4th June 2010, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Honourable Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa, President of Sri Lanka, Honourable Minister and deputy Ministers, Governor, Excellencies, Ladies and gentlemen, Friends (I hope that covers everybody!):
It is a genuine privilege to be with you this morning at the inauguration of this FICCI Global Business Forum on the occasion of IIFA. Since I will have another opportunity to address you in more detail at our closing session, I will be brief.
At one level, nothing could be easier than celebrating India-Sri Lankan relations. After all, India is Sri Lanka’s closest neighbour. The relationship between our two countries is more than 2,500 years old and both sides have built, and built upon, a long legacy of intellectual, cultural, religious and linguistic exchange. In recent years, the relationship has been marked by frequent and close contact at the highest political level, growing trade and investment, cooperation in the fields of education, culture and defence, as well as a broad understanding on major issues of international interest.
Our relations also have a place in the overall context of the South Asian subcontinent, where large parts of South Asia have made great progress – economically, socially, and politically – over the last few decades. Yet, there are a number of challenges that continue to beset the region, that hold back the true potential of our countries, individually as well as collectively. These include terrorism and extremism, and the use of these as instruments of state policy; and the daily terror of hunger, unemployment, illiteracy, disease, and the effects of climate change. And less obvious but equally potent, restrictions on regional trade and transit that belong to an older, more mercantilist century. These are among the factors that drag our people back from the path of sustained peace, development and prosperity.
India and Sri Lanka have shown the capacity and the will to rise above such constraints.
In this country, the end of the conflict with the LTTE has brought about a greater possibility for peace and stability in Sri Lanka and its neighbourhood. This has presented Sri Lanka with an opportunity to heal the wounds created by decades of protracted conflict, to make a new beginning and to build a better future for all its people. It has also opened up greater options for India and Sri Lanka to cooperate bilaterally and enlarge our areas of engagement.
As you all know, India had strongly supported the right of the Government of Sri Lanka to act against terrorist forces. At the same time, it conveyed at the highest level its deep concern at the plight of the mostly Tamil civilian population, especially as the conflict intensified and a major humanitarian challenge emerged, with nearly 300,000 Tamil civilians housed in camps for Internally Displaced Persons. (We are pleased that those numbers have dropped dramatically now.) India has emphasized to the Sri Lankan Government the importance of focusing on issues of relief, rehabilitation, resettlement and reconciliation, and the Indian people are proud that our Government is working actively in assisting in these “four Rs” in Northern and Eastern Sri Lanka.
Though I speak in a purely personal capacity, I am confident that India will continue to remain engaged with the task of helping the Government of Sri Lanka to return displaced people to their homes to resume their lives which had so cruelly been interrupted by conflict.
Indians hope that the recent elections, which returned President Rajapaksa to power and also gave him a strong parliamentary majority, will accelerate the process and reinforce a political consensus behind giving the Tamil people of Sri Lanka an honoured place in their own country, within the framework of a united Sri Lanka. We all see a need for national reconciliation through a negotiated political settlement, which is acceptable to all communities and is consistent with democracy, pluralism and respect for human rights.
There is a great deal to be said about our economic and trade relations, especially the India-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement ,our cultural exchanges and people-to-people contacts, but I hope to return to those subjects when I address the closing of this forum this afternoon.
India and Sri Lanka must look to the future, to an interrelated South Asian future where geography becomes an instrument of opportunity in our mutual growth story, where history binds rather than divides, where trade and cross-border links flourish and bring prosperity to all our peoples. Some will say these are merely dreams; yet there few worthwhile achievements in the world that have not been preceded by ambitious aspirations. But dreams will only turn into reality if we take action to accomplish this brighter future together. Only work on the ground will help us overcome prejudiced mindsets, dogmatic doctrines and self-perpetuating myths. One thing is however clear. Our destinies are inextricably linked and we have to work together to lift our lives out of underdevelopment and conflict to peace and prosperity.
Today, the India-Sri Lanka relationship is strong and poised for a quantum jump by building on the rich legacy of historical linkages and strong economic and development partnerships that have been forged in recent years. The horizon stretches far but the sky is well-lit. Let us, in our shared quest for peace and prosperity, sail forward together.

Watch Shashi Tharoor clearing his stand on the controversies he faced and much more in a chat with Rajat Sharma in this episode of Aap Ki Adalat. www.istream.in