President calls for international assistance for reconciliation

President Mahinda Rajapaksa in an interview with The Times of London called for international assistance for reconciliation and strengthening peace.

In the interview, which was published yesterday (9) he remarked that rebuilding a nation after pro-longed conflict required great commitment and an enormous amount of capital flow, adding, ‘we have the commitment’.

‘The most important is to rebuild trust among all Sri Lankan communities.

This will involve the normalisation of the north-resettlement of the remaining displaced persons in the next few months, the reconstruction of infrastructure, the provision of housing, roads, railways, bridges, schools and hospitals. Also the provision of basic services for education, healthcare, transport, and livelihood support for the resettled people including new livelihood opportunities’, the President stated.

Eastern and Northern Revival programmes are underway with hitherto unprecedented opportunities for development and investment in large-scale infrastructure such as ports, telecommunications and agribusiness, to mention a few, he added.

This interview was published along with a twelve page supplement on Sri Lanka’s socio-economic background and opportunities for trade and investment. (www.info.gov.lk)