EU to suspend Sri Lanka trading privileges over rights
(EU Business) EU nations have decided to suspend Sri Lanka's preferential trade status because of the island's human rights record and will make the formal move later this month, officials said Friday.
"European ambassadors have taken the decision. The EU Commission's investigation showed Sri Lanka has not demonstrated that it has taken the steps that would allow it to retain or regain the GSP+ status," a European diplomat said.
The European Union's Generalised System of Preferences Plus (GPS+) scheme gives 16 poor nations preferential access to the trading bloc in return for following strict commitments on a wide variety of social and rights issues.
However the suspension would not come into effect until six months later.
The decision to suspend the trade privileges was taken last week and is set to be endorsed by European finance ministers when they meet in Brussels on February 16, the diplomat said.
This is in part to allow manufacturers and traders to adjust to the new rules, but it also gives Colombo a fair opportunity to get the decision reversed.
"We will look to work with Sri Lanka to identify concerted steps and actions which could help us to plot the course together that would enable Sri Lanka to regain GS+" the diplomat said
Sri Lanka's hawkish government has faced almost constant criticism over the past several years because of the way it has conducted a war against Tamil Tiger rebels.
Government forces have been accused of a host of rights violations including the indiscriminate killing of thousands of Tamil civilians, the murder of aid workers and the execution surrendering rebels.
The EU probe identified shortcomings in respect of three UN human rights conventions -- the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention against Torture and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Sri Lanka's ambassador to the EU said he hoped the formal decision would not be taken, arguing the country had changed for the better since the investigation was carried out.
Sri Lanka ended a decades-old internal conflict with Tamil Tiger rebels last May, and last month held a bitterly contested presidential election.
An EU official explained that the implementation of the suspension of the trade deal could be stopped within the next six months, but that would require a recommendation from the European Commission and subsequent agreement from the member states.
However it is currently felt that "Sri Lanka has not done enough to address the rights problems and fulfil the requirements for the special trade privileges," she told AFP.
Sri Lanka gains about 150 million dollars annually due to preferential tariffs, according to trade estimates. The island's clothing industry is the main beneficiary, using the tax breaks to sell to high street retailers in Europe.
Sri Lankan ambassador to the EU Ravinatha Aryasinha said Colombo "remains hopeful that better sense will prevail upon member countries of the EU who themselves have faced similar situations in their long history and are acutely conscious of the complexity of democracies fighting terrorism."
He said the EU investigation into rights in Sri Lanka was concluded last year before the end of the war against the Tigers, before it was possible to deal with the related problem of displaced people and before the recent elections in Sri Lanka.
"It's like taking the temperature of a patient when he has a fever and then pronouncing him dead ten months later after he has recovered and is doing well," he told AFP.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse on Thursday issued an independence day call for unity and reconciliation after his victory in the bitterly fought election. (AFP)
8 Comments
EU allowed opening LTTE terrorist’s offices in their countries during last 30 years.
EU allowed LTTE to carryout fund raising for terrorist activities against Sinhalese and other Sri Lankan citizens during last 30 years.
EU allowed their nongovernmental organizations to help LTTE terrorists during last 30 years.
EU allowed their media to legitimize LTTE terrorist activities carryout during last 30 years.
EU politicians talk for LTTE terrorists during last 30 years.
EU wanted to save LTTE kills and legitimize their terrorism during last 30 years.
According to the EU, only Tamils are humans but not Sinhalese. Because they never talk about human rights, when LTTE attack Sinhalese or damage Sinhalese properties.
After defeating Terrorists in Sri Lanka, EU wants to use GST as a weapon to topple the democratically elected government.
This is the time for all Sri Lankans to identify the thru friends, enemies and puppets who are coffin for those enemies.
The EU nations should pay special attention to the problems special to Sri Lanka that forced her to the special status.
