C’wealth Chief lauds Sri Lanka’s role

Sri Lanka’s contribution to the Commonwealth was lauded by the new Commonwealth Secretary-General, Kamalesh Sharma, ahead of a four-day 7th Commonwealth Youth Ministers’ Conference, which opens in Colombo tomorrow. Some 40 Commonwealth member-states and about 30 ministers are expected to attend. Mr. Sharma will also be present at the meeting.
Welcoming Sri Lanka’s engagement with the Commonwealth, Mr. Sharma said: “I really value Sri Lanka’s contribution. It has been very significant, and as secretary-general I applaud it.”

Mr. Sharma, who had just returned from Africa after his first overseas visit since taking up his new post this month, was speaking exclusively to The Sunday Times on the upcoming meeting and the role of the Commonwealth in the face of new global challenges.

Mr. Sharma, India’s former high commissioner to Britain, spoke about Sri Lanka’s recent engagement and contribution to the Commonwealth, of which Colombo is a senior member. He said that last year Colombo hosted the Commonwealth Finance Ministers’ Conference, and after the meeting that opens tomorrow, Sri Lanka will host later this year the Commonwealth anti-terrorism conference, at foreign ministers’ level. Sri Lanka has also indicated its readiness to hold the next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in 2011.

Mr. Sharma praised Sri Lanka for its commitment to democratic practice, saying it was one of the few nations that had shown the world that a relatively poor country could still be democratic.

The new secretary-general said the 7th Commonwealth Youth Ministers’ Conference was his first Commonwealth conference since assuming office this month. This ministerial-level meeting was important because today’s global challenges could not be confronted and solved without engaging the youth, he said.

“This is no longer an option,” Mr. Sharma said. “Half of the 1.8 billion people of the Commonwealth are under 25 years. These are the generations that will inherit the challenges my generation leaves them. It is they who will see this century out. Our task is to equip them do that. If you want to solve the problems of this century, you have to engage them. After all, they are the people who will live through most of this century.”

He added that a social agenda for the advancement of youth and women was close to his heart. “Both youth and women have waited long for social transformation,” he said.

Referring to the problem of terrorism confronting some Commonwealth countries, Mr. Sharma said he did not believe that killing innocent people could be justified, although there were deep contributory causes for the violence, as suggested in the report of the Commonwealth Commission on Respect and Understanding, chaired by Nobel laureate Amartya Sen.

Asked whether the Commonwealth had a role to play in mediating in conflicts or facilitating peace efforts, Mr. Sharma said the Commonwealth did not “inflict” itself on member-states, but could offer help if invited to do so.During his four-day visit the secretary-general will hold talks on regional and Commonwealth issues with President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, and Opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe.