Sri Lanka’s Minister of Foreign Relations Dinesh Gunawardena has informed that all envoys who have been political appointments at the Sri Lankan missions abroad, will be given another two weeks until the 15th of this month to return to the country.
All politically appointed diplomats had been recalled earlier to return by December 31, but since some of them have not complied, they were given a two-week extension.
Sources from the Ministry of Foreign Relations have revealed that some diplomats who have received political appointments are trying to continue their diplomatic posts by hiding their recall letters from their embassy staff, while several other diplomats have asked the Minister of Foreign Relations to allow them to remain in the embassy claiming that the embassies could not be functioned without them, according to a report in Lankadeepa newspaper.
Currently politically appointed ambassadors and high commissioners serve at the Sri Lankan missions in India, Russia, Australia, South Africa, Japan, China, Norway, France, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Maldives, Pakistan, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Palestine, Kenya and Iran.
They have been appointed by the previous government on political affiliations and some of them have been accused of engaging in political propaganda through Facebook and social networks during the last presidential election, according to the Foreign Ministry.
Minister Dinesh Gunawardena says that, after recalling the political appointees, qualified foreign officers will be appointed to the vacant posts immediately.
Courtesy: Colombo Page
