Don’t obsess about CHOGM boycotts: GL

Wednesday, 13 November 2013 00:04 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

External Affairs Minister says Indian PM not compelled to give reasons for absence
nSeveral other C’wealth member states participating with ‘enthusiasm’ says GL
nKamalesh Sharma confident of progress on human rights in Lanka

By Dharisha Bastians External Affairs Minister G.L. Peiris yesterday downplayed the impact of the decisions by several heads of government to skip the Commonwealth Summit in Colombo, saying they were unlikely to affect the success of the gathering of world leaders. The Prime Ministers of India, Canada and Mauritius have decided to boycott the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Colombo, with the latter states making their reasons explicit, tying their absence to Sri Lanka’s rights record. “Why are we obsessing with who is not coming to CHOGM in Sri Lanka? Why are we glossing over who is here participating with enthusiasm?” Minister Peiris observed, addressing a media briefing at the Media Centre at the BMICH.

Harping on the boycotts smacked of a biased attitude lacking in objectivity, he added. Peiris said that Sri Lanka was very satisfied and pleased with the numbers that are attending this year’s CHOGM. “We rejoice in our friends and in the confidence they have placed in us and in the Commonwealth under our leadership,” the Minister emphasised. He said there was no judgmental structure within the Commonwealth. “The Commonwealth is a voluntary association of sovereign states,” he said, adding that there was no room for states to sit in judgement of other members. Asked if the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had provided reasons for his decision to skip the summit, Minister Pieris said it was not incumbent upon governments to provide reasons for absence at multilateral events. “It is simply not the custom,” he emphasised. Meanwhile, Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma who also addressed the press briefing said he endorsed Minister Peiris’ view on the matter. Sharma said his Office had raised human rights concerns and concerns over values such as the separation of powers and the independence of the Judiciary at the highest levels of the Sri Lankan Government. The Commonwealth conducts its work in human rights and other concerns about states in trust and good faith to advance the organisation’s values, Sharma said. “Progress will be registered,” the Secretary General said, referring to the Government’s rights record, “and felt by the Sri Lankan people.”