Friday, 28 February 2014 00:47
-
- {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
A group of cross-party young parliamentarians have urged the Government to have dialogue with the Sri Lankan Diaspora in order to ensure there is sustainable reconciliation in the country.
The MPs, who have been working towards promoting positive and open dialogue with Diaspora communities since 2011, which includes the Tamil, Sinhala and Muslim Diaspora, have also offered to play the role of mediators if the need be.
Gampaha District SLFP MP Vasantha Senanayake said that a report on the issues raised by the Diaspora and recommendations in addressing those issues was handed over to the Government by the young cross-party parliamentarians.
He said that the cross-party parliamentarians have the support of their respective party leaders while National Languages Minister Vasudeva Nanayakara had shown interest in the initiative.
Senanayake told the Colombo Gazette that after 30 years of war, Sri Lanka now needs National reconciliation and the Diaspora can play a key role in achieving that goal.
The cross-party parliamentarians had undertaken a series of visits to the UK, where a process of dialogue has been established with first and second generation Diaspora communities, of all Sri Lankan ethnicities.
The most recent of these visits to the UK by the young MPs, now knows as Young Political Leaders Forum of Sri Lanka (YPLFSL) was held in January 2014, where they held a number of meetings as a part of an effort for continued engagement with the diaspora. The project is supported by independent peace-building organisation International Alert.
Other MPs in the group are Niroshan Perera (UNP), Hunais Farook (All Ceylon Muslim Congress), Harin Fernando (UNP) and Shehan Semasinghe (SLFP). Tamil National Alliance political activist Raghu Balachandran is also part of the group. (Colombo Gazette)
