UNITED STATE WARNS THE IMPEACHMENT OF CJ UNDERMINES LANKA’S ABILITY TO GET INVESTMENTS
By Walter Jayawardhana
Expressing that there are serious questions about the health and future of Sri Lanka’s democracy over the impeachment of Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayaka the United States warned that any action that undermines an independent judiciary would impact on Sri Lanka’s ability to attract foreign investment.
Addressing the media during US State Department’s daily news briefing in Washington spokesperson Victoria Nuland reiterated the country’s concern over the impeachment and said it also raises serious questions about the separation of powers.
Addressing the media, during the State Department’s daily news Briefing in Washington, spokesperson Victoria Nuland further said, “Well, we are deeply concerned about the impeachment of Sri Lankan Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake. The impeachment proceedings against her were conducted, as you know, in defiance of the Supreme Court order. And from our perspective, this impeachment raises serious questions about the separation of powers in Sri Lanka, which is a fundamental tenet of a healthy democracy.
Throughout these proceedings, we’ve repeatedly conveyed to the Government of Sri Lanka our concern that there was a lack of due process, and we’ve also made very clear our view that actions undermining an independent judiciary would impact on Sri Lanka’s ability to attract foreign investment.”
She also said the United Kingdom, Canada, the European Union, and the United Nations have all issued statements expressing strong concerns about this process.
“We think that there are serious questions about the health and future of Sri Lanka’s democracy and that they really need to roll up their sleeves and work on it,” Ms. Nuland added.
QUESTION: Now that the Sri Lankan chief justice has been removed by the President following her impeachment, what do you have to say now on this?
MS. NULAND: Well, we are deeply concerned about the impeachment of Sri Lankan Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake. The impeachment proceedings against her were conducted, as you know, in defiance of the Supreme Court order. And from our perspective, this impeachment raises serious questions about the separation of powers in Sri Lanka, which is a fundamental tenet of a healthy democracy. Throughout these proceedings, we’ve repeatedly conveyed to the Government of Sri Lanka our concern that there was a lack of due process, and we’ve also made very clear our view that actions undermining an independent judiciary would impact on Sri Lanka’s ability to attract foreign investment.
I would also note that we weren’t alone in our concern. The United Kingdom, Canada, the European Union, and the United Nations have all issued statements expressing strong concerns about this process.
QUESTION: Do you believe, by such measures, you think Sri Lanka is moving towards an authoritarian regime kind of thing?
MS. NULAND: Look, we think that there are serious questions about the health and future of Sri Lanka’s democracy and that they really need to roll up their sleeves and work on it.
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Expressing that there are serious questions about the health and future of Sri Lanka’s democracy over the impeachment of Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayaka the United States warned that any action that undermines an independent judiciary would impact on Sri Lanka’s ability to attract foreign investment.
The Sri Lankan Government will not care two hoots about these comments. They will only take these comments as a big joke. So the million doller question is what could you all do to put Sri Lanka’s Democracy, justice and fair play on the correct path? Over to you US State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland.
Quite right Anony. Noriega, Saddam, Quaddafi, …….. and the list goes on. They must have have forgotton who were in the bed with these despots when it suit to their “interests”, but we haven’t.
Victoria, before you talk about the the health and future of Sri Lanka, see what you could to the health and future of Afghanistan, Irak, Libya and now Syria who are still in the operating theatre. More patients are still in the waiting room.
Victoria, keep your aid yourself. We don’t need it. You will need it pretty soon when the debt ceiling is reached; you will need the money to pay your bills.
We do not have any bills to pay, Victoria. We are OK society; we can look afetr ourselves.
When we want a white elephant project, we can get Chinese loans at double the market interest. Who cares, it is the future generations who will pay for these dead harbours and abandoned international airports. When the Chinese Contractors come to build these white elephants, they give us Komis and our leaders are rich.
So Victoria, we don’t need your aid. We will live on double digit interest rate loans and future generations will pay by working as laborers and housemaids in Saudi.
Who wants you and your gun culture and money stolen from Iraq and Afghanistan. In fact our mothers and sisters are now even finding jobs in Afghanistan as maids and servants. Thank you for creating democracy there.
USA is the biggest human rights violator and continues on path of war crimes with UN totally powerless to stop it, as USA is a big power. Anyway, investors do not need advice from US govt on where to invest. They will invest in countries who are performing well economically. As for USA it is on a downward slope economically, heading for deep recession and crisis. This will have severe impact on other countries round the globe as the dollar plunges in value.
Oh Nicholas,
The whole world will be thrown into a recession by the economic downturn in the US.
But not in Sri Lanka, Nicholas. We have this hairy brained boss at the Central Bank. The brilliant manipulator of statistics to show the world of double digit growth in SL’s GDP.
The other guy who got a big job a couple of days ago, went to the UN and stated bravely that he knew the missing journalist was in an overseas land enjoying life. Back at home, a junior Magistrate thre egg on the guy’s face and ask where the journalist was.
We have a set of leaders Nicholas, who are (what shall i say) GREAT PRETENDERS.
A word of prayer for them Nicholas.
US is in economic crisis and they are looking for every excuse to cut costs. One way of cutting costs is to cut foreign aid. So what they do is to look around and pick here and there few political problems in the world (there are plenty) and then can have a bit of a threatening talk and then can say “if you don’t listen we cut our foreign aid to you”. Then they cut it. That is a clever plot to deceive the uninformed poor public in those countries. The prime target is to cut costs.
Victoria, keep your aid carefully stuffed inside your stinky side. We do not sell our country for few dollars. No foreigners invested in our country when it was self-sufficient and was the lucky “pearl” in the past. We lost all that glory only after the western goons came in. Therefore we do not need you now.