Palestine Solidarity group decries Haifa consulate move

The Sri Lanka Committee for Solidarity with Palestine (SLCSP) has expressed its disappointment over Sri Lanka’s decision to open a consulate in Haifa in northern Israel at a time when Israel is responsible for the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip

Issuing a statement in response to a Foreign Ministry communiqué announcing the opening of the consulate, the SLCSP said, “At a time when diplomatic dissociation is the expected stance from the Sri Lankan government given the country’s record in promoting global justice and freedom from the colonial yoke, it is appalling to note that the present government is further cementing its ties with Israel, a country accused of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. Besides, there is no need for such a consulate in a small state like Israel, with the distance from Tel Aviv, where Sri Lanka has its embassy, to Haifa similar to the distance between Colombo and Kandy or Galle.”

The opening of the Haifa consulate comes amidst President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s moves to raise funds to facilitate food aid to the people in the faminestricken Gaza Strip, where more than 32,000 people have been killed by Israeli forces.

The SLCSP said that as a group that is committed to promoting peace in West Asia, it viewed the government’s move as rewarding Israel, which brazenly violates international law and international humanitarian laws with impunity.

It also called on the government to align itself with the right side of history and refrain from actions that hurt not only the feelings of the world peace constituency but also the battered people in occupied Palestinian territories.