Sri Lankan opposition mounts anti-China campaign over Colombo Port City bill
As the Sri Lankan government prepares to ram its Colombo Port City Economic Commission Bill through parliament, several opposition parties have launched a campaign claiming that the proposed measure will pave the way for a “Chinese colony” in Sri Lanka.
The main opposition party, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), and the United National Party (UNP) and Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), as well as the Sri Lanka Bar Association and several other organisations and individuals, have filed petitions in the Supreme Court against the bill.
The Colombo Port City project [Credit: China Communications Construction Company]
Colombo Port City: Chinese Colony or Gateway to South Asia ?
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President ultimately responsible for Port City SEZ administration
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Posted on April 20th, 2021
Courtesy Nikkei Asia
Yearlong talks yield $500m loan thought to carry ‘geopolitical conditions’
Signs advertise Colombo Port City: The development is said to give Beijing sweeping powers to oversee projects for the financial hub worth $1.4 billion. (Photo by Yuji Kuronuma)MUNZA MUSHTAQ, Contributing WriterApril 20, 2021 16:42 JST
COLOMBO China appears to be tightening its strategic grip on Sri Lanka, wooing the debt-ridden South Asian nation with a fresh $500 million loan as Colombo wrestles with a deepening economic crisis.
In March, Sri Lanka’s foreign reserves dropped to $4.05 billion, their lowest in over a decade, with tourism plummeting following the onset of COVID-19. Public coffers also took a massive hit as export earnings and foreign remittances dropped drastically due to the pandemic. The dwindling foreign reserves also caused the currency to plunge to 203 Sri Lankan rupees to the dollar, a record low.