"Look At Yourself Before You Talk About Others"

Address the issue of common poverty vigorously, before we talk about common wealth - President Rajapaksa !ovember "#, $%"&, 'olombo, (ri )anka *uardian+ President ,ahinda Rajapaksa urged the 'ommonwealth to focus, as a matter of priority, on development challenges, confronting the majority of our member nations- ./ see a compelling need for those who guide the destiny of the 'ommonwealth to give serious thought to practical modalities, focusing on social and economic issues- 0his will greatly enhance the relevance and value of the 'ommonwealth,1 he said and posed the 2uestion, .(houldnt we be addressing more vigorously the issue of common poverty before we talk about common wealth31 /naugurating the $$nd 'ommonwealth 4eads of *overnment ,eeting '45*,+ in 'olombo today !ovember "#+ President said, ./f the 'ommonwealth is to remain relevant to its member countries, the Association must respond sensitively to the needs of its peoples and not let it turn into a punitive or judgemental body-1

President Rajapaksa said and urged the member-nations to collectively guard against bilateral agendas being introduced into the 5rganisation, distorting 'ommonwealth traditions and consensus- .0he strength of the 5rganisation lies in keeping the member countries together, helping one another in a spirit of partnership, making the 'ommonwealth truly uni2ue-1 (ri )ankan leader thanked all who have been firm in their support and understanding of the related comple6ities in (ri )ankas post conflict phase- .0his confidence reposed by them in my country, will greatly assist me in steering the 5rganisations future in the best interest of our peoples-1 Prince 'harles, Australian Prime ,inister 0ony Abbott and 'ommonwealth (ecretary *eneral 7amlesh (harma also addressed the opening of the '45*, $%"&, which was attended by 4eads of *overnments, 8oreign ,inisters and delegation leaders of all the member nations8ollowing is the full te6t of the speech9 ,ost :enerable ,aha (angha and other religious dignitaries ;our Royal 4ighnesses, the Prince of <ales and the =uchess of 'ornwall, 8ellow 4eads of *overnment, 'ommonwealth 8oreign ,inisters, (ecretary *eneral of the 'ommonwealth, >6cellencies, )adies ? *entlemen, A warm welcome, to the opening ceremony of the $$nd 'ommonwealth 4eads of *overnment ,eeting- /t is my pleasure to welcome to (ri )anka, ;our Royal 4ighnesses, the Prince of <ales and the =uchess of 'ornwall, fellow 'ommonwealth 4eads of *overnment, 8oreign ,inisters, spouses of visiting dignitaries, delegates and special invitees;our Royal 4ighness, the Prince of <ales, representing the 4ead of the 'ommonwealth, 4er ,ajesty @ueen >liAabeth the (econd, - is no stranger to (ri )anka- /n fact, ;our Royal 4ighnesss 0rust has funded several on-going social development projects here- / am sure ;our Royal 4ighness will carry pleasant memories of this visit to our country4osting this ,eeting is a historic occasion for (ri )anka, and also a tribute to Asia, as '45*, returns to this region after $B years- As one of the eight founding members of the modern 'ommonwealth, (ri )anka is deeply honoured to host this event/ am e6tremely thankful to all of you who have been firm in your support and understanding, of the related comple6ities in (ri )ankas post conflict phase- 0his confidence reposed by you in my country will greatly assist me in steering the 5rganisations future in the best interest of our peoples<e in (ri )anka are stepping into a new era of peace, stability and renewed economic opportunities that have been long denied to my people, due to the menace of terrorism that e6isted for nearly three decades- /n ending terrorism in $%%C, we asserted the greatest human

