GL rubbishes impeachment issues raised by the West

January 19, 2013,

External Affairs Minister G.L. Peiris has rejected issues over the impeachment of former Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake raised by countries like the USA, Britain and Canada.

"We have the situation in which, for example, the prime minister of one country is specifically calling for the reinstatement of former CJ," Peiris said. "On no basis can one justify that. How can the Prime Minister of one country call for the reinstatement of the CJ in another country? That is almost impertinent."

The minister pointed out that the decision to have the 2013 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting here was taken in 2009 in Trinidad and Tobago and was reaffirmed in Perth in 2011.

"At that meeting, long before the impeachment issue arose, the prime minister of Canada brought up the issue of the 2013 meeting and tried to re-canvass it," Peiris said. "I strongly opposed that move. Fifteen countries took the floor to support me very strongly. It is only one country New Zealand that supported Canada."

Peiris pointed out that Prime Minister Kevin Rudd of Australia who was presiding said that the consensus was very clear and there is no way that this matter can be taken up.

``Further, (this) issue has been raised by Canada long before the impeachment situation arose," Peiris declared.

He made very clear that Sri Lanka continued making arrangements for CHOGM saying there can be no trade off simply in order to secure the attendance of one individual or a few individuals.

"We cannot distort national policy," the minister declared. "We cannot make decisions in this country with an eye who is coming and who is not coming. We cannot make decisions which are really the result of arm twisting."

He said that decisions in this country had to be made in the interest of Sri Lanka and we cannot make decisions in order to induce people to come. That did not mean that we are impervious to criticism. But they cannot be the basis of national decision making.

Peiris also pointed out that this was not new and when the war was going on there was tremendous pressure to stop the war.