Emerging Possibility of Joint Problem Solving

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s address to the nation was a carefully scripted one delivered in a tranquil environment overlooking a verdant green landscape with an ancient Buddhist monument symbolizing tranquility in the far background. It was delivered without the trappings of state power, not even the national flag. It seems to have been an endeavor to project the benign personality of the president and evoke sympathetic support of the people. In recent months the president has been coming in for strong criticism in the social media that is outside the realm of governmental patronage and control. Much of the criticism would be planted by political opponents who seek to create an image of a president who is failing. A significant proportion of the criticism appears to be from people who voted for the president but are now disillusioned between his promise and their lived reality. In reality, a sense of despondency is gripping the country.

The presidential decision to pardon a group of LTTE suspects held in custody for many years without trial, and neglected by successive governments, is a welcome gesture meant to commemorate Poson and reaffirm the Buddhist message for peace and harmony for the world community also at this critical juncture of the Covid pandemic. Changing of the death sentences to life sentences is of significance locally and globally where death sentences are outlawed. The undersigned members of the Sri Lankan Collective for Consensus (SLCC) urge the government to give favorable consideration to similar responsiveness in other cases as well.

The EU parliament’s resolution to withdraw its GSP Plus import duty concession to Sri Lanka comes as a body blow to the country at a time when it is economically on the brink. The EU sanction has come much faster than anticipated, if it was anticipated at all. Government spokespersons have tried to make the case that the EU parliament’s resolution is an unjust one. According to them, GSP Plus is about economics and should not involve human rights. The problem is that the purpose of GSP Plus is very different and the government leaders who got it wrong in 2010 when Sri Lanka lost it last, have got it wrong again. The EU has explained GSP Plus as an incentive and a reward to those countries that are committed to improving the human rights situation within their territories. The support that is given to a country’s development is an outcome of respecting and promoting human rights.

Multi-track diplomacy generally refers to international peacebuilding that is not limited to government to government engagements, but also brings in non-governmental actors such as the media, business community and civil society into the frame as well. The meeting between President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the US embassy, including USAID which is the development arm of the US government, indicates a possible broadening of the government’s approach to meet the concerns of the international community to which the United States provides leadership. The meeting received wide media coverage although the substance of the coverage was the same, to the effect that steps would be taken to expedite development activities powered by USAID grants.