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Thursday, November 13, 2008 - 7.45 GMT |
Sri Lanka wholly with BIMSTEC against terrorism and organized crime - President Rajapaksa
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 “Sri Lanka wholeheartedly supports the
BIMSTEC Convention on Cooperation in
Combating International Terrorism, Organized
Crime and Illicit Drug Trafficking as an
important and vital milestone in our efforts
on counter terrorism,” said President
Mahinda Rajapaksa addressing the 2nd Summit
of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral
Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC),
at New Delhi today.
”Terrorist groups are able to sustain
themselves by illegal fundraising, narcotics
and people trafficking, money laundering
using international networks, and arms and
ammunition smuggling including through the
sea routes in the Bay of Bengal. I urge you
to consider setting up a mechanism to
effectively police the seas of the Bay of
Bengal, to deny these terrorists mobility
and connectivity.
“For over two decades, Sri Lanka has been
facing a tremendous challenge to our
democratic way of life through the barbaric
actions of a terrorist group, the LTTE.
There is no doubt that such groups have to
be dealt with militarily. At the same time
Sri Lanka believes that any underlying
causes, exploited by the terrorists in an
attempt to seek legitimacy for their
operations, should be dealt with
politically. I wish to assure this august
gathering that we are firmly on the path to
apolitical solution,” President Rajapaksa
said.
He added that: “While the BIMSTEC nations
have constructively and prudently engaged in
the process of globalization, nevertheless
the economic challenges faced by many of our
major trading partners, will inevitably have
some impact on our own pace of growth….The
situation has therefore made all of us very
much aware of the protection that regional
self-reliance can afford, against global
economic uncertainties.”
Here is the text of President Rajapaksa’s
statement :
Your Excellency, Dr. Manmohan Singh,
Excellencies,
Distinguished Delegates,
On this landmark occasion of the Second
BIMSTEC Summit in New Delhi, I express my
deep appreciation to His Excellency Dr.
Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India and
the Government of India for the warm and
gracious hospitality extended to me and my
delegation and for the excellent Summit
arrangements. I felicitate His Excellency
the Prime Minister of India on his unanimous
election as Chairperson of BIMSTEC.
May I also take this opportunity to
congratulate Your Excellency Dr Manmohan
Singh, the Government and the people of
India on your great achievement of launching
the “Chandrayaan”. We, as South Asians take
pride in this achievement.
I also take this opportunity to acknowledge
the continuous and remarkable contribution
made by the Government of Thailand, and for
having played the role of sheet anchoring
the absence of a permanent secretariat
during all these years.
This is the first BIMSTEC Summit that I am
attending as the President of Sri Lanka. I
wish to reiterate my commitment to
furthering the objectives of the Grouping. I
propose that we meet bi-annually as
originally envisaged.
Our Summit is taking place at a time when an
international financial crisis, originating
in Western capital markets, is sweeping
across the world. While the BIMSTEC nations
have constructively and prudently engaged in
the process of globalization, nevertheless
the economic challenges faced by many of our
major trading partners, will inevitably have
some impact on our own pace of growth.
The situation has therefore made all of us
very much aware of the protection that
regional self-reliance can afford, against
global economic uncertainties. Our host
India, with its vast capacity and economic
potential can indeed serve as an engine,
driving and guiding us to withstand the
fallout of the global crisis while ushering
prosperity for our region.
Mr. Chairman, Excellencies, distinguished
delegates,
Poverty is an issue for not just some
countries of our Group, but for a
significant part of the world population.
The recently concluded Ministerial Meeting
on Cooperation in Poverty Alleviation,
manifests the importance that BIMSTEC
attaches to this subject. In addition, the
fisheries and agriculture sectors which have
great potential for poverty alleviation
merit the strongest possible focus by
BIMSTEC.
