Opposition slams Govt. on US agreements

• Questions why Govt. is continuing despite widespread public concern and Presidential disapproval 

United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) lawmaker Dinesh Gunawardena yesterday severely criticised the Government for entering into agreements with the US, which he claimed were harmful to the country and violated the Constitution. 

Referring to the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA), and Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), when UPFA moved the Adjournment Motion in Parliament, Gunawardena questioned the Government’s reasoning for moving forward with the agreements despite widespread public concern. 

“The entire country is concerned about these agreements. If the members of Parliament cannot receive information on the content of these agreements, who can? The nonaligned policy was our corner stone foreign policy. Sri Lanka had the support of all countries in the Indian Ocean region. The military nature in some of these agreements may have negative impacts on Sri Lanka in this region. We do agree with the fact that the US is one of the leading importers when it comes to Sri Lanka’s foreign trade. However, that does not mean that we should put our sovereignty on the line with these agreements,” he said.

According to MP Gunawardena, the agreements create a threat to national security and could jeopardise the regional peace maintained between the countries in the Indian Ocean. “Even President Maithripala Sirisena has expressed his disagreement on signing them, but the Government is continuing with them stubbornly,” he added. (AH)