Features
Ministry of Justice Law Reforms – Protecting Child Rights or Promoting Sexual Abuse of Underage Girls?
In the second week of December 2021, the Minister of Justice had presented a Cabinet paper with strange proposals to amend certain provisions in the Penal Code, Code of the Criminal Procedure Act and the Judicature Act for the purpose of filling the gaps in the Law of Rape and making rape of boys a crime.
In this Cabinet paper the Minister has proposed to bring about two amendments in the law relating to child abuse.
First proposal: (a) to amend the law on statutory rape enabling (i) the Police to institute criminal proceedings in Magistrate’s Courts; (ii) Magistrate to give suspended sentences to the accused in appropriate cases where the accused is under 22 years of age and the victim is over 14 years of age and under 16 years of age and the penetration had been with the consent of the victim; (iii) Magistrate to forward the case record to the Attorney General, where it appears that the victim has not consented, to consider institution of criminal proceedings on Indictment in the High Court;
Second proposal: (b) to amend S. 363 of Penal Code with the aim of facilitating legal protection for men and boys from sexual violence. In the Minister’s view, there is evidence that rape of boys is a common form of sexual violence contributing to an environment in which such violations can take place without effective penalties. Though historically, rape of only women has been recognized in law, sexual violence has been recognized not only as a women-centric issue, but as a major social problem that highlights the need for gender-neutrality in the present context. This is done in neutralizing gender in terms of the law of rape.
To give effect to these proposed amendments, the Minister has proposed: (1) to repeal S. 137 of Criminal Procedure Code on medical examination of victim and accused in case of rape and substitute a section which is gender neutral; (2) to amend S. 142 of Criminal Procedure Code to empower Magistrate to follow summary procedure laid down in Chap. XVII in case the victim is over 14 years and under 16 years and the offender is not more than 22 years of age and the offence has been committed with the consent of the victim; (3) to amend the First Schedule to the Procedure Code and the Second Schedule to the Judicature Act.
By this Cabinet paper the Minister has sought the approval of the Cabinet: – (a) To amend the CPC Act and Judicature Act in accordance with the Proposal; (b) To instruct the Legal Draftsman to draft amending legislation accordingly; and (c) To empower the Minister to provide necessary guidance and issue further instructions where necessary to the Legal Draftsman on matters relating to the proposal.
From these propositions it is clear that the Minister or his legal advisors have no clear understanding of the existing law and the procedure relating to the sexual abuse of women and children.
Far-reaching amendments were brought to the Penal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code in 1995 with a view to enhancing protection to women and children against abuse, especially sexual abuse. The following are the main changes brought about in the law by these amendments:
a. Creating several new offences such as incest, grave sexual abuse, sexual exploitation of children, procuration and using children for obscene publications.
b. Providing for enhanced penalties for sexual offences and minimum mandatory jail sentences.
c. Recognition of all persons under 18 years of age as children for the purpose of the offences dealt with by these amendments.
d. Increasing the age of statutory rape or consent to sex to sixteen years.
e. Granting exclusive jurisdiction over child abuse cases to the High Court
Under S. 363 of the Penal Code, a man commits rape when he has sexual intercourse with a woman under circumstances falling under one of the following descriptions:-
(a) without her consent….
(b) with her consent when her consent …obtained by use of force, or….
(c) with her consent when….obtained…when she was of unsound mind….
(d) with her consent when the man knows…he is not her husband…
(e) with or without her consent when she is under sixteen years of age, unless the woman is his wife who is over twelve years of age and is not judicially separated from the man.
Under S. 363 (e) of the Penal Code a man who has sexual intercourse with a girl under sixteen years of age, with or without her consent, commits the offence of statutory rape, unless the woman is his wife who is over twelve years of age and is not judicially separated from the man.’’
Later in the implementation of the law, the law enforcement officers encountered difficulties at times due to the phrase shown in italics above, which was included in the section, due to the provisions in the Muslim Marriage Law and the insistence of Muslim MPs.
