An official delegation from Sri Lankan comprising Mr. Sunimal Fernando, Advisor to the President, and Mrs. Shirani Goonatilleke, Secretary of the government's Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process (SCOPP), visited Observer Research Foundation (ORF) on October 9, 2006, and had an interaction with the research faculty.
An official delegation from Sri Lankan comprising Mr. Sunimal Fernando, Advisor to the President, and Mrs. Shirani Goonatilleke, Secretary of the government's Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process (SCOPP), visited Observer Research Foundation (ORF) on October 9, 2006, and had an interaction with the research faculty.
The delegation is in India at the directive of President Mahinda Rajapakse to meet with Indian government officials, prominent persons, experts and academics to discuss the Indian model of devolution of power, especially to local-self governments, and see if there were any lessons in it for Sri Lanka. The visit follows an official visit to Sri Lanka by, and interaction with, Hon. Manishankar Iyer, Union Minister for Panchayat Raj, in August 2006.
The distinguished guests made an eloquent presentation on the trajectory of the peace process under various administrations in Sri Lanka, the dynamics of Sinhala and Tamil politics, and the dilemmas that successive governments in the island nation were faced with at different points in time.
Prof SD Muni, Advisor to ORF Chairman and well-known expert on South Asian Studies, who is the first Indian to be conferred the title of Sri Lanka Ratna, the highest award conferred on foreign nationals by the Government of Sri Lanka, chaired the meeting and made several important suggestions that could be considered by the various players in Sri Lankan politics. Dr S. Narayan, Advisor to ORF Chairman and former Finance Secretary of India, spoke on various aspects of devolution of power, including on the Indian experience.
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