Sri Lanka PM Ranil Wickremesinghe slams opponents of India trade deal as 'traitors'

COLOMBO: Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has branded as "traitors" those opposing a proposed economic and technical cooperation deal with India that would provide employment to the country's youth.

"Those who are against this are traitors because they want us not to find employment for the youth," he said yesterday while speaking in southern Hambantota, the hometown of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Criticising trade unions and other professional groups, the Prime Minister said it was a misconception that the country would be flooded with Indians who would invade limited job opportunities in Sri Lanka in the IT sector.

"In the previous CEPA deal there were provisions for goods services. Here we only seek technology and goods, no services," he said.

The Opposition has criticised the Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement ( ETCA) as an attempt to "foreignise" the economy.

Wickremesinghe said investment by the Chinese in Sri Lanka would be useless without having a vast market as that of India.

"We need to tap into bigger markets to create employment. My government has the mandate to create jobs," he said.

The opposition had demanded that the shortcomings in the existing FTA should be sorted out before concluding the deal saying the agreement would be advantageous to India and inimical to Sri Lankan economic interests.

Alleging the ETCA would "foreignise" Sri Lanka's economy, the opposition wants that the agreement include goods, trade in services and investment. They also said Indian companies are under no obligation to recruit Sri Lankans.

In recent weeks the doctors' trade union and several other employees' organisations have taken to the streets to protest the ETCA with India.