US Secretary of State John Kerry on Saturday warned