German Delegation Calls for Political Reconciliation at Eye Level

Enlarge image Head of the German delegation, Mrs. Petra Ernstberger MP, handing over to H.E. President Mahinda Rajapaksa a piece of the Berlin Wall. (© German Embassy Colombo) A German Parliamentary delegation completed it’s five-day stay in Sri Lanka with a series of high-level meetings in Colombo. The delegation, composed of members of the South-Asian Friendship Group of the Bundestag, met with H.E. President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Economic Development and Tourism Minister Basil Rajapaksa and External Affairs Minister G.L. Peiris.

The group also held meetings with the leader of the opposition, Ranil Wickremasinghe, the newly constituted Sri Lanka-Germany Friendship Group in Parliament and members of the civil society.

The discussions focused on the ongoing resettlement and reconstruction process in the North, the political process of reconciliation and the development of bilateral ties between Germany and Sri Lanka.

While the delegation recognised the resettlement progress achieved since the end of the war, it emphasised the need for a political process of reconciliation at eye level. The German experience of reunification had shown that overcoming the mental divide after many years of antagonism was a far greater challenge than putting the economies in sync. Both sides, the Tamil leadership and the government needed to engage in a meaningful dialogue with the aim of addressing the root-causes of thirty years of ethnic strife.

In a meeting with representatives of the civil society, the German parliamentarians received first hand information on the working conditions of Non-Governmental Organisations in Sri Lanka. The delegation underlined its strong conviction that a strong and independent civil society as well as a free press were core to any democracy. Transforming Sri Lanka from a country at war to a society living in peace would not be possible without the active participation of these independent actors.

Previous to its round of meetings in Colombo, the delegation had visited the IDP camp “Menik Farm” and informed itself about the humanitarian situation in the North. The group also visited the hospital of Cheddikulam which the German Red Cross had help refurbish and operate in the last year and met with Major General A.G. Chandrasiri, Governor of the Northern Province. The delegation subsequently travelled to Jaffna by land and held a series of meetings in the town. Among them were a discussion with TNA activists and a visit to the Bishop of Jaffna.