PRESS STATEMENT

We read in the Daily News of 21^st January the address of the Prime Minister, Hon. Ranil Wickramasinghe, to the media at Davos in Switzerland, guaranteeing the resumption of work of the Colombo Port City and extending an invitation to the investors from China and others world over.

The Colombo Port City that would be permitted to resume work was the same project that the Prime Minister feared as one that would destroy the environment of the coastal belt from Negombo to Beruwala and assured that he would ban it once in power. Although the Port City project was temporarily halted on the 4^th of March 2015 due to pressure from people, Prime Minister’s statement at Davos comes as a surprise.

In addition to the statement of the Prime Minister, there were also similar assurances given at various occasions by ministers such as Mr. Iran Wickramasinghe, Mr. Sujeewa Senasinghe and Mr. Malik Wickramasinghe in favor of and with regard to the resumption of the Port City project. It is to be noted, a statement was made to the same effect to “China Daily” by the Sri Lankan ambassador to China Mr. Karunasena Kodituwakku with regard to the resumption of the project.

What really dismayed us is how a “yahapalana government’ could make such statements while there are two case being heard in the Sri Lankan courts; one based on fundamental rights and the other a writ application.

We wonder whether these statements are meant to influence the judicial process.

Besides, we wish to know from the authorities that while a process of seeking people’s opinion on the EIA report is on such irresponsible statements of the politicians is in keeping with the policies of good governance.

What does this phenomenon indicate? Aren’t Maithreepala Sirisena and Ranil Wickramasinghe telling us to forget the promises made during the election campaign about the values of good governance and democracy and that they would follow the authoritarian politics of the last regime?

We the members of the Christian Solidarity Movement cannot abandon the campaign against the CPC because we are aware that the project is deemed to destroy the fishing grounds, ecosystem, and biodiversity of the precious coastal lines and thereby destroy the livelihoods of the fishermen and their living environment.

As Christians we believe that protecting the environment “our common home” is a matter of our Faith. As such, our Faith points to us our responsibility of defending the people’s rights, especially the livelihoods of those who live along the coastal belt and thousands of others who find day to living on fishing industry to feed their homes and also of those innocent

people living in the interior of the country where rock mining is on for dangerous proportion affecting very livelihood of people who are now forced to remain silence.

Therefore we the members of Christian Solidarity Movement wish to register again our strongest protest against the resumption of this needless, destructive project done in the pretext of economic development and invite other victims of destructions faced by the clearance and land grabbing around Willpattu and Sinharaja forests to rally together to battle against the lack of interests in the regime to prevent the this country being destroyed by short term political goals and economic development.

Christian Solidarity Movement – CSM

01.02.2016