Author: TELO Admin

India foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla is likely to visit Sri Lanka early October, India’s The Hindu reported, amid strained ties and ahead of a groundbreaking ceremony at the China-backed Port City for what will be the first building to go up on the reclaimed land.

The Port City is expected to play a vital role in China’s multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) which has raised security concerns for India in the Indian Ocean region, diplomats have said.

“Harsh Vardhan Shringla is likely to inaugurate some key bilateral projects,” The Hindu said on its website.

Shringla’s visit comes as the diplomatic relations between the two neighbours was severed after Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa unilaterally cancelled a 500 million US dollar tripartite East Container Terminal (ECT) deal in February this year citing trade union pressure.

Instead, Colombo gave the West Container Terminal to India’s privately owned Adani group which has tied up with Sri Lanka’s John Keells Holdings to accomplish the 700 million US dollar project.

The ECT deal was signed among the governments of India, Japan, and Sri Lanka. The deal was originally signed under former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Diplomats have told EconomyNext that both President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa have committed to go ahead with the ECT deal and a liquefied natural gas (LNG) deal.

The ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peremuna (SLPP) has opposed Indian projects and has vowed to cancel them. The Rajapaksa government also cancelled a 293 million dollar Mattala Airport project which was to be given to India.

The strained ties between the two countries come at a time when China is leap frogging in investing in Sri Lanka and financing for the island nation’s infrastructure projects.

Sri Lanka’s parliament has already passed the Port City Bill, creating the country’s first Special Economic Zone amid controversy and complaints around sovereignty issues.

The Port City was to start its groundbreaking for the first high rise building in the Colombo International Financial City (CIFC) on Sept. 17, coinciding with the seventh anniversary of the project which was personally launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The groundbreaking ceremony at the Colombo International Financial City (CIFC) of the Port City of was postponed amid both the president and prime minister being on foreign trips. The ceremony is expected to take before the end of this year.

The Stand Up Movement Lanka organisation yesterday (30 September) urged that a proper monitoring system be implemented in order to ensure the rights of labourers in Sri Lanka, if the European Union’s (EU) Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) trade concessions are going to be granted to Sri Lanka next year.

“Governments have gained these concessions by hiding the labour and human rights violations that are taking place in the country. They have always painted the wrong picture, especially about the livelihoods and working conditions of the employees in the Export Processing Zones (EPZs). If the GSP+ concession is going to be given to Sri Lanka, then there must be a proper monitoring system and programme to ensure that labour rights are protected. If this is not done, this country is not suitable to receive GSP+,” said Movement’s Convenor Ashila Dandeniya at a press conference held yesterday.

She alleged that although the service of employees in the EPZs was deemed essential during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Labour Department was closed, which made it difficult for workers to access the necessary services pertaining to their labour rights.

“GSP+ is given after checking the progress of human and labour rights in the country. If the country does not protect the labour rights of the labourers who are working to supply the market that gives us GSP+, then, on behalf of whom are we asking for GSP+? If labour rights are not protected, then the GSP+ benefits are only going to one group of people amongst the higher economic classes,” noted Dandeniya.

The organisation has also written to the EU earlier this week in this regard. In its letter, the organisation noted that about 50,000 workers in the EPZs have, to date, contracted the coronavirus due to the failure of factory owners to take measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in the factories. It further claimed that factory owners are neglecting their responsibilities concerning isolating workers who test positive for the virus; instead opting to send them to their hostels or boarding rooms. Thus, adequate quarantine facilities are not being provided for them.

The GSP+ trade concessions Monitoring Mission arrived in Sri Lanka on 27 September and is due to remain in the country till 5 October.

The two German military officers responsible for Sri Lanka, Capt Gerald Koch and LtCol Jan Cihar, will be in the country from October 3rd – 8th, 2021, a statement from the German embassy said.

After more than 18 months of pandemic-related travel restrictions, physical contact with the Ministry of Defense of Sri Lanka and other officials is finally being resumed.

One of the main purposes of this visit is to prepare the port visit of the German frigate BAYERN, planned from January 9th to 13th 2022. Underscoring the security policy component of the German policy guidelines, the German frigate BAYERN has started its half-year long journey to Asia. The frigate has left Germany in early August 2021 and will return at the end of February 2022.

In addition, it will serve as an opportunity to maintain and strengthen contacts with the Sri Lankan military in order to discuss priorities for cooperation. With the frigate BAYERN arriving in Colombo, it will be the first timely occasion to carry out joint exercises at sea with the Sri Lankan Navy at the beginning of January 2022, e.g. “Search and Rescue Operations” and many more.

To conclude, the visit follows the intention of completing Capt Koch’s official accreditation as Defence Attaché in Sri Lanka. The two countries, Germany and Sri Lanka, are thus highlighting the significance of further enhancing their long-term bilateral relations as well as fruitful cooperation in the military sector.

Sri Lanka is at risk of losing access to a European trade concession worth over 500 million US dollars by April 2022 if the government does not take drastic measures to address human rights concerns, an opposition lawmaker said.

Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MP M A Sumanthiran told EconomyNext on Wednesday (29) that it is his belief that the European parliament has already decided to withdraw access to the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) concession as per a resolution passed in June this year.

“Unless the government makes some dramatic changes to address human rights issues, the country is likely to lose GSP+ in April next year,” he said.

The European parliament adopted a resolution on June 10 calling for the repeal of Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and inviting the European Union (EU) Commission to consider temporarily withdrawing access to GSP+.

Related: EU parliament adopts resolution on Sri Lanka; wants PTA repealed, GSP+ withdrawn

Meanwhile, a five-member European Union (EU) delegation arrived in Sri Lanka on Monday (27) to review the continuation of trade concession amid renewed concerns about the country’s human rights situation.

The EU is the second largest export destination for Sri Lankan products, and GSP+ has helped the country’s exporters to consolidate their position.

Related: EU to review Sri Lanka’s access to GSP+ trade concession amid rights abuse concerns

Sampathan met the EU delegation with TNA leader R Sampanthan on Tuesday. The MP told reporters that the discussion had focused on the PTA.

“We said [at the discussion] that this Act must be repealed, as it is very unjust. It is being used again, so it must be abolished. We also said people detained under the PTA, whether recently or long ago, must be released. We also talked about militarisation, and said that the situation in the country is not ideal for good governance,” he said.

“It is not correct to take a decision against us, but the government has been acting against the people. It is only with this kind of pressure that the government can change its ways and the people are allowed to live freely,” he added.