Harsha says Govt.’s anti-corruption efforts are not rhetorical

Addressing the high level segment of the Conference of State Parties to the UN Convention against Corruption in the Russian City of St. Petersburgh yesterday, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Harsha de Silva stated that the Government of Sri Lanka, under the leadership of President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, had taken a host of measures to prevent corruption, seek out stolen assets and build capacity for effectively curbing corruption and bribery, in an effective, comprehensive, result-oriented manner. 



The Deputy Minister outlined the independent institutions that have been put in place, especially following the adoption of the 19th Amendment to Constitution, as well as other investigation mechanisms, pursuant to the mandate received by the Government at both the Presidential and Parliamentary elections. 

Dr. de Silva stressed that in a country where anti-corruption was only a rhetorical commitment under the last Government, all these measures, aimed to contribute towards a culture of good governance, represented a paradigm shift. He also stated that the National Unity Government was encouraging civil society and the business to assist in combating corruption. 

Participating in the 6th Session of the Conference of the State Parties hosted by the Government of Russian Federation, Deputy Minister de Silva also held a number of bilateral consultations on the sidelines of the meeting. 

The Sri Lanka delegation included Ambassador A.L.A. Azeez, Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the UN in Vienna, Dilrukshi Wickramasinghe, Director General of the Commission to Investigate Bribery or Corruption, J.C. Weliamuna, President of the Task Force on Stolen Assets Recovery, Wasantha Bandara, Additional Solicitor General and Samantha Pathirana, Minister in the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Moscow.