No lessons learnt from Dubai snub
It is about time someone counselled the President on matters of protocol when it comes to issues relating to foreign affairs and foreign policy. The President was never really groomed in foreign affairs during his political career. At most, he would attend a conference abroad as a Cabinet Minister, a practice he continues notwithstanding the fact that he is now a Head of State and Head of Government. He is not just a Cabinet Minister now; he is the President of the Republic.
Last week’s photograph in the Political Column of this newspaper, and published elsewhere as well of him standing in the second row at a ministerial level conference in Kenya did not look good. Many years ago, when Prime Minister Dudley Senanayake attended the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in London and was asked to share a limousine with another leader from a small Commonwealth nation-state, he sent a message saying he was returning to Colombo if this was how a PM was treated.
In more recent times, former President J.R. Jayewardene, who generally maintained decorum as Head of State, was accused of having an ‘open house’ for just one Western ambassador and a high commissioner from a neighbouring country. There were Executive Presidents after him, though, who would attend embassy cocktail parties.
This week, the President received a comeback snub from Singapore. Bad enough, the country was facing fearful odds from some Western nations at the UNHRC in Geneva. A mere spokesperson of the city-state responded to the President’s public statement, expressing displeasure with the Prime Minister of Singapore for not following up on a request he had made for the extradition of the Central Bank’s disgraced former Governor , who is refusing to face trial here. The Singaporean spokesperson shot back saying the onus is on the Sri Lankan Government to provide the details required under Singaporean extradition laws. And in counter rebuttal, a spokesman MP for the President says all relevant documents have been given.
Is anybody advising the President on these matters, or is he not listening to advice? Whichever way, the President is getting compromised and looking more and more un-Presidential. In his early days in high office, some lawyers chasing after the alleged millions the former President Mahinda Rajapaksa had banked in Dubai, asked the incumbent President to write to his UAE counterpart for assistance in the matter. The answer was to stick to the legal procedures. Countries like the UAE and Singapore are trading nations, relying heavily on foreign remittances, and do not easily allow an erosion of investor confidence in their economies. In the Singapore case, no lessons were learnt from the rebuff from the UAE.