‘Sialkot incident didn’t affect Pak-Lanka ties’

Sri Lanka, previously known as Ceylon, an island in South Asia, is one of Pakistan’s oldest friends.  Sri Lanka got its independence on February 4, 1948, just six months after Pakistan appeared on the map of the world as an independent state. Pakistan and Sri Lanka have stood by each other in every thick and thin. Sri Lanka was one of the first countries to sign the Free Trade Agreement with Pakistan and Pakistan is its second largest trading partner in the region. Sri Lanka considers Pakistan an all-weather friend.  On the 74th independence day of the country, Bol News interviews Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Pakistan Vice Admiral Mohan Wijewickrama.

How did you find Pakistan? And did you visit other cities of the country?

MW: I came here June 1, 2020 and I found it a fantastic place. Islamabad is a beautiful city. This is my first time in Pakistan and what I am seeing here is unbelievable. Your country has friendly people, I am enjoying my stay in Pakistan. Due to Covid19, there have been lockdowns and initially my movements were restricted. Since then, I have travelled to Lahore a couple of times, Peshawar, Swat, Taxila, and I am planning to go to Karachi. I also want to see the northern parts of the country before I leave.

How would you introduce your country to people who don’t know about it yet?

MW: Sri Lanka is a known tourist destination and has some of the best warm beaches. It has a long coastline with golden sandy beaches, a large number of inland waters, a splendid mix of forest, agricultural lands, tea gardens and mountainous terrain, wildlife and historical monuments. The magnificent Trincomalee harbour makes Sri Lanka a unique place for tourists.

How did Sri Lanka reach this high level of literacy?

MW: Literacy in Sri Lanka has been equivalent to most of the developed countries for the last 40 years or so. The reason is that at the time we got independence we had a fairly satisfactory education system left by the British. In late fifties or early sixties, the governments took a decision that the state will provide education to all children irrespective of gender from year one up to the university level. Infrastructure was developed and this is the reason that our literacy rate has always been high. Education is free. There are also laws to ensure all children are provided education and parents who do not send their children to schools can face court action.

How can Sri Lanka help Pakistan develop tourism?

MW: Due to Covid-19 our tourism sector has also suffered and it has seriously impacted our economy. We have had discussions with Pakistan to enhance tourism between the two nations. Even when your prime minister visited Sri Lanka, he invited Sri Lankans to come to Pakistan to visit Buddhist heritage in places such as Gandhara.

You are one of the biggest exporters of tea and Pakistan is one of the biggest importers of tea. Can we have a better tea collaboration?

MW: In the 70s and 80s, the Pakistani market was flooded with Sri Lankan tea which was called Ceylon Tea then. Sri Lankan tea is hand plucked, which makes it a little bit expensive and of late Pakistanis have preferred the taste of East African teas. We don’t have much of the tea market in Pakistan at the moment. But one of my tasks is to get our tea back to Pakistan.

What in your opinion are the similarities between Pakistan and Sri Lanka?

MW: One thing is hospitality and the other is terrain. Our terrain in most parts can be seen in Pakistan, but of course we don’t have snow in winters. It is a unique occurrence that ICC World Cup winning captains Ranathunga and Imran Khan ended up being successful politicians. I have been an admirer of your prime minister since his cricketing days and even now people talk about the cricketer Imran Khan in Sri Lanka even as much as some of our outstanding cricketers. It is your support that helped us in getting recognized by the ICC. In 1996 World Cup when some nations were reluctant to come and play cricket in Colombo due to terrorism, Pakistani cricketers were among the few who came and played a friendly match to show that Sri Lanka was safe.

Other than cricket we have had very strong military ties as well. Sri Lankan cadets come to Pakistan to get trained at the Pakistan Military Academy. How important do you think this collaboration is for the two countries?

MW: Our relationship is not confined to training only. Pakistan assisted us in many ways to eliminate terrorism. Pakistan provided us much needed training and sophisticated hardware.

Prime Minister Imran Khan visited Sri Lanka and was supposed to address the Sri Lankan Parliament but the address was cancelled due to Covid-19. Are there any high-level visits in the pipeline?

MW: It was very clearly communicated that the visit was in a bubble concept and when he arrived, we were struggling with Covid-19. In fact, he didn’t leave Colombo. Our parliament was closed at that time due to Covid-19. Your prime minister will be welcomed anytime he wants to visit because we are friends and our prime minister is also scheduled to visit Pakistan this year.

A very unfortunate incident took place against a Sri Lankan in Sialkot but swift actions were taken against the culprits and the PM, the COAS, the president of Pakistan, media and public condemned it in the strongest manner. How did the people of Sri Lanka perceive the cruel act and our reaction to it?

MW: Immediately after the incident, your prime minister called our president and gave an assurance that justice will prevail and we saw that happening. There were religious scholars from every corner of Pakistan, business communities, politicians representing the parliament conveying their condolences. All this clearly indicated that Pakistan wanted the criminals to face justice for the horrible crime. I too made it clear that the incident did not reflect Pakistan and this incident will not affect our relations. Pakistan has also provided compensation to the family. We know that the culprits are facing criminal charges in your courts. I am sure at the end of the day the criminals would be punished. This particular crime was not conducted against Sri Lanka. Only that person happened to be a Sri Lankan. We observe that it was a personal vendetta in the workplace and those culprits had taken advantage of a situation.

Q What would you want to tell the world about Pakistan?

MW:  I would want to tell them that the people are very nice people, very hospitable, very friendly. Pakistan is a beautiful country to visit. We are proud that Pakistan is playing a very important role in the region and we hope that peace prevails and we hope Pakistan further develops as per the aspirations of your leaders.