The Hon. Harshana Nanayakkara, Attorney-at-Law - Minister of Justice and National Integration
Minister Harshana Nanayakkara rejected opposition claims that the Government had increased vehicles and fuel allocations for Ministers, stating that a January 2025 circular reduced each Minister’s allocation from three vehicles and about 1,950 litres of diesel to two vehicles and 900 litres, and that no Ministers or Deputies had taken official residences. Addressing the Rohingya issue, he described it as a humanitarian crisis involving stateless and displaced people, while emphasizing that Sri Lanka must act according to international law and State security responsibilities. He said the 116 arrivals were being cared for, with court processes involving 12 persons, including possible traffickers, and that screening was necessary to identify protection needs and exclude persons involved in serious crimes in line with UNHCR guidance. He stated that the Government would work with UNHCR and the international community on temporary and possible longer-term arrangements while safeguarding rights and applying the law.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, before addressing today’s Motion, a brief correction: opposition claims that the NPP Government increased vehicles and fuel for Ministers/Deputy Ministers are false. Under a 12 September 2022 circular during the previous administration, a Minister had three vehicles and about 1,950 litres of diesel per month. Our new circular of 21 January 2025 limits official vehicles to two and fuel to 900 litres per month—reductions of vehicles and 1,050 litres of fuel per Minister. No Ministers or Deputies in this Government have taken official residences. Further details are available in the circular placed in the Library. We can debate these matters fully in due course.
¶ 02 Turning to the Motion: except for Hon. Nizam Kariapper, most who spoke have left. Nevertheless, we understand the Rohingya crisis. They are a stateless Muslim-majority ethnic group; in 2017, about 740,000 fled to Bangladesh; Myanmar’s 1992 law denies their nationality; about 2.6 million are internally displaced and 1.3 million are refugees, including around 1 million in Bangladesh. It is a humanitarian crisis; they must not be harmed. We accept they are victims.
¶ 03 Now, how do we proceed? We are acting per international law, customs, and norms. There are no credible accusations of mistreatment; my colleague, Hon. Arun Hemachandra, explained our care. Calls to “recognize them as refugees” and “do not call them illegal migrants” must be balanced with State duties. Many arrivals lack documents; we must rely on testimony. The State must investigate—without harming anyone. Hence court processes: of the 116 arrivals, cases concern 12 (including potential traffickers); screening is essential to prevent criminal elements from abusing refugee flows—this is in line with UNHCR guidance itself: applicants responsible for serious crimes are excluded from refugee status. Therefore, the State must screen to determine persecution risk and any offences, while safeguarding welfare and rights. Those found to have committed offences will be dealt with according to law; others will not be penalized. We are working with UNHCR on temporary and, where possible, longer-term arrangements in cooperation with the international community.
¶ 04 We will continue to act lawfully, humanely, and responsibly.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Thursday, 23 January 2025 ·No. 1738314169039521 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Harshana Nanayakkara, Attorney-at-Law - Minister of Justice and National Integration. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 23 January 2025. No. 1738314169039521. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/10627