Features
BARCELONA TO SOFIA IN FROZEN TRAINS
CONFESSIONS OF A GLOBAL GYPSY
By Dr. Chandana (Chandi) Jayawardena DPhil
President – Chandi J. Associates Inc. Consulting, Canada
Founder & Administrator – Global Hospitality Forum
chandij@sympatico.ca
EUROPE AT minus 41 °C
After two weeks of virtually non-stop travelling by train and ship across Wales, Ireland, France, Portugal, Morocco, and Spain in the midst of a brutal winter, we had to suddenly change our plans. My wife had taken ill and was shivering with a very high fever as we reached Barcelona. We took a break and stayed in Barcelona for four days until she was fit to travel again.
The lady who owned the guest house the middle of Barcelona that we stayed in treated us very well. Her guest house was rustic and had no heating. We had to share the bathroom with guests in two other rooms, but her hospitality was genuine. She looked after my wife, treating her like a daughter. She hardly spoke any English, but was able to convince us to remain at her house until my wife fully recovered. I temporally ceased to be an adventurous tourist and stayed with my wife. I went out occasionally only to buy some medicine and snacks.
For the first time in two weeks, I found some English newspapers to read. I was shocked to read that the current winter (1984/85) was one of the worse European winters of all time. The newspapers also reported that over 300 Europeans had died due to the extremely cold weather.
This phase was the start of a prolonged cold wave in Europe with extremely low temperatures, the lowest on record. Our planned next stop was in the South of France. On that day (on January 17, 1985) in France, the coldest ever temperature of -41 °C was recorded. Across Europe, schools and airports were shut down for several days.
When the owner of the guest house heard that we planned to reach five Eastern European countries – Yugoslavia (today, six different countries), Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Czechoslovakia (today, two different countries), within the next few days, she thought we were insane! She tried hard to convince us to change our mind, but failed. As soon as my wife was feeling a little better, we re-commenced our winter adventure.
After Spain our plan was to do a few stops in the South of France and then travel right across Northern Italy with minimum stops to reach Venice. As we lived in Italy for two months in 1982, when I was awarded an ILO/UN fellowship, we had covered key tourist attractions in Turin, Florence, Rome, Vatican City and Genova. During the current visit to Italy, we decided to focus only on Venice, a city we had not visited before.
During my wife’s illness in Spain which delayed us by four days, I re-did our travel plan for the next leg of the trip. We were concerned that our good friends in Austria had taken one week’s leave to host us. Therefore, after Venice, we had to reach Vienna within a week after quick visits to five capital cities in the Eastern block – Belgrade, Sofia, Bucharest, Budapest and Prague.
We used the same itinerary, but decided to move faster with fewer stops. Passing through with a quick stops in the railway stations in a few cities, was our new plan. The train travel provided us with a good feel of places we passed through. Eurail passes provided flexibility whenever we were compelled to change plans.
BACK TO FRANCE
Within two and half hours of leaving Barcelona, our train passed two border cities: Portbou on the Spanish side and Cerbére on the French side. Then we passed a couple of more snow-covered smaller French cities, Narbonne and Nîmes, before reaching our next quick stop – Marseilles.
Marseilles, a port city in Southern France, has been a crossroad of immigration and trade since its founding by the Greeks around 600 BC. It is the oldest city in France as well as one of Europe’s oldest continuously inhabited settlements. It is the third most populated city in France, after those of Paris and Lyon. In 1985, it had around 1.4 million residents. My previous knowledge of Marseilles was limited to some dramatic scenes filmed there for ‘The French Connection’, the Academy Award winning Best Picture of 1971.
Having been an important trading port since ancient times, Marseilles experienced a considerable commercial boom during the colonial period and especially during the 19th century, becoming a prosperous industrial and trading city. At its heart is the Vieux-Port (Old Port), where fishmongers sell their catch along the boat-lined quay. Unfortunately, in the middle of the winter, we did not see any fishmongers.
As an Executive Chef in the mid-1970s, once a week for my seafood buffets in Sri Lanka, I prepared and served bouillabaisse (well, my version of it!) the famous traditional Provençal fish stew originating in Marseilles. Although the Winter was not the best time for it, I was determined to try the authentic Bouillabaisse Marseillaise. It was lighter and different from my preparation. “Well, lost in translation!” I thought to myself enjoying a whole bowl with French bread and garlic butter in a small café. It was a perfect warm food for a cold day.