S. 364 (2) deals with the penalty for statutory rape.
‘Whoever- (e) commits rape on a woman under eighteen years of age shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for term not less than ten years and not exceeding twenty years and with fine and shall in addition be ordered to pay compensation of an amount determined by court to the person in respect of whom the offence was committed for the injuries caused to such person:
Provided however, that where the offence is committed in respect of a person under 16 years of age, the court may, where the offender is a person under 18 years of age and the intercourse has been with the consent of the person, impose a sentence of imprisonment for a term less than ten years.’
As stated above under the existing law:
a. Only a girl above the age of 16 years can consent to have sex.
b. Any person who has sexual intercourse with a girl under 16 years of age, with or without her consent, commits statutory rape.
c. Any person who commits statutory rape is liable to be punished with a minimum mandatory jail sentence of ten years which can be extended up to twenty years; he is also liable to pay a fine and compensation ordered by court to the victim.
d. However, where the offender is a person under 18 years of age and the intercourse has taken place with the consent of the girl, the court has a discretion to impose a sentence of imprisonment for a term less than ten years.
e. It is an indictable offence with only the High Court having jurisdiction to hear these cases.
By the first proposal in the Cabinet paper the Minister proposes to amend the law on statutory rape bringing about the following changes in the existing law:
a. Under the existing law, only a girl above the age of 16 years can consent to have sex; if the girl is under 16 years of age and the sexual intercourse has taken place with the consent of the girl, the Court may take that fact into consideration at the time of sentencing the offender.
*By this amendment, the age of consent will be brought down from 16 years to 14 years.
*Now any girl who has attained the age of 14 years can consent to sex and the Court is bound to take that into consideration;
b. Under the existing law, at the time of sentencing the Court may take into consideration of the fact that the offender is also a child, a person under 18 years of age.
*By this amendment, this concession has been extended to adults also, to youthful offenders belonging to the age group of 18 – 22 years of age.
c. Under the existing law, all child sexual abusers faced the hazard of going through a High Court trial.
*Under this amendment, these offenders do not face the hazard of going through a High Court trial as the High Court has no jurisdiction to try these offences, only the Magistrate’s Court has jurisdiction.
d. Under the existing law, while statutory rape is an offence punishable with a minimum mandatory jail sentence of ten years, where the offence is committed with the consent of the girl and the offender is a person under 18 years, the Court has the discretion to impose a sentence of imprisonment for a term less than ten years. If the offender is a person over 18 years of age, he has to undergo the minimum mandatory jail sentence.
* Under this amendment, any young person belonging to the age group of 18 – 22 years can have sexual intercourse with any girl who has attained the age of 14 years with her consent without undergoing any sentence of imprisonment.
*The maximum sentence of imprisonment that can be imposed by a Magistrate’s Court under its normal criminal jurisdiction is two years and the maximum sentence of imprisonment that can be suspended is also two years. The court has the discretion to impose a suspended sentence for a period less than two years. It may be even 6 months.
* An offender belonging to the age group of 18 – 22 years can plead guilty to the charge on the first day itself if the Police Report indicates that the sexual intercourse has taken place with the consent of the girl, and he may be able to go home with a suspended sentence without spending a day in prison.
This amendment will certainly result in the promotion of sexual abuse of young girls and bring about dangerous social consequences.
It will be an open licence to pleasure -seeking young adults of moneyed families to get friendly with young girls of school-going age and have sexual intercourse with them.
By the second proposal in the Cabinet paper the Minister proposes to amend S. 363 of Penal Code with the aim of facilitating legal protection for men and boys from sexual violence. In the Minister’s view, rape of boys is a common form of sexual violence, against which there are no effective penalties. One does not know what the Minister means by ‘rape of boys’. Is it anal sex? If it is anal sex or any other kind of act of sexual penetration, there are existing and adequate legal provisions with effective penalties. This proposal clearly shows the Minister’s ignorance of the existing provisions of the law.
