Features
Jonathan Forbes and the ‘Discovery’ of Sigiriya
By Avishka Mario Senewiratne
‘Sigiri is the only example in Ceylon of those solitary activities, which form so remarkable a feature in the table-land of the dakka…“– Sir James Emerson Tennent
Surrounded by the glorious forestry, guarded by majestic ramparts, nourished by enchanting tanks and ponds, and illuminated by those picturesque frescoes, the Lion Rock: Sigiriya is certainly a grand delight in this palm-fringed isle. Its histories and mysteries are vast. For nearly 700 years this one-time capital of ancient Ceylon, which housed the fortress of the infamous King Kasyapa I, was mostly lost and forgotten by those in this country. What lingered of Sigiriya were tales from the ancient chronicle Cûḷavaṃsa (sequel of the Mahâvaṃsa) and other contemporary documents. Though Sigiriya is hardly discussed after the Anuradhapura period, villagers lived around the rock, continuing their normal lives.
It is difficult to state whether the Kings of the that period all the way up to Sri Wickrema Râjasinghe associated with the Lion Rock. The older occupants of Ceylon’s maritime region, the Portuguese and Dutch, also had no idea of Sigiriya. However, things began to change with the British occupation of the whole of Ceylon in 1815.
One such was the translation of the ancient chronicles of Ceylon by George Turnour of the Ceylon Civil Service. The famous story surrounding Kasyapa the patricide, losing the favour of his people in Anuradhapura and locating a new fortress in Sigiriya has been well recorded in the annals of this country. However, when it was first recorded in English, the very mention of Sigiriya aroused the curiosity of the new rulers of this ancient country. Many pursued the idea of finding the long-lost Sigiriya.
Before we dip into its discovery, it is essential to know some historic records of Sigiriya as recorded in the sources of the days of yore. According to P. E. P. Deraniyagala, Spolia Zeylanica, Volume 26, part 1, in 266 B.C. King Devânampiya Tissa visited the rock and named it ‘Sihigiri’. In 41 B.C., King Kuda Tissa built a rampart, a Maha Vihara and a meditation house in Sigiriya.
His son, King Bhathikabaya erected a large alms-house for priests in 19 B. C. Thereafter, King Mahadathika Mahanaga, brother of the former, built a dagaba (Ambuva) and decked the rock with flowers. This was in 9 A. D. After this record, Sigiriya is not mentioned for the next 450 years until the time of King Kasyapa, whose story is well known.
Some scholars such as Paranavitana have contested these records claiming they are enigmatic. Thus, it is hard to say which is accurate. After Kasyapa, Sigiriya was ordered to be a monastery by King Moggalana I. The next mention of Sigiriya is with the infamous beheading of King Sanghatissa and his son on Sigiriya. This of course is clearly mentioned in the old chronicles. The last record of Sigiriya was when King Parâkramabâhu the Great restored Sigiriya in the 12th century. This too has been controversial and some have said such an occurrence never happened.
However, it is clear that no such reference was made to Sigiriya until the British occupation of Ceylon. One soldier who came to Ceylon, Major Jonathan Forbes of the 78th Highlanders, befriended George Turnour and learnt a great deal of the country’s history. Forbes arrived in Ceylon in 1826. Apart from his military work, he was a civil servant, serving in the capacities of Assistant Agent and District Judge of Matale in the Kandyan Province. Forbes was well-versed in English literature and had a knack for writing. His book, Eleven Years in Ceylon: comprising sketches of the Field sports and Natural history of that Colony and an account of its History and Antiquities published in 1840 in two volumes, is one of the best books on Ceylon.
Upon learning of Sigiriya and its significance and the fact that no one knew where it was located, Forbes executed a quest to find it. None of the older writers of Ceylon such as Knox, Capt. Percival, Rev. Cordiner, Marshall or Dr. Davy had mentioned of Sigiriya. Knowing this gap, Forbes was more determined to find it. Four years after his coming to Ceylon in 1831 the most endearing day of his life dawned.
Forbes and two of his friends along with a group of other friends were returning from Polonnaruwa via Minneriya and Paecolom and decided that they must search for the Lion Rock. After riding four miles from Paecolom, Forbes observed what he wished. When the morning mist cleared away, he observed a piece of water reflecting the brushwood-covered summit of Sigiriya on its unruffled surface. In his book, Forbes states the following:
“From the spot where we halted, I could distinguish massive stone walls appearing through the trees near the base of the rock, and now felt convinced that this was the very place I was anxious to discover.” (Forbes, 1840, Vol. II, p. 2)
Thereby, Jonathan Forbes became the first Britisher to discover Sigiriya. Though Forbes does not mention the full names of those with him, he simply states them as ‘Capt. H and Mr B’. His first observation of the rock was the lower parts of it. He states that many separated rocks had been joined by massive walls of stone. This supported the platform of various sizes and unequal heights. Overcoming the ramparts, Forbes arrived at the foot of the prominent cliff. From here Forbes saw the gallery (mirror wall) clinging to the wall. These were accessible through two elevated terraces. Here is how he described them:
“These remains were very different from anything I had expected to discover; not merely from their remarkable position and construction, but as being the only extensive fragments of the ancient capitals of Ceylon which are neither shrouded by vegetation nor overshadowed by the forest.” (Vol. II, p. 9)
Scrambling with the shrubs across the partial footsteps, they arrived at the gallery and saw that it had been grooved into rocks where it was not perpendicular, serving as a foundation of a parapet wall. Forbes noticed that the mirror wall ran across about 100 yards and was perfectly preserved due to the heat. He noticed water trickling down the overhanging rock, confirming that tanks existed up the summit of the fortress as stated in the ancient chronicles. Forbes could not go to the lower level of the gallery as he felt giddy from the heat.
