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HIGH COMMISSIONER JAYASINGHE MEETS LORD MALLOCH BROWN BEFORE HIS IMPORTANT VISIT TO SRI LANKA

By Walter Jayawardhana

Sri Lanka’s New High Commissioner in London Nihal Jayasinghe paid a courtesy call on Rt. Hon. Lord Malloch Brown Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs who is scheduled to visit the Indian Ocean island republic during mid July.

Though a State Minister , Lord Malloch Brown who sits in the British cabinet , during his visit between July 14 and 16 in Colombo is scheduled to see President Mahinda Rajapaksa for some important discussions concerning bilateral relations between the two countries including European Union’s GSP+ concessions to Sri Lankan products like apparel . During the meeting with High Commissioner Jayasinghe Lord Malloch Brown hinted that there won’t be any surprises during the upcoming crucial meeting with the Sri Lankan President.

High Commissioner Jayasinghe during a 30 minute discussion with the deputy foreign minister Malloch Brown said Sri Lanka has fulfilled all its international obligations like ratifying all treaties and implementing them considered as criteria to obtain GSP+ concessions. He said Sri Lanka is having good human rights record and the only shortcoming is some troop excesses against which legal remedies are available. He said the main industry which receives the benefits of GSP+ concessions from the European Union is apparel that earned 300 billion US dollars last year is employing more than 300,000 young women that has given a new earning power to the financially backward rural economy of the country. The congenial environmental facilities, Jayasinghe said, for training and scope were the direct result of initiatives by the apparel sector far beyond imperative legal requirements.

The High Commissioner referred to the opportunity the British official would have during his visit in Sri Lanka to see for himself the rapid development work the government has taken up to improve the lot of the people belonging to all races in the newly liberated Eastern Province of Sri Lanka. “The High Commissioner also noted that high level engagement between the UK & Sri Lanka was a clear manifestation of the close and friendly relations between the two countries”, a spokesman of the High Commission said.

They also discussed further assistance from the UK to expand the teaching of English in rural areas where lack of knowledge of English was a major obstacle for young people.

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