Articles that could be detrimental to relations between Rwanda and Sri Lanka

I write with reference to two articles published in the Arts section of the Sunday Times Plus on December 4 2016 and January 15. The two articles your paper published were of author Anjan Sundaram who participated in the Galle Literary Festival last week.

He is the author of the book “Bad News; Last Journalists in a Dictatorship” which is about Rwanda and ‘Stinger’ which is about the Congo. The book “Bad News” is out of context with many inaccuracies and misrepresentations. There are plenty of journalists still operating in Rwanda which is still undergoing a healing process after the terrible genocide against the Tutsi’s in 1994. He spoke at this Literary Festival in Galle on January 13 and when I confronted him at the question and answer session with facts and figures, he had nothing tangible to say about his writings accusing the President of Rwanda of being a dictator.

Currently there are about 35 Rwandan students in Sri Lanka at the KDU and Command & Staff College (Bathalanda) and several MOU’s have been signed between the Governments of Rwanda (GOR) and Sri Lanka. There are also many Sri Lankans who are working in Rwanda at the moment with no problems whatsoever. I too worked in Rwanda for 20 years and still visit as a consultant at least three times a year.

As the Honorary Consul for the Republic of Rwanda in Sri Lanka I have an obligation to diffuse the tensions that could be caused between the GOR and the Government of Sri Lanka and would like to respond to the detrimental comments carried in your newspaper. I believe that this is only fair by your readers. JCE Alles Honorary Consul for the Republic of Rwanda in Sir Lanka