Govt. says US Senate split on Lankan issue

Tuesday, 11 March 2014 01:20 -     - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Government says it sees a split in the US senate over the human rights issue with two resolutions already submitted to the Senate both in support of and against Sri Lanka. Minister Dinesh Gunawardena said that the split was seen after eleven Senators supported Sri Lanka recently through a resolution while eight others had submitted a separate resolution to the Senate against the island. He told reporters at a media briefing that on previous occasions the Senate was almost unanimous on the Sri Lankan issue and often raised accusations against the Government but now it was divided. “When did you hear of a US Senate resolution challenging the official position of the US Government? So this shows Sri Lanka is in a better position by the achievements we have made here,” he said. Gunawardena said that some members of the Diaspora are working towards a separatist agenda with the support of groups working against Sri Lanka, including some in India and Britain. “Our position has been that we have moved very fast after the conflict, we have restored life, economic activity is back and progress has been made all fronts,” he said. Meanwhile, Minister Susil Premjayantha said that the report on Sri Lanka by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, is one sided. He said that Pillay has no right to play the role of Sri Lanka’s Parliament by demanding that constitutional changes be made. The Minister urged the opposition United National Party (UNP) to also raise its voice against Pillay and her attempt to interfere in Sri Lanka. (Colombo Gazette)

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