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Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa

Sri Lanka retains Tier 2 ranking in the US Trafficking in Persons Report for the second consecutive year

Sri Lanka retained its Tier 2 ranking in the US State Department Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report for the second consecutive year. The 2018 Report which was released on 28 June 2018 can be accessed online at https://www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/

The annual Trafficking in Persons Report is prepared as per the US Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) of 2000, as amended, which has authorized the establishment of the US State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons and the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons to assist in the coordination of anti-trafficking efforts. The annual Report which assesses all countries is used by the US Government to engage foreign governments in dialogues to advance anti-trafficking reforms, combat trafficking and target resources on prevention, protection and prosecution programmes. Each country is placed onto one of three tiers based on the extent of the efforts by respective governments to comply with the “minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking” found in Section 108 of the TVPA.

From 2013 to 2016, Sri Lanka was placed in the Tier 2 Watch List for 4 successive years and upgraded to Tier 2 in 2017 in view of the proactive measures taken by the relevant agencies of government to combat trafficking. Classification of countries in this annual report of the State Department affects US assistance for countries with governments of countries on Tier 3 being subject to certain restrictions on US assistance as well as assistance from multilateral development banks.

The TIP report 2018 states that the Government of Sri Lanka demonstrated increasing efforts compared to the previous reporting period and therefore, Sri Lanka has been retained in Tier 2.

Sri Lanka recognizes and acknowledges the magnitude of the problem of human trafficking worldwide, undermining universal values and posing a threat to national security by encouraging and enriching transnational criminal as well as terrorist networks. Sri Lanka remains committed to working with the US and other bilateral partners as well as international organizations to combat this scourge locally and internationally.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Colombo

4 July 2018

Text in Sinhala (PDF)

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Sri Lanka Army Chief of Staff addresses United Nations High-Level Conference of Heads of Counter Terrorism Agencies of Member States

Major General W.B.D.P. Fernando, Chief of Staff of the Sri Lanka Army speaking at the first ever United Nations High-Level Conference of Heads of Counter Terrorism Agencies of Member States at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on 29 June 2018 noted that as a country that had experienced first-hand the suffering of its people due to terrorism, Sri Lanka understands that a key pillar of counter-terrorism is prevention and addressing the root causes of conflict.

The historic Conference under the auspices of the United Nations was convened by Mr. Vladimir Voronkov, Under-Secretary-General of the newly established UN Office of Counter-Terrorism and engaged all thirty eight counter terrorism entities of the United Nations System. One of the aims of the Conference was to provide an opportunity to forge partnerships and increase cooperation and sharing of information among states.

Sri Lanka spoke in the Fourth Session entitled strengthening the role and capacity of the United Nations to support member states to implement the United Nations Global Counter Terrorism Strategy.

Sri Lanka’s delegation included Major General W.B.D.P. Fernando RWP RSP USP psc, Chief of Staff, Sri Lanka Army (Head of Delegation) Mr. W. K. Nalaka de Silva, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Head of the Terrorist Investigation Range, Captain (C) P.A.S. Rathugamage, Commanding Officer SLNS 'Vijaya', Sri Lanka Navy, Squadron Leader K.A.I.A. Kaluthanthriarachchi, Sri Lanka Air Force and Mrs. Sonali Samarasinghe, Minister, Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations.

Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations

New York

29 June 2018

Foreign Minister Tilak Marapana meets President of Uganda

Uganda

Minister of Foreign Affairs Tilak Marapana, during his tour in the African region to expand and reinvigorate bilateral relations, paid a courtesy call on Ugandan President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni.

The discussions focused on the longstanding relations between the two countries with diplomatic relations being established in 1972.

The Ugandan President thanked the Government of Sri Lanka for the timely intervention in upgrading the Masulita Vocational and Technical Training Centre with a view to providing employment to youth. He also thanked the Government of Sri Lanka for the cooperation extended in providing training for officers of the Ugandan Army, Navy and the Airforce. He requested for further assistance in this area.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Tilak Marapana visits Kenya

MFA_Visit_2

Minister of Foreign Affairs Tilak Marapana concluded a four- day visit to Kenya on Wednesday, 27 June 2018. The Minister's visit to Kenya was part of Sri Lanka’s broarder policy to expand relations in the African region. In 2016, Sri Lanka established a Permanent Mission to the African Union in Addis Ababa.

During the visit, Foreign Minister Marapana held a meeting with Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs and International Trade of Kenya Ambassador Dr. Monica Juma, where discussions focused on further strengthening relations between the two countries.

The Foreign Minister appreciated Kenya’s support and that of the region to Sri Lanka’s candidature at the recently concluded elections for the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) for the term 2018-2022, where Sri Lanka obtained 122 votes. The Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs and International Trade endorsed the need to collaborate closely as regional groupings to achieve common positions that benefit and strengthen the global footprint of the South.

MEDIA RELEASE ON A LIST OF NAMES PUBLISHED ONLINE BY THE ITJP (INTERNATIONAL TRUTH AND JUSTICE PROJECT)

The attention of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been drawn to a list of names published online by the ITJP (International Truth and Justice Project). According to the ITJP, this list, which presently consists of 351 names and can be accessed at http://www.disappearance.itjpsl.com/#lang=english is of persons who are alleged to have disappeared while in the custody of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces in May 2009.

The Office on Missing Persons (OMP) which has been established by an Act of Parliament (Act No. 14 of 2016 as amended by Act No. 09 of 2017)[1] is the permanent and independent entity in Sri Lanka that is vested with the tasks of, inter alia, searching and tracing of missing persons and clarifying the circumstances in which such persons went missing, and their fate; making recommendations to the relevant authorities towards reducing the incidents of missing persons; protecting the rights and interests of missing persons and their relatives; and identifying proper avenues of redress to which such missing persons or their relatives may have recourse.

Therefore, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs urges and encourages anyone in Sri Lanka or overseas to kindly share with the Office on Missing Persons:

-any further/additional/detailed information pertaining to persons whose names have been listed by the ITJP and the circumstances under which they went missing;

-any other lists/information that may be available with anyone/ entity pertaining to any individuals including lists of security forces and police personnel, who may be considered to be missing, as defined by Section 27 of the Act.

Kindly direct any information available to:

Chairperson

Office on Missing Persons

Address: 34, Narahenpita Road, Nawala, Sri Lanka

E-mail: < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka

Colombo 1

20 June 2018

[1] http://www.parliament.lk/uploads/acts/gbills/english/6016.pdf

http://www.parliament.lk/uploads/acts/gbills/english/6045.pdf

Text in Sinhala & Tamil