The Commonwealth Parliamentary delegation, which was in Sri Lanka recently headed by Graham Allen, met Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prof. W. A. Wiswa Warnapala at the Foreign Ministry Office.
"At this critical juncture of her history, Sri Lanka should give prime importance for the full realisation of the peace process. The whole world now looks upon Sri Lanka as to the next step she is taking for the realisation of permanent peace. The LTTE should give up all forms of violence and should enter the mainstream of politics to seek a solution to the ethnic problem within the borders of Sri Lanka. The Island cannot be divided at any cost. When permanent peace dawns on Sri Lanka, the International Community will come forward to help Sri Lanka in a substantial way," Graham Allen, Leader of the delegation said.
The delegation comprising Graham Allen Eric Forth, Carroll Forth, Austin Mitchell, Linda McDongall and Linda Perham, all senior members of the British House of Commons said They were pleased to have an audience with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prof W. A. Wiswa Warnapala who has made a significant and a remarkable contribution to parliamentary affairs by writing hundreds of articles and a number of text books on parliamentary procedures. Prof. Warnapala made use of this occasion too, to present his latest addition to his collected works — "Parliament and Public Accountability in Sri Lanka" to Graham Allen, Leader of the delegation.
Prof. Warnapala said all these years the Commonwealth of Nations survived well surpassing all obstacles and impediments on its long journey, as the leadership of the Commonwealth had the wisdom and the vision to judge the changing social structure of the world. As the decision making process of the Commonwealth is democratic, it functioned well and on the same foundation it was able to maintain and sustain the unity of its purpose.,
The talks on the Commonwealth centered around the issues of:
(a) Participatory democracy characterised by free and fair elections and representative legislatures,
(b) An independent judiciary;
(c) A well trained public service;
(d) A transparent and accountable public accounts system;
(e) Machinery to protect human rights;
(f) The right to information;
(g) Active participation of civil society, including women and youth;
(h) Substantially increased and more effective financial resources;
(i) Adherence to the internationally agreed targets of 0.7 percent of Gross National Product for development assistance.
(j) Financing and realisation of the Millennium Development Goals; and
(k) Increased democracy at the global level, including enhanced participation and transparency in international institutions.
Prof. Warnapala also presented the recently written booklet on the Sri Lanka Freedom Party to the members of the delegation.