It is symbolic that the President held the Independence celebration in Kandy this year, the very place where the Kandy ascension treaty was signed in 1815,which was totally ignored shortly afterwards, that led to the local liberation movement, retaliated by the Imperial power with massacres of the indegenous population in Uva and Wellassa and the forced installation of the plantation economy with imported labour and a vastly unevenly educated populace. In the previous century the labour immigration was for Tobacco plantations, and in the 19th and 20th it was for the new cash crops, Tea, Rubber and coconuts.
Today the plantation economy thrives, by selling the products to many parts of the world outside of the EEC and the working population is at ease with the rest. I saw in Centralprovince,Lindula area, guys living inside the plantation may have a secure low income being in the permanent cadre, while the ones outside in the still impoverished villlages, locals have a more precarious living. EU is no longer the main purchaser. One sees today in the richer parts of the EU aresident Tamil population, who harboured the resourceful LTTE funderaisers in big numbers, often getting their refugee status by showing photographs of slain sinhala villagers as their own family folk, weilding political clout and harbouring dreams of turning the clock back to the 19th century. EEC seems to share their sentiments, seeing a chance to entrnch a role as enforcers of world order.
GSP+ provided a base demand for the apparel industry to step into the void of the economy that was battered by the Tsunamy in 2004, on top of the Terrorism funded by the diaspora living in the West.
While the Sri Lankans made great strides to eradicate terrorism, ensure the infrastructure developments in roads ports and airprts, reliability of electricity supplies to ensure the production of the goods West demanded, the withdrawal of the special status appears to the Sri Lankan electorate as a cold and calculated move to appease the defeated terrorist group. Sri Lanka moving closer to the new world order dominated by China ans Iran, may be what EEC would like to see.
.
In 2005 during peace talk period, they banned LTTE and signalled the Srilankan government to start the war against LTTE. Sinhalese were happy and Srilankan Leaders praised EU.
In 2009 they tried to stop the war, Srilankan govt did not listen. In 2010 they take away trade status. Tamils are happy, SL leaders are not happy.
EU is very good at making Tamils and Sinhalese happy one at a time.
:-)
Hello Mr.Aryasinha,
Better sense will prevail upon member countries of the EU?
Did you mean better sense should have prevailed upon Sri Lanka?
Whose temperature are you talking about?
Are you kidding us?
When will they RECALL you to Colombo?
Please encourage the Crown Prince to give as many interviews as possible to the BBC.
Cheers,
Siva.
No doubt the defence secretaries interview with the BBC was the last nail in the coffin. Being a US citizen he wouldnt care two hoots what happens to us.
EU nations have done the correct thing. Mere words are not enough. Resolving actions are necessary.Without media freedom a country can't progress.
After six months (this one line news will be reported)
"European Union decides to extend the dead line for another six month."
How many time, We have red this. Yeh in the absence on VP, somebody has to say something to feed the news hungry people.
Does MR worry about these stories. NO, privately, he might have been assured by USA, UK (and our good friend Erik) something of such will never happen. we can not link the commerce with politics. we can not punish common man for political masters' mistakes. we can not distroy a countries economy. etc etc.
do not worry.
Let’s get one thing right. If we had danced according to the tune of the EU-Nations, we surely would have got an extension of the GSP+ and Prbhakaran will still be alive and our soldiers will be still be dying and we will continue to be still spending Billions of dollars for many years to come.
Secondly, it was this very Ranil, Mangala, Dr.JJ who were shouting “human right violations” from the roof tops of the European capitals, while the war reached it’s zenith and the LTTE was about to be destroyed. Fonseka’s “white flag affair” also did not help the country, as it came from the very mouth of the General who conducted the war at that time. Funny that today all these actors are in one camp.
So if we are to loose the GSP, all those innocent factory girls should go to those gentleman's residents and ask for a living.
Incidently, the current military loan of 300 million granted by Russia is for the sole purpose of the maintannace of military hardware such as fixed wing aircraft, multi barrel guns, hand fired guns and the like, bought ONLY from Russia and not to aqquire new weapenory. Any army on earth has to bear such recurring costs for maintanance