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Detractors have their say, Govt. has its way
A debate on the Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was held in Parliament on Tuesday, where several members expressed their views. Following are excerpts of the speeches.
UPFA MP (Joint Opposition Group leader) Dinesh Gunawardena:
The FTA has been signed but, neither the country nor Parliament has been kept informed. If the Government of Singapore as well as the Government of Sri Lanka enter into an agreement of this nature, it has to be approved by Parliament and, if there is no approval by Parliament, there is no validity of this. The Minister (Development Strategies & International Trade ) Malik Samarawickrema must know that he cannot act on his own and sign secret deals and agreements. I hope the Minister will understand this. You have not got Cabinet approval to put your signature and enter into this Agreement. You only have submitted a Cabinet Memorandum which was never approved by the Cabinet, for you to proceed in this manner.
This Agreement is in violation of Article 157 of the Constitution, which deals with International Treaties and Agreements. It states, “Where Parliament, by resolution, passed by not less than two-thirds of the whole number of Members of Parliament (including those not present) voting in its favour, approves as being essential for the development of the national economy, any Treaty or Agreement between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Government of any foreign State, for the promotion and protection of the investments in Sri Lanka of such foreign State, its nationals, or of corporations, companies and other associations incorporated or constituted under its laws, such Treaty or Agreement shall have the force of law in Sri Lanka and otherwise than in the interests of national security, no written Law shall be enacted or made, and any executive or administrative action shall be taken in contravention of the provisions of such Treaty or Agreement.”
This Government has kicked aside Article 157 and is acting on its whims. The foreign experts and consultants you hire maybe unaware of the Constitution. This Agreement will destroy Local industry.
Minister of Development Strategies & International Trade Malik Samarawickrama:
Our Government is committed to assisting and improving Local industries. However, assistance does not mean protectionism. The Sri Lanka-Singapore FTA provides a binding commitment and framework for bilateral trade and investment, which we did not have earlier. Let me deal with some of the frequent allegations made against the FTA and some of the myths that are being propagated, both inside and outside this House. The first allegation made is that, the signing of this FTA has not received Cabinet approval. The Cabinet of Ministers was first updated via an Interim Report in August 2017, on the progress, including the areas and extent of liberalization and the status of the consultative process carried out with the stakeholders. On December 21, 2017, a Cabinet Paper was submitted by me containing the draft Agreement. Based on that, positive observations were made by the President and 14 other Cabinet Ministers on January 9, 2018. Taking into account these observations, a revised Agreement was submitted to the Cabinet for approval. At the Cabinet Meeting held on January 16, the Cabinet approved the Agreement submitted and granted approval for me to sign it during the visit of the Singapore Prime Minister on January 23. The Agreement came into force on May 1, after the Anti-Dumping and Countervailing Duties Bill and the Safeguard Measures Bill were passed in Parliament. Under the Sri Lanka-Singapore FTA, there can be Service workers only if they are part of a company here. It is always linked to investment in Sri Lanka.
Another argument is that non-nationals of Singapore can take undue advantage of this FTA. This again is a baseless claim. This Agreement defines “a national” as a citizen of Singapore or a Permanent Resident (PR) of Singapore. Obtaining PR in Singapore is not that easy, as you know.
Leader of the Opposition Rajavarothiam Sampanthan:
When Singapore attained independence, its legendary leader, the first Prime Minister of Singapore, the late Lee Kuan Yew, wanted to model Singapore’s development on Sri Lanka. Singapore was a backward city-State. He looked upon Sri Lanka as a country that was developing and flourishing after Independence, with an efficient Public Service, an efficient Educational system even at University level, and he wanted to model Singapore’s development on Sri Lanka. But, over a period of time, it appeared and became clear that, while Singapore was advancing in several areas and becoming a prosperous country, Sri Lanka was receding and going backwards.
In Singapore, good governance operates on 5 principles. The first is Meritocracy. You are judged on the basis of merit; not on the basis of political influence, not on any other consideration. The second is Ethnic Harmony. They give recognition to all people living in Singapore. There is complete equality; there is no discrimination; there is no denial of anyone’s entitlement. The third is clean government. Bribery is not tolerated; corruption is not tolerated. The fourth is Rule of Law. The Rule of Law is strictly enforced, irrespective of who you are. The final principle is Social Equity. Whether it is in the field of Health, Education, Employment or Development, there is equity, there is equality.
Singapore does not need an FTA with us. Singapore has gone so far away from us. People in Singapore earn more than hundred times what we earn. So, Singapore does not need an FTA with us. It is we who need an FTA with Singapore.
I would, therefore, urge the Government, if there be any corrections that need be made to the Agreement, make those corrections, but implement the Agreement for the benefit of our country, use the Expertise of Singapore, use the Technology that Singapore can provide you, use the Services that Singapore can provide you and develop our country’s economy, because this country needs to be developed. This country needs to go forward. Our people are suffering from a diminishing quality of life.