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GSP+ eligibility will entail greater EU oversight
View(s):If granted the GSP+ trade concession, Sri Lanka will be subject to more European Union (EU) monitoring than ever before of its implementation of 27 core conventions on human rights (HR), labour, environmental protection and good governance, it was revealed in the European Parliament (International Trade Committee) last week.
Sri Lanka, which lost the GSP+ in 2010, reapplied for the incentive in July 2016. In January, the European Commission (EC) adopted a “delegated regulation” proposing the restoration of the concession to Sri Lanka. The European Parliament and Council now have till mid-May to decide whether to accept or reject Sri Lanka’s application.
In contrast to other countries benefiting from GSP+, monitoring of Colombo’s implementation will be three-track, a representative for the EC said, during the exchange of views on Sri Lanka’s application on March 21. Unlike previous versions of the GSP+ regulation, the monitoring framework forms a vital part of the new scheme.
“I want to underline one element which is slightly different in Sri Lanka’s case, than in other beneficiaries,” the EC representative said. “This is that, the GSP+ monitoring will be reinforced by two elements. The first is that, we can have, in parallel to the EC’s monitoring of the commitments of Sri Lanka, two (other) tracks.”
One of these is a bilateral HR dialogue with Sri Lanka, which has already commenced. “The second element is the UN track,” he said, referring particularly to discussions at the UN HR Council. The EC has used the reports of the UN High Commissioner for HR, Zeid bin Ra’ad Zeid al-Hussein, as reference, when evaluating Sri Lanka’s eligibility for the GSP+.
The EC’s own monitoring process, the representative said, had evolved from the one applied under the previous GSP+. “It consists of a quite sophisticated way of exchanging information and dialogue with the Govt. through the form of a scorecard, where we list all the shortcomings under the 27 conventions, and we do enter into a discussion, and we expect the Govt. to address them,” he said.
“We are planning at this stage, if all goes well and Sri Lanka gets GSP+, to send a mission to Sri Lanka this year, mostly with a view to prepare a report,” he revealed. “The second report to the Council of the European Parliament has to be ready by the end of the year, and we want Sri Lanka to feature in that report, of course, explaining in more detail, the shortcomings and how the Govt. intends to address them.”
“I would like to simply say, very briefly that, in these situations, it is what you call ‘the direction of travel’ that matters very much–the commitment of the Govt. and the will to reform, and whether the GSP+ can accompany the Govt. in this direction,” he concluded.
Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) raised concerns about Sri Lanka’s delay in repealing the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and replacing it with the proposed Counter Terrorism Act (CTA). They also questioned the slow progress in amending the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC), and pointed to reports of continued torture.
Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Belgium, Luxembourg and the EU, Rodney Perera said that, Sri Lanka’s new Govt. has set the country on a transformative trajectory in terms of HR, good governance, rule of law, reconciliation and economic development.
“As we move forward in this journey, the forces of extremism and regression on both sides of the divide are creating roadblocks for narrow, short-term political gain,” he warned. “The Govt. is, however, committed to continue the reforms by involving all stakeholders of society, and also through a parliamentary oversight process.”
The Ambassador said the draft CTA, to replace the PTA, is expected to be approved by Cabinet later this month. Cabinet has already sanctioned the amendment to the CPC, providing for a suspect to have access to legal counsel. Around 9,000 acres of land has been released to civilians in the North, in a continuing process. And the Govt. is committed to setting up a credible and empowered mechanism for truth-seeking, justice, reparations and guarantees of non-recurrence within the country’s constitutional framework.