The alleviation of poverty forms one of the
core objectives of my government. After
three years of active implementation, a
majority of the proposals contained in the‘
Mahinda Chintana’ which is my election
manifesto, have delivered many benefits to
my people. A number of poverty alleviation
programmes, both direct and indirect, indeed
have proved to be success stories, and have
empowered the rural people. Sri Lanka will
continue to share her experiences in this
field with the other Member States, while
contributing whole-heartedly to the
collective effort against poverty.
Mr. Chairman, Excellencies, distinguished
delegates,
Achieving energy security has come to the
forefront of the global agenda and has posed
a tremendous challenge, particularly to
developing countries. Oil prices have
increased significantly since 2002, although
there has been a decline in the prices in
recent weeks.
Our efforts at developing alternate forms of
energy such as solar, wind and bio-fuels for
domestic consumption and for use by industry
must remain paramount. However, we do not
support the use of arable land to produce
bio fuels to drive cars.
As the lead country for BIMSTEC cooperation
in Technology, Sri Lanka urges that the
highest priority should be assigned to the
BIMSTEC initiatives for the establishment of
the Energy Centre and the Trans Power
Exchange and Development Project.
The promotion of trade among us is an
important means for regional development and
growth. The operationalization of the
BIMSTEC Free Trade Agreement, has despite
our best efforts been delayed. Nevertheless,
we are all looking forward to the timely
finalization of an Agreement that provides
for all Members equitable benefits. We are
pleased that Sri Lanka had been unanimously
elected to continue as the Chair of the
Trade Negotiating Committee.
Mr. Chairman, Excellencies, distinguished
delegates,
It is in our collective interest to pursue
initiatives to promote inter and
intra-regional tourism. The move to
establish a Tourism Information Centre and
very importantly, a Tourism Fund is
commendable. We should also seriously
consider the joint marketing of the BIMSTEC
region as one destination.
In this regard, I am pleased to announce
that Sri Lanka looks forward to contributing
to regional familiarization tour programmes,
conducted with the collaboration of fellow
Member States. Furthermore, the Sri Lanka
Hotel School is ready to extend
opportunities for nationals of member states
to follow its internationally acclaimed
training programmes.
The establishment of the Cultural Industries
Observatory in Bhutan is a significant
development. I am confident that such
measures will contribute immensely to the
development of the tourism industry in the
region including in pilgrimage tourism.
Mr. Chairman, Excellencies, distinguished
delegates,
Sri Lanka wholeheartedly supports the
BIMSTEC Convention on Cooperation in
Combating International Terrorism, Organized
Crime and Illicit Drug Trafficking as an
important and vital milestone in our efforts
on counter terrorism.
Terrorist groups are able to sustain
themselves by illegal fundraising, narcotics
and people trafficking, money laundering
using international networks, and arms and
ammunition smuggling including through the
sea routes in the Bay of Bengal. I urge you
to consider setting up a mechanism to
effectively police the seas of the Bay of
Bengal, to deny these terrorists mobility
and connectivity.
For over two decades, Sri Lanka has been
facing a tremendous challenge to our
democratic way of life through the barbaric
actions of a terrorist group, the LTTE.
There is no doubt that such groups have to
be dealt with militarily. At the same time
Sri Lanka believes that any underlying
causes, exploited by the terrorists in an
attempt to seek legitimacy for their
operations, should be dealt with
politically. I wish to assure this august
gathering that we are firmly on the path to
apolitical solution.
We welcome the consensus on establishing a
Secretariat. This will give the necessary
institutional strength. Sri Lanka is ready,
in a spirit of commitment to the success of
the BIMSTEC process, to host the Secretariat
in Colombo.
Mr. Chairman, Excellencies, distinguished
delegates,
By founding this grouping, we have united in
a community of littoral and hinterland
states of the Bay of Bengal. Through our
efforts in BIMSTEC, we must resolutely
ensure that our peoples would be the
beneficiaries of a number of freedoms,
including most importantly, freedom from the
fear of terrorism and freedom from hunger
and poverty. We owe them no less.
May the blessings of the Noble Triple Gem be
with you.
Thank you.
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