TN fishermen pin hopes on Sushma

Talks are also rife in both India and Lanka, that Sushma Swaraj will take up the issues of fishermen and Tamils’ rights prominently during her meetings with the top members of the island nation government. 

Swaraj and her Lankan counterpart Mangala Samaraweera will co-chair the 9th Joint Commission meet to discuss key bilateral and regional issues, including economic cooperation, trade, power and energy, technical and maritime cooperation, social, cultural and educational matters, technology, defence, health, civil aviation, tourism and people-to-people contact. 

The last meeting of the joint commission, set up in 1992 as a mechanism to address issues of bilateral cooperation, was held in New Delhi in January 2013. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup had said on Thursday that the fishermen issue is expected to figure during Swaraj’s meeting with the Lankan leaders. The fishermen issue continues to be a major irritant in the Indo-Lanka ties. 

Though the fishermen’s associations of the two sides are in regular touch with each other, they have not been able to reach a mutually-acceptable solution to end this problem, Swarup had said, adding that India wants a long-term solution. The issue of rights of minority Tamil community is also expected to come up for discussions. 

TN Kadolara Visaipadugal Meenavargal Sangam district secretary E. Jesuraja said the fishing community was pinning its hopes on Swaraj. With 75 boats and 16 fishermen yet to be released, he felt that the visit would ensure their release. He also hoped that the state government would like last time pay all the expenses involved in retrieving the seized boats.

Later in the day, Sushma Swaraj called on Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe held a 50-minute long meeting, during which the latter sought Indian investment in Sri Lanka and proposed partnership in setting up an SEZ in Trincomalee, officials said. 

“Their talks began with the discussion on the Indo-Lanka Joint Commission meeting and the Prime Minister said this is a very important forum for the two sides to advance in bilateral partnership in all areas,” they said. 

Wickremesinghe briefed Swaraj on the latest political developments in Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan Prime Minister had last month said his government was ready to devolve power to minority Tamils under a new Constitution, aimed at resolving the ethnic conflict and achieving reconciliation with Tamils.