Video: SL’s explanations not satisfactory: US State Department
THURSDAY, 17 JANUARY 2013The United States said the Sri Lankan governments ‘explanation’ on the impeachment of Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandranayake was not “satisfactory in terms of protecting democracy”.
The spokesperson for the US State Department, Victoria Nuland made these remarks in response to questions posed by journalists, during the daily press briefing.
She added that it is too soon say what impact the action would have on US foreign assistance to Sri Lanka in the future.
Nuland confirmed Sri Lanka had requested 16.5 million dollars in assistance, for 2013.
“Just for your records, U.S. Government assistance for FY2012 for Sri Lanka was $27 million. This included 13.3 million in bilateral assistance programs which primarily related to peace and security, human rights, economic growth, and democracy programs” she said.
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‘We Don’t Need You, We Got China’ Gota To US
By Colombo Telegraph -January 18, 2013
Secretary to the Ministry of Defence Gotabhaya Rajapaksa says that each time he meets the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka she asked him why he had not taken steps to punish Sri Lankan soldiers.
Gotabaya
Speaking at a presentation ceremony at the National Chamber of Commerce yesterday Rajapaksa said that he always responds to Ambassador Michele Sison that soldiers cannot be punished without due procedure being followed.The Secretary to the Ministry of Defence referred to remarks made by Ambassador Sison in Matara on Wednesday when he claimed she criticized the impeachment process against Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake.
“The biggest threat the US can pose to Sri Lanka’s military is to take away their defence scholarships” Rajapaksa said, adding that if they withdrew the training programmes, China would replace them. “We can send our soldiers to China for training” the Secretary said.
He claimed that Sri Lanka had not received any weapons assistance from the US during the war.
In Matara on Wednesday, the US Ambassador noted that “actions that undermine an independent judiciary in Sri Lanka may also undermine Sri Lanka’s ability to attract foreign investment. It’s no secret that foreign investors assess the state of rule of law in a country as a factor when making investment decisions.”
Posted by Thavam
