Friday, 1 November 2013 00:00
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Most issues in Sri Lanka seem to dwindle into a numbers game. In the latest chapter, it is keeping a tally of how many countries will or will not attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) rather than making a concentrated effort to promote Sri Lanka’s reputation internationally.
Cabinet Spokesman Minister Keheliya Rambukwella was upbeat on Thursday that the number of confirmed attendees had reached 37. He argued that this exceeds the total number of countries that attended the Australian CHOGM in Perth and provided the number as evidence that Sri Lanka’s reputation was still glowing despite the lack of commitment from India.
The Economic Development Ministry and Industry and Commerce Ministry over the past few weeks has been kept busy informing the media about the numbers that have been confirmed for the Commonwealth Business Forum (CBF) as well as the mega exhibition showcasing trade and investment opportunities in Sri Lanka.
These are undoubtedly important numbers and clearly spell the return that Sri Lanka will make from CHOGM. As officials spend willy-nilly on the summit with over Rs. 800 million allocated for the import of luxury cars along with over Rs. 700 million on tax concessions given to the same as well as a whopping Rs. 15 million allocated just for the media registration website it becomes even more important to reach the target of US$ 2 billion investment targeted from the CBF.
Yet it cannot be denied that much of the return expected from CHOGM will be intangible. Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s attendance is a case in point. It may not earn Sri Lanka billions in investment, but his participation together with a possible visit to the north will go a long way to assuring to the world that post-war reconciliation in Sri Lanka is a reality. It will also contribute to appeasing Sri Lanka’s most vehement critics in South India as well as form a supportive platform, one can hope, for the hurdles the island will face come the UN Human Rights Council next March.
Impressing British Prime Minister David Cameron and New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Murray McCully who have announced they will visit the former war-torn northern parts of Sri Lanka during the summit to ascertain firsthand the situation faced by tens of thousands of the Tamil population is also another opportunity for Sri Lanka to put its best foot forward and minimise the bad publicity garnered when Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper pulled out of the summit and announced a cut on funding made by his country to the Commonwealth Secretariat, citing Sri Lanka’s poor human rights track record.
Given this situation, the detainment of two media freedom activists less than two weeks ahead of the summit as well as failing to emphasise clear long-term plans for its reconciliation process remains worrying. The leaps that have been made as CHOGM rolls closer have been landmark. The commission to investigate into disappearances, legal action taken against the killing of 12 NGO workers and five students in the east along with progress on the murder of a British tourist have all put Sri Lanka’s reputation on a better footing.
Yet, there are no assurances that these progressive steps will continue after the CHOGM bandwagon has packed up and left town. That also means that the good impression the Government is so keen to create during the seven days of CHOGM and the massive investment the local taxpayer is making could all make poor returns.