The offence of “Grave Sexual Abuse” in S. 365B of the Penal Code deals with the offence of what the Minister calls ‘rape of boys’. “Grave Sexual Abuse” is defined in S. 365B (1) thus:
S. 365B (1) – ‘ Grave sexual abuse is committed by any person who, for sexual gratification, does any act, by the use of his genitals or any other part of his body or any instrument on any orifice or part of the body of any other person, being an act which does not amount to rape under S. 363, in circumstances falling under any of the following descriptions, that is to say- under circumstances falling under one of the following descriptions:-
(a) without the consent of that other person
(b) with consent …obtained by use of force, or…
(c) with consent obtained…when other person was of unsound mind or under intoxication.
(d) with or without the consent of the other person when the other person is under 16 years of age.
S. 365B (2) (b) deals with the penalty for grave sexual abuse committed on persons under 18 years of age.
‘Whoever- (b) commits grave sexual abuse on any person under 18 years of age shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term not less than ten years and not exceeding twenty years and with fine and shall also be ordered to pay compensation of an amount determined by court to the person in respect of whom the offence was committed for the injuries caused to such person.’
In S. 364 dealing with penalties for rape, there is a proviso under which the Court can impose a lesser sentence of imprisonment where the offence is committed on a girl under 16 years of age with the consent of the girl for the intercourse by a person under 18 years of age.
There is no similar provision in the penalties for grave sexual abuse. A Court cannot act leniently in dealing with a person under 18 years of age who commits grave sexual abuse on a boy under 16 years of age with that boy’s consent.
It appears that the Minister or his legal advisers are trying to surreptitiously achieve two undisclosed objectives with this proposed amendment. One is lowering the penalties that can be imposed by courts on youthful sexual abusers who sexually abuse boys with their consent as in the case of statutory rape. If it is directly proposed to amend the law enabling courts to deal more leniently with persons who commit acts of grave sexual abuse on boys with their consent, it would have resulted in arousing a hornets’ nest. It is done on the pretext of strengthening the law against sexual abuse of boys. In their view, at present rape of boys is a common form of sexual violence, without effective penalties; by amending S. 363 of Penal Code bringing in men and boys also into the category of victims of rape, legal protection for men and boys can be strengthened against sexual violence.
Instead of strengthening legal protection for men and boys against sexual violence, this amendment will result in opening doors wider for male sexual abuse of male children. Youthful offenders belonging to the age group of 18 – 22 years can have sexual relations with boys under the age of 16 years with their consent obtained through various means without fear of being indicted in the High Court and languishing in jail. They can get away with a suspended sentence from the Magistrate’s Court.
The other objective is to destroy the historical social base of our society through implementing a policy of gender neutrality in all spheres. The main purpose of amending S. 363 of Penal Code is not facilitating legal protection for men and boys from sexual violence, but neutralizing gender in terms of the law of rape. In the Penal Code amendments already brought, S. 25 the Penal Code has been amended by substituting the word ‘spouse’ for the word ‘wife’. There is no need or justification for any of these amendments, other than gradually paving the way for legal reforms allowing same-sex marriages, giving effect to the policies that the previous government failed to bring forward though they much desired, in the guise of making provision for gender neutrality.
Another thing one cannot understand is why the Minister and his legal advisors have not addressed the need to amend the phrase shown below in italics in paragraph (e) of S. 363 of the Penal Code:
S. 363. A man commits rape when he has sexual intercourse with a woman under circumstances falling under one of the following descriptions:
(e) with or without her consent when she is under sixteen years of age, unless the woman is his wife who is over twelve years of age and is not judicially separated from the man.
This provision allows people belonging to one community to commit sexual abuse of children by marrying girls of 12 years of age and having sexual intercourse with them in total violation of their rights as children. This goes against the proclaimed policy of the government of ‘one country, one law’.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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