Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa

Ambassador of Japan to Sri Lanka Akira Sujiama called on Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena and expressed his gratitude for the solidarity shown by Sri Lanka by participating in this year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. The meeting took place at the Foreign Ministry on 9th August.

Minister Gunawardena conveyed that the Government of Sri Lanka and its people are grateful to the Government of Japan and its people for donating 1.45 million doses of AstraZeneca vaccines, at the request made by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to the Prime Minister of Japan. The Japanese Ambassador stated that the Government of Japan is very pleased with the prompt action taken by the Government of Sri Lanka to make the vaccines donated to Sri Lanka available to the public at the earliest.

Since the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries falls in April next year, both sides discussed at length on the possibility of holding a joint commemoration ceremony on the occasion. The two sides also exchanged information on bilateral relations between the two countries and the progress of the development projects in Sri Lanka under Japanese investment as well as new investment opportunities.

Foreign Ministry

Colombo

10 August 2021

(https://mfa.gov.lk/japan-appreciates-sl/)

On behalf of the Government,  I would  like to offer my deepest  sympathies  to the injured persons and the relations  of the deceased  consequent  to the recent attacks occurred  this morning.  I see this as an attempt to make the country and its economy unstable.

I condemn these attacks which targeted religious places and some hotels. We all should join hands to protect law and order. I have already instructed the Secretary I Defence, Tri Forces Commanders and the Inspector General of Police to take stringent action to ensure law and order in the country.

Further, I and some ministers had a discussion with HE the President in this regard.  Secretary to the President, Attorney General, and Secretary to the Treasury, Secretary I Disaster Management and Security Chiefs were among the present.

Law will be strictly enforced against the persons those who are responsible for these attacks after finalizing the investigations,

We shall bear with this unfortunate situation and work together to uphold the law and order. Thank you!

Text in Sinhala (PDF)

Text in Tamil  (PDF)

State Minister of Regional Cooperation Tharaka Balasuriya, speaking at the 28th ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) held virtually on 6 August 2021, emphasised Sri Lanka’s commitment for enhanced cooperation with the ARF. The State Minister Balasuriya appreciated the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) for the initiatives to empower youth, sustainable use of ocean resources and promoting successful ocean based trading system, as well as combating and preventing cybercrime in the context of developing a digital economy through a collective mechanism.  Sri Lanka further expressed its commitment to work in tandem with ARF and contribute, with a focused effort, to promote ideas and best practices. State Minister of Regional Cooperation Tharaka Balasuriya represented Sri Lanka at the meeting which was chaired by the Foreign Minister of Brunei Darussalam Dato Erywan Yusof.

Sri Lanka was appointed to be a co-chair of the Inter – Sessional Meeting on Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament 2022, together with Viet Nam and the United States. In this initiative, Sri Lanka will play a lead role in the area of use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes. At this year’s ARF, Sri Lanka co-sponsored the Joint Statement to Promote the Youth, Peace and Security Agenda together with Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Australia, US, New Zealand and Canada, expressing Sri Lanka’s commitment to invest in youth for future prosperity.  Sri Lanka will also host a Workshop in the field of disaster management contributing to the discussion on nurturing a climate of stability, especially in the dynamic disaster prone Southeast Asian region.

The participating ministers from member countries exchanged views on a wide array of issues facing the region including possible future challenges.  All members endorsed the importance of enhancing regional and international solidarity and cooperation towards a collective and effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic and advancing global recovery.

The Meeting also expressed concerns over the situation in Myanmar and urged to address the issues as agreed at the ASEAN Leaders Meeting on 24 April 2021, through the Five-Point Consensus and its swift implementation through a clear timeline.  Furthermore, all members called for achieving complete denuclearisation and establishment of permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula through diplomacy and dialogue.  Referring to the South China Sea, the meeting reiterated the importance of maintaining and promoting peace, security and stability through peaceful resolution of disputes in accordance with universally recognised principles of international law.  The Meeting further affirmed its commitment to addressing the complex challenges posed by terrorism, violent extremism and transnational crime, and the importance of ensuring security of ICT supply chains for economic growth, within the rapidly changing ICT environment.

ARF has over the years contributed as a premium platform for security, dialogue and cooperation in the region to deal with issues through a collective approach.

Foreign Ministry

Colombo

10 August, 2021

(https://mfa.gov.lk/sm-28th-arf/)

A special discussion was held with the participation of heads of security forces and all other departments regarding the current security situation in the country, and during that meeting, the government has decided to take steps to tighten  security at all the religious places, tourists hotels, hospitals and embassies and provide security to all the catholic religious leaders and to important places of the government.

Furthermore,   the President has instrcuted the Inspector General of the Police to impose police curfew across the country. Similarly, a National Action Unit has been established to conduct investigtaion under the guidance of the Chief of the Defence Staff and to conduct search operations to arest the culprists.  Already instructions has been given to all the authorities of the hospitals to provide prompt treatment facilities to the victims.

At present, the process of body identification is being carried out and the judicial authorities are taking steps to conduct their postmortems promptly. The Government has decided to bear funeral expenses of all the deceased persons.

Currently, the security sections are conducting investigations in a broad manner on these incidents and the government has taken steps to temporarily block all the social media avenues until the investigations are concluded.

Steps have been taken to declare April 22 and 23 as holiday for all the government and private schools.

The government requests the public to ensure the peace while remaining in homes and to provide necessary assistance to security forces as the security has been tighten across the Island.

The tri-forces have been summoned to ensure the security of the public and the tri-forces will ensure the security of the people with the coordination of the Police Department.

Udaya R Senevirathne
Secretary to the President
2019-04-21

 Source :http://www.pmdnews.lk/