ontario Superior Court. As highlighted in his address to the UN Human Rights Council, Sri Lanka is continuing its efforts to achieve reconciliation among the communities following decades of terrorist conflict. The Minister also recalled that the LTTE is a proscribed terrorist organization in Canada.

The High Commissioner stated that this issue, which was a decision by the Ontario Legislative Assembly, is in a judicial process relating to a Constitutional Question. He agreed to keep the Minister informed of developments.

The Minister also updated the High Commissioner on his address to the UN Human Rights Council and on progress on matters related to human rights and the recent steps taken domestically. The High Commissioner thanked the Minister for the update and encouraged Sri Lanka to make progress on the matters raised by the Council.

Foreign Ministry

Colombo

08 October, 2021

(https://mfa.gov.lk/fm-sl-canada-hc/)

Foreign Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris has highlighted the importance Sri Lanka attaches to strengthening relations with Bangladesh especially economic cooperation.  The Minister made this observation during a courtesy call by the High Commissioner of Bangladesh to Sri Lanka Mr. Tareq Md. Ariful Islam at the Foreign Ministry  on 07 October.

The Minister, while recalling the strong relations between the two countries thanked the Government of Bangladesh for the continued support and cooperation extended to Sri Lanka in multilateral fora, particularly at the United Nations Human Rights Council.

The Minister also discussed a wide range of bilateral matters with High Commissioner Ariful Islam including joint tourism ventures, sharing intelligence in combating and countering terrorism and expansion of trade within the region.

Considering the vast potential of trade in the South Asian region, Foreign Minister Peiris highlighted the need for both countries to work in close collaboration to reap the benefits of international and regional trade pacts, especially in the apparel sector, as Bangladesh is one of the top manufacturers of high quality garments.

The Bangladesh High Commissioner emphasized the importance of enhancing shipping cooperation between the two countries and the early conclusion of the Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA), as tangible measures to boost bilateral trade relations in the years ahead.

The celebration of the 50th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh next year was also discussed during the meeting.

Foreign Ministry

Colombo

08 October 2021

(https://mfa.gov.lk/fm-sl-bangladesh/)

Foreign Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris co-chaired a meeting with the Minister of Youth & Sports, Minister of Development Co-ordination and Monitoring & State Minister of Digital Technology and Enterprise Development Namal Rajapaksa, at the Foreign Ministry on 06 October 2021. State Minister of Foreign Employment Promotion and Market Diversification Piyankara Jayaratne and State Minister of State Minister of Ornamental Fish, Inland Fish & Prawn Farming, Fishery Harbour Development, Multi day Fishing Activities and Fish Exports Kanchana Wijesekera participated in the meeting.

At the outset, Foreign Minister Peiris emphasized the urgent need to enhance the current level of digitalization of consular services at the Ministry in order to facilitate expeditious delivery of services to the public.. Minister Namal Rajapaksa outlined the government’s digitalization National Plan and stated that the government intended to issue by 2023, a digital national identity number with biometrics.  This digital identity number would be specific to every citizen and would be applicable from the birth certificate to the death certificate and connected to different areas of a citizen's activity such as, among others, the bank account, tax file, insurance, passport and school admission. Therefore, Minister Namal Rajapaksa stated it was imperative that supporting institutions are also digitalized and on a par with this process.

Given that a large number of the Sri Lankan public avail themselves of the consular services of the Foreign Ministry, it was agreed that the current Electronic Document Attestation System (e-DAS), used by the Consular Division of the Foreign Ministry needed to be urgently upgraded, or a new system introduced. The aim would be to digitally integrate the Consular Division with other institutions such as the Police Department, Registrar General’s Department and the Department of Examinations, to facilitate foreign employment through SLBFE and its agents.

Chairman, Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) Oshada Senanayake stated that this issue needed to be approached in a holistic manner and solutions mapped from a citizen’s point of view taking into consideration that a large number of service seekers come from rural areas. Therefore, there was an imperative need to avoid the physical presence of the service seekers as much as possible. The ways and means to operationalize a single payment gateway was also discussed. It was decided to appoint an inter-agency committee to develop a modus operandi to implement this process by the second quarter of next year.

Senior officials of the Foreign Ministry, Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment and the ICTA took part in the discussion.

Foreign Ministry

Colombo

08 October 2021

(https://mfa.gov.lk/fm-upgrading-digitalization/)

The Sri Lankan community in the Sultanate of Oman donated a consignment of medical equipment including ICU beds to treat COVID – 19 patients. Sri Lankan Quantity Surveyors Fraternity, bankers and other professionals in Oman were the contributors to this donation which will be distributed to hospitals.

The donation from the Sri Lankan community in Oman was handed over at a ceremony held at the Foreign Ministry in Colombo.  Foreign Secretary Admiral Prof. Jayanath Colombage handed over the donation to State Minister of Production, Supply and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals Prof. Channa Jayasumana and Secretary of the State Ministry Dr. R.M.S.K. Rathnayake.

Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Oman O.L. Ameerajwad and the staff of the Embassy coordinated the donation and arranged for its dispatch to Sri Lanka.

Foreign Ministry

Colombo

07 October 2021

(https://mfa.gov.lk/oman-sl/)

The Government of the Republic of Korea through the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) donated a consignment including PCR detection kits and 05 PCR machines for rapid testing valued at USD 450,000 to Sri Lanka. This generous contribution is in addition to previous donations of COVID 19 related medical equipment.

The donation from the Republic of Korea was handed over at a ceremony held at the Foreign Ministry in Colombo. Korean Ambassador Woonjin Jeong handed over the donation to Foreign Secretary Admiral Prof. Jayanath Colombage. The donation was thereafter handed over to Prof. Channa Jayasumana, State Minister of Production, Supply and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals and Dr. R.M.S.K. Ratnayake, Secretary of the State Ministry.

Sri Lanka and the Republic of Korea enjoy close ties of friendship and cooperation. Since the outbreak of the COVID 19 pandemic, the Republic of Korea has extended valuable COVID 19 related assistance to Sri Lanka.

Foreign Ministry

Colombo

06 October 2021

(https://mfa.gov.lk/korea-sl/)

Foreign Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris welcomed the Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Sri Lanka Abdul Nasser Al Harthy, at the Foreign Ministry on 01 October 2021.

The Foreign Minister extended his warm greetings and recalled the excellent, long-standing friendly relations that exist between the two countries and acknowledged with gratitude, the courtesies extended by the Saudi Arabian Government to the Sri Lankan Muslim community during the Hajj annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims and also for the annual date donation to Sri Lanka during the holy month of Ramadan.

Minister Peiris expressed his sincere appreciation for the understanding and support of Saudi Arabia at several international forums. This support had been consistent over a significant period of time and was founded on a principled position. This principled stance was based on three deeply held beliefs shared by Sri Lanka. Firstly, the unique identity and dignity of each nation state and its culture must be respected. Secondly, national institutions and structures must be given the full plenitude of space needed to discharge their respective mandates. Lastly, that human rights should not be misused as an instrument to justify undue intervention in or interference with the internal affairs of states.

The Minister also appreciated Saudi Arabia for hosting Sri Lankan migrant workers, and emphasized that employment opportunities for Sri Lankans have helped both countries in their economic advancement. He encouraged Saudi Arabia to provide increased opportunities for Sri Lankans in skilled and professional categories. He also thanked the Government of Saudi Arabia for the assistance provided for the repatriation of Sri Lankan migrant workers during the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Minister also noted with gratitude the contribution made by the Saudi Fund for Development in Sri Lanka’s national development.

The Ambassador assured the Minister that Saudi Arabia continues to attach importance to its bilateral partnership with Sri Lanka and looked forward to further expand the bilateral relations in the priority areas identified by Sri Lanka once the Covid-19 situation is normalized.

Tharaka Balasuriya, State Minister of Regional Cooperation was also associated at the meeting.

Foreign Ministry
Colombo

06 October 2021

(https://mfa.gov.lk/saudi-ambassador-fm-sl/)

The outgoing Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt Hussein Abdelhamid El Saharty paid a farewell call on Foreign Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris at the Foreign Ministry, on 01 October 2021.

Acknowledging the contributions of Ambassador Saharty during his tenure, Minister Peiris recalled with a sense of appreciation the role played by Egypt in the Non-Aligned Movement where Sri Lanka was also an active member and acknowledged the relevance of the values of the NAM in today’s world.

Taking stock of the bilateral engagements, the Minister highlighted the need for strengthening cooperation in the spheres of Tourism and Trade, given the expertise of both countries in these fields and the fact that Ceylon Tea enjoys a prominent place among tea lovers of Egypt. The Ambassador noted that following the bilateral consultations held last year the volume of Ceylon Tea imported into Egypt has increased and assured that ways and means will be explored to improve bilateral trade in other areas of interest too.

Minister Peiris expressed his deep appreciation to the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt for their statement on the Oral Update by the High Commissioner for Human Rights during the General Debate where Egypt commended the efforts being made by the Government for the promotion and protection of human rights in Sri Lanka. The Ambassador, sharing Egypt’s own experience in combating terrorism and extremism, underlined the importance of working together as likeminded nations towards safeguarding national interests

The Minister added that the continuation of the functions of the Office of Missing Persons, Office of Reparation and the Office of National Unity and Reconciliation sanctioned by the new Government is reflective of the consistency the Government wishes to maintain towards addressing issues and reaching out to people as well as bringing in reconciliation and transitional justice, and that these genuine efforts should not be allowed to be aborted by selective application of human rights as a pretext for intervention in the internal affairs of states.

The Minister congratulated and extended his best wishes to Ambassador Saharty who is due to assume duties in the Foreign Ministry in Cairo as the Deputy Assistant Minister of Non-Governmental Organizations.

Foreign Ministry

Colombo

06 October, 2021

(https://mfa.gov.lk/egypt-ambassador-fm/)