A dish similar to bouillabaisse also appears in Roman mythology: it is the soup that Venus fed to Vulcan. However, as the legend has it, bouillabaisse was created by Marseilles fishermen who wanted to make a meal in the boat during an overnight fishing expedition or when they returned to port. Rather than using the more expensive fish, they cooked the common rockfish and shellfish that they hauled in their nets and lines, usually fish too bony to serve in restaurants. These were cooked in a cauldron of water on a wood fire and seasoned with garlic and fennel. Tomatoes were added to the recipe in the 17th century, after their introduction from the Americas.
The name bouillabaisse comes from the method of the preparation—the ingredients are not added all at once. The broth is first boiled (bolh) then the different kinds of fish are added one by one, and each time the broth comes to a boil, the heat is lowered (abaissa).
When in the 19th century, as Marseilles became more prosperous, restaurants and hotels began to serve bouillabaisse to upper class patrons. The recipe of bouillabaisse became more refined, with the substitution of fish stock for boiling water and the addition of saffron. Bouillabaisse spread from Marseilles to Paris, and then gradually around the world adapted to local ingredients and tastes. When I cooked bouillabaisse in 1970s, as saffron was not available in Sri Lanka, I substituted with a pinch of turmeric but it never tasted the same.
We were happy to pass through Cannes, the well-known resort town on the French Riviera, famed for its highly respected international film festival. Its Boulevard de la Croisette, curving along the coast, is lined with sandy beaches, upmarket boutiques and palatial hotels. It snows only occasionally in Cannes, and It was our turn get that rare chance to see it. After 30 more minutes of travelling, we passed Nice. Once again, the trains were virtually frozen with no running water on tap and toilets.
Due to our changed plans, another city we had to quickly pass through was Nice on the French Riviera. Founded by the Greeks and later a retreat for 19th century European elite, the city has also long attracted artists. Former resident and famous French artist Henri Émile Benoît Matisse is honoured with a career-spanning collection of paintings at Musée Matisse. As a visual artist I was keen to visit it, but the time was not on our side. Some of the services in Nice were not available. The biggest challenge we faced was that all facilities to change money were closed. We only had four French Francs remaining and that was sufficient to get a bottle of water and pay coin-operated toilets.
The Principality of Monaco, is a small (with around 30,000 residents) sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera. With an area of only 2.1 sq. kms, it is the second-smallest sovereign state in the world after the Vatican City. It did not appear to be like anything we have seen in movies and postcards. During our visit it looked like a winter wonderland. As we were rushing, we also had to forget about visiting the famous Monte Carlo Casino. It is widely recognised as one of the most expensive and wealthiest places in the world very close to the Italian border.
ITALY
We arrived at the Italian border around mid-night. We passed a small border town, Ventimiglia on the Gulf of Genoa, an area we knew. Due to our memorable two-month stay in Italy, three years prior, we felt comfortable in Italy. My wife still remembered a few words of Italian she learnt at the ILO Turin Centre when we lived there. She chatted with a Sicilian family in our night compartment. As the seats were adjustable as beds, after passport checks were over we managed to get a few hours sleep in the train. We passed a few beautiful Italian cities, Milan, Brescia and Verona, but unfortunately, we did not have much free time to do lengthy visits as our focus was to spend a full day in Venice.
Arriving in Venice was simply magical. We loved everything about this beautiful city with no new buildings, no motor vehicles, and no large streets. We arrived there before mid-day and were happy to change money and feel comfortable. After a long gondola ride, we had some of the best Italian food we tasted in three years in a small, but well-heated wayside restaurant. After that we took a taxi boat to Point di Rialto, and walked to Piazza San Marco, often known in English as St. Mark’s Square, the principal public square of Venice. Locals called it la Piazza.
As it was freezing, we covered ourselves with layers of clothing to enjoy a visit without missing any ‘must do stuff’ in Venice. We had some of our Italian favourites bringing us the happy memories of our Turin days – Succhi di Frutta, Gelato (although not the ideal weather for it) and Cappuccino. I was happy to note that the barista used exactly a third each espresso, steamed milk, and foam for the preparation.
