Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism – Vijitha Herath has stated that the present Sri Lankan government has neither signed nor implemented the Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) with India.
Speaking at a special press conference held at the Department of Government Information today (Dec. 20), he said that there is a need to update the Indo – Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (ISFTA), which was signed several decades ago and emphasised that the government is working within the framework of the existing free trade agreement.
“We have also taken steps to advance discussions on the ETCA. However, contrary to the reports, after the visit to India, the ETCA agreement has not been signed, nor has it been implemented. No such thing has happened,” he said.
Meanwhile, the minister also said that allegations levelled against the former Deputy High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Australia Himalee Arunatilaka, are completely false.
Arunatilaka, who currently serves as Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, was recently fined more than $100,000 in the Australian federal court, in addition to more than $500,000 in unpaid wages and interest to a Sri Lankan domestic worker for breaches of employment laws, while she was serving as the island nation’s Deputy High Commissioner in Australia.
Responding to a query raised in this regard, the minister said, “The salaries of employees who accompany an ambassador, high commissioner, or diplomat are paid by the Sri Lankan government. If we consider the salary scale of the Sri Lankan government, we pay the salary which goes along with the Sri Lankan economy. This amount is notably lower compared to the salary scales in countries like Europe and Australia. The problem arises with that. The salary she paid was the one provided by the Sri Lankan government. That is lower than the salary scales in Australia. As a result of that, the Australian government had taken legal action against her. Here I would like to say very clearly that Himali Arunathilake has not committed any wrong. But the court has taken legal decision according to the law of that country. We as a government have to make a policy decision about this. In contrast, the situation in African countries is different. That is the true story.”