right, the right to life- / am happy to state that in the past four years, there hasnt been a single terrorist related incident, anywhere in (ri )anka>6cellencies and 8riends, 0here is a multitude of global challenges, arising from the uncertainty of the socio economic conditions, faced by our nations today- <e, in the 'ommonwealth, must therefore collectively find means of effectively addressing these challenges to safeguard the values we hold dear/t is in recognition of the urgent need to address the burning issues connected to growth and development, which directly impinge on the lives of our peoples, that (ri )anka proposed the theme, .*rowth with >2uity9 /nclusive =evelopment1 for this '45*,<e believe that this theme has broad relevance to the larger 'ommonwealth, and highlights the importance of e2uity in economic development, particularly in view of the e6isting disparities in the distribution of wealth, and economic benefits- /nclusive development promotes progress and contributes towards achieving ,illennium =evelopment *oals/n the case of (ri )anka, our current policy agenda, the ,ahinda 'hinthana, :ision for the 8uture, spells out clear strategies of improving the livelihoods of our people, ensuring that economic and social benefits reach every strata of society, and more importantly, taking (ri )anka into the future, by aiming to be the <onder of Asia/ am happy to say that (ri )anka has achieved success on a range of social indicators that comprise the ,=*s, despite being a lower middle income country- Absolute poverty in (ri )anka declined from "#-$ per cent in $%%D to E-# per cent in $%"$, surpassing the ,=* midterm target- <hile reaching out to care for all our peoples needs, the *overnment has also taken a pro-active approach, to post-conflict reconstruction and reconciliation;our Royal 4ighnesses, 8ellow 4eads of *overnment, >6cellencies, and friends, 8aced with tough challenges, we, in the 'ommonwealth, need to ask ourselves, a few 2uestions8irst, 'an we realistically say that the need for basic facilities, healthcare, education, productive employment, access to food and safe drinking water, eradication of poverty and hunger, are of lesser importance than political concerns3 (econd, (hould not the 'ommonwealth, collectively strive towards the realiAation of development goals, to enable its member countries to reap economic benefits3 0hird, (houldnt we be addressing more vigorously the issue of common poverty before we talk about common wealth3 As a matter of priority, we, in the 'ommonwealth, should focus on development challenges, confronting the majority of our member nations- / see a compelling need for those who guide the destiny of the 'ommonwealth to give serious thought to practical modalities, focusing on social and economic issues- 0his will greatly enhance the relevance and value of the 'ommonwealthParticular emphasis on the well-being of women and children, is a must- 0here is, as well, the

acute need for awareness of both the potential and the risks attendant on /nformation 0echnologyAlthough economic priorities take centre stage, let us not forget that people are the greatest wealth of our nations- (trengthening the 2uality of human capital will help countries to achieve sustained growth- *reater people-to-people contact within the nations of the 'ommonwealth, as well as taking the objectives of the 'ommonwealth to the most remote sections of our populations, is also important'45*, $%"& will provide the opportunity for us to assess the 'ommonwealths achievements with regard to development goals- /f the 'ommonwealth is to remain relevant to its member countries, the Association must respond sensitively, to the needs of its peoples and not let it turn into a punitive or judgemental body<e must also collectively guard against bilateral agendas being introduced into the 5rganisation, distorting 'ommonwealth traditions and consensus- 0he strength of the 5rganisation lies in keeping the member countries together, helping one another in a spirit of partnership, making the 'ommonwealth truly uni2ue>6cellencies, 5ur deliberations in 'olombo must lead to the greatest practical benefits for the peoples of a renewed 'ommonwealth, one that is engaging, collaborative and unifying, rather than prescriptive and divisive/n =ecember last year, the 'harter of the 'ommonwealth comprising the values and aspirations shared by all members of the 5rganiAation was adopted- 0o us in (ri )anka today, they continue to be relevant, as we usher in a new era and also because all religions we follow in (ri )anka have taught us to uphold the highest human values8inally, / wish to 2uote the words of the Fuddha, the >nlightened 5ne9 !a paresaa vilomani - na paresam katakatamGGGAttanova avkkheyya - katani akatani ca )et not one take notice of faults of others or what they have done or not done- )et one be concerned only about what one has done and left undone- >nd of 2uote+ <hilst looking forward to a fruitful and constructive engagement, / wish all of you, a very pleasant and an enjoyable stay in our country,ay the !oble 0riple *em Fless you all-