We then proceed on a three-hour train journey to reach an interesting city which had changed hands a few times during the two World Wars – Trieste. It is a beautiful old port city, which occupies a thin strip of land between the Adriatic coast and Slovenia’s border on the limestone-dominated Karst Plateau. Italian, Austro-Hungarian and Slovenian influences are all evident in its layout, which encompasses a medieval old city and a neoclassical Austrian quarter. Eventually, in 1954 most parts of the city of Trieste joined Italy, whereas four adjoining villages became part of Yugoslavia.
YUGOSLAVIA
It was midnight when we passed a small border town, Villa Opicina, to reach the Italy- Yugoslavia border. Some passengers were angry as the taps and toilets were frozen. We felt like the poor passengers in the train scene during the winter in Siberia in the movie, ‘Doctor Zhivago’. The train was very crowded, noisy, and at times somewhat unruly until the Yugoslavian officials arrived to check visas.
We passed Ljubljana (today, Slovenia’s capital and largest city) around 1:00 am and reached Zagreb (now Croatia’s capital and largest city) around 4:00 am. Eventually we reached Belgrade (Serbia’s capital and largest city today), then the capital city of Yugoslavia, around 10:00 am. We had hardly slept, and were very tired.
As we got down from the train in the Yugoslavian capital, we felt that the English translation of the word ‘Belgrade’ as ‘White City’ or ‘White Fortress’ was totally justified. The city is named for its fortress, which was built on a white ridge that has been of great strategic importance throughout history. Originally the city walls were plastered white. The day we arrived there (January 20, 1985) a winter storm too was arriving, and the city was already covered with snow. We felt the ‘Brass Monkey weather’ right in our gut.
BARCELONA TO SOFIA IN
Belgrade is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Europe and the world. It is also one of the most important prehistoric cultures of Europe. The Vinča culture evolved within the Belgrade area in the sixth millennium BC. It was conquered by the Romans under the reign of Augustus Caesar, and awarded Roman city rights in the mid-second century. In a fatally strategic position, the city has been battled over 100 wars. After many historic invasions by Turks, Austrians, Hungarians etc. over the centuries, in the period after the Serbian Revolution, Belgrade again was named the capital of Serbia in 1841. Belgrade became the capital of Yugoslavia from its creation in 1918 (to the dissolution of Yugoslavia in 2006).
In 1985, there were hardly any tourists from western countries in this city of 1.5 million out of the total national population of 22 million. Residents we met in dark and smoke-filled coffee shops all looked serious. We missed the happy laughter and friendly smiles we experienced in Venice the previous day. Uncertainty of the inclement weather may have been a reason for this.
People who worked in information counters and shops were not so friendly and did not speak any English. However, we were surprised to notice that Hollywood movies (with sub-titles) such as ‘Ghostbusters’ and TV soap operas such as ‘Dynasty’ had some following. As we arrived on a Sunday, all museums and left luggage facilities were closed. We walked around the historic part of the city with our bags. As we had couple of hours free before our next train, we decided to see a famous river.
The Danube
We did a tour around the banks of the Danube, a great river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories, or forming a border. The river was not blue as implied in the famous 1867 waltz by the Austrian composer Johann Strauss II. “We should come back during the summer to see it blue,” I jokingly told my wife.
Originating in Germany, the Danube flows south-east for 2,850 km. We were happy to experience the Danube, the second-longest river in Europe, second in length only to the Volga in Russia. It passes through, or borders on, Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Romania, Bulgaria, and USSR (today, Ukraine) before draining into the Black Sea. Its drainage basin extends into nine more countries. During this trip we were visiting the four largest cities on the river: Vienna, Budapest, Belgrade and Bratislava. The Danube passes through many capital cities, more than any other river in the world.
BULGARIA
After meeting a friendly Bulgarian family who spoke a little English, our nine-hour train ride between Belgrade and Sofia became more pleasant. Belgrade to Sofia is
a fascinating ride across the Balkans on a route taken by the famous Orient Express until 1977. It involved two trains with a change in a smaller city, Nis. When we reached Sofia, our new Bulgarian friends dropped us at the city centre in the taxi they rented. We were very tired and needed a good night sleep before undertaking any more tours. Unfortunately, all small hotels were full. Eventually we found a room in a larger hotel – Novotel Europa, but could not afford the $85 US they demanded for one night. That was just the beginning of a series of challenges and problems that awaited us in the Eastern Europe.
Will continue in next week’s article:
“Rejected from Romania, back to Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Austria”
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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