“I very much hope that Rajapksha seizes that opportunity” – Cameron

British Prime Minister, David Cameron said, he made it clear to President Mahinda Rajapaksa that he now has a real opportunity, through ‘magnanimity and reform,’ to build a successful, inclusive and prosperous future for Sri Lanka by working in partnership with the newly elected Chief Minister of the Northern Province.

 Cameron on Monday (18) said in the House of Commons…

.”I met the new provincial Chief Minister from the Tamil National Alliance, who was elected in a vote that happened only because of the spotlight of the Commonwealth meeting.”

He further stated that no one wants to return to the days of ‘the Tamil Tigers and the disgusting and brutal things they did’ and that Britain should show ‘proper respect’ for the fact that Sri Lanka suffered almost three decades of conflict and that ‘recovery and reconciliation take time.’
“But I made it clear to President Rajapaksa that he now has a real opportunity, through magnanimity and reform, to build a successful, inclusive and prosperous future for his country, working in partnership with the newly elected Chief Minister of the Northern Province,” Cameron said.

 “I very much hope that he seizes that opportunity.”
 
The British premier said he had a choice to stay away from the Commonwealth and allow President Rajapaksa to set the agenda he wanted, or to go and shape the agenda “by advancing our interests with our Commonwealth partners and shining a spotlight on the international concerns about Sri Lanka.”
“I chose to go and stand up for our values and to do all I could to advance them. I believe that was the right decision for Sri Lanka, for the Commonwealth and for Britain,” he said.
 
Bitter exchanges erupted in the UK Parliament when British Prime Minister David Cameron delivered a statement on his attendance at the Commonwealth Summit in Sri Lanka.

In a highly personal attack on the Labour Leader, Ed Miliband, who had urged the Prime Minister to join others and boycott the event, Cameron accused him of not knowing what he was talking about.
Cameron had made a good fist of explaining why it had been better to engage with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa and ‘shine the spotlight’ on the issue.

“When I met with President Rajapaksa, I pressed for credible, transparent and independent investigations into alleged war crimes. And I made clear to him that if these investigations are not begun properly by March then I will use our position on the UN Human Rights Council, to work with the UN Human Rights Commissioner and call for an international inquiry,” he said.

Later, the Prime Minister’s spokesman confirmed that, in his role, Rajapaksa would be attending the Commonwealth games in Scotland next year.

“We will take the same approach as we have towards the Commonwealth Summit, which is, that international events offer the opportunity to shine the spotlight,” he said
CT