Terrorism thrives on vulnerabilities of democratic states - Deputy Minister

At 17th ASEAN Regional Forum in Hanoi:

Terrorism by nature thrives on the vulnerabilities of democratic States and lacuna in international law. Much of the rules of war and norms are based on the presumption that the parties to the conflict are conventional armies of responsible States, but terrorists totally disregard these laws and principles, External Affairs Deputy Minister Gitanjana Gunawardena said. The Deputy Minister was addressing the 17th ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in Hanoi.

He said Sri Lanka has successfully defeated one of the most ruthless terrorist organizations known in contemporary history, through a humanitarian operation.

The Deputy Minister said that the objective of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, and his Government is to restore the normal democratic way of governance and to simultaneously ensure the economic development in the hitherto conflict affected areas.

Gunawardena also highlighted the terrorist organizations ability to operate by exploiting cross-border linkages, and to have easy access to sophisticated and advanced technologies.

Therefore, the Minister emphasised the importance of marshalling collective efforts to curtail terrorists’ transnational operations, including financing of illicit activities by Diaspora groups and sympathizers. “No country or region would be entirely free and safe of the scourge of such threats and associated illicit activities” without collective efforts”, he said.

He reiterated the importance of abiding by the time tested principles of non-interference in the internal affairs of one another as well as the mutual respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity and national identity of all nations.

The way forward in resolving problems should be constructive engagement, confidence building and consensus, he stated.

On the sidelines of the ARF meeting, Deputy Minister Gunawardena had the opportunity to meet with the Foreign Ministers of Canada, Japan, Republic of Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Pakistan. He also had the opportunity to meet with US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, Indian External Affairs Deputy Minister and the Secretary-General of ASEAN.