However, his friends were able to scroll through the broken rocks and remains of buildings. Within a few moments, they returned back safely knowing that proceeding beyond that point was impossible. Jonathan Forbes had found Sigiriya by chance and did not expect it to happen like what was stated above. Thus, he had limited supplies and servants to fully investigate. This prompted him to abandon the quest reluctantly.
However, he returned for the second time in 1833 with enough material. On this occasion, he toured the area beyond the rock and traced a stone wall and wet ditch, with which it was surrounded. Though he attempted to reach the summit of Sigiriya he failed to do so knowing the dilapidated state of the steps to the top. Furthermore, the natives discouraged Forbes to do the same as they were terrified of various demons, they perceived to be on top of the rock! Touring the south of Sigiriya he discovered the Sigiriya tank and other ramparts. The natives also believed that leopards and other wild animals roamed around the rock.
Forbes had befriended the incumbent priest of the Pindurangala rock, which was less than a mile away from Sigiriya. The priest had furnished him with various copies of inscriptions related to Sigiriya. He discovered the fragments of the foundation of the original dagaba. Though, Forbes did not summit the rock, or see the frescoes or even the lion’s paw entrance, his discovery of the long-lost Sigiriya is historically significant.
Later in 1848, the Colonial Secretary, Sir Emerson Tennent along with one of his sketch draftsmen, Andrew Nichols visited and illustrated an interesting account of the rock in the book Ceylon published later in 1859. It was only in 1853 that two young members of the Ceylon Civil Service, A. Y. Adams and J. Bailey summited the rock for the first time. They had taken a different route, not taken by Forbes with the help of some brave natives and rope ladders.
Later scholars such as T. W. Rhys Davids, the popular Pali expert and T. H. Blakesley of the Public Works Department made important headway on Sigiriya in 1875/76 and published them in the Royal Asiatic Journal of Great Britain. The proper archaeological excavation of Sigiriya occurred with H. C. P. Bell in the 1890s.
Jonathan Forbes left Ceylon after a happy 11 years in 1837. It is said that he retired from the Army after 34 years with the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel. Born in Aberdeenshire, Scotland on February 21, 1798, Jonathan Forbes-Leslie was the seventh and youngest child of John Forbes and Anne Gregory. Little is known of his childhood. He married Margaret Urquhart in 1825. They were blessed with two daughters. The Forbes family lived in Ceylon for the majority of his 11 years. They were the only European settlers in the Matale district and the first to attempt the coffee plantation in Matale.
Forbes visited and lived in India for a short time in 1842. In his later writings he claims that “I have ceased, since 1841, to have any interest in Ceylon, except in the welfare of its people, and in the general prosperity of the colony.
” (Forbes, 1850). In 1850, he wrote a pamphlet of 58 pages titled Recent Disturbances and Military Distributions. This was an analysis of the 1848 Rebellion in Ceylon where he criticized the regime of Viscount Torrington. Forbes lived a long life and died on December 23, 1877, at the age of 79. His legacy has been preserved with his brilliant two-volume book on Ceylon which runs to xii+423 and vii+356 pages along with frontispieces and eleven textual illustrations.
When it came out in 1840, the book was reviewed by many leading journals and broadsheets. Its extremely positive reviews made it a best seller and the book was out of print by the end of the year, prompting the publisher R. Bentley to print a second edition in 1841. Commenting on the first edition, Rhys Davids says that it is a “Very rare book” in 1875. In 2023, having this edition is certainly a rare feat for not only a collector but also for libraries.
References
Blakeley, T. H., (1876), ‘The ruins of Sigiriya in Ceylon’, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain, Volume VII, pp. 53-61.
Forbes, J., (1840), Eleven Years in Ceylon: comprising sketches of the Field sports and Natural history of that Colony and an account of its History and Antiquities, 2 Volumes, Richard Bentley, London.
Forbes, J., (1850), Recent Disturbances and Military Distributions, London.
Geiger, W., (1953), Cûḷavaṃsa, Being the More Recent Part of Mahavamsa, Pali Text Society.
Goonetilleke, H. A. I., (1970-77), Bibliography of Ceylon, Volumes I-V, Switzerland.
Laurie, A.C., (1896-98), Central Province Gazetteer, 2 Volumes, Government Press, Colombo.
Paranavitana, S., (1956), Sigiri Graffiti, Oxford University Press.
Rhys Davids, T. W., (1875), ‘Sigiri, the Lion Rock, near Pulastipura, Ceylon; And the Thirty-Ninth Chapter of the Mahâvaṃsa’, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain, Volume VIII, pp. 191-220.
Tennent, J. E., (1859), Ceylon: An account of the Island Physical, Historical and Topographical with Notices of its Natural History, Antiquities and Productions, 3rd edition, 2 Volumes, Longman, London.
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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