British PM welcomes initial steps taken by Sri Lanka for reforms

Thursday, 12 March 2015 01:28 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

London: Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has apprised the Prime Minister of UK, David Cameron of the action taken by the new government to reform Sri Lanka during the bilateral discussions held at 10 Downing Street, London, on Tuesday, March 10. Prime Minister Cameron welcoming President Sirisena congratulated him on his presidential election victory and said that he is pleased to see the positive development in post-election Sri Lanka. During the meeting, the President has explained the processes that are being implemented to protect the freedom and rights of all Sri Lankans. “We are in the process of returning the lands of the Northern people,” said the President. He elaborated on the Reconciliation Task Force, which has been set up to ensure trust, unity and the contribution of all to uplift the nation while healing the wounds of mistrust as well as social and cultural tension between different communities in Sri Lanka due to conflict and violence. President Sirisena explained the actions that have been taken in the first two months, including rebuilding confidence in the judicial system by restoring its independence, identifying land to return to the Tamils in the North of the island and replacing military provincial governors with civilian ones. The Prime Minister welcomed these initial steps but underlined that continuing this record of action was essential. The two leaders also discussed President Sirisena’s clear plans to build lasting reconciliation across Sri Lanka, both through supporting the ongoing UN investigation and by establishing an internal mechanism to address issues from Sri Lanka’s past, a Downing Street spokesman said. The PM welcomed the steps the President had taken so far and his commitment to helping Sri Lanka to realize its enormous potential. He reiterated that meaningful engagement with the ongoing UN process ahead of its report in September is central to the UK’s continued support for Sri Lanka. Both the leaders have discusses the bilateral trade and the PM has welcomed the growing trade relationship between the UK and Sri Lanka and looked ahead to the visit of the Lord Mayor of London with a business delegation in May as an opportunity to grow this further. British PM has assured that the UK stands ready to provide assistance and aid to achieve Sri Lanka’s future development goals in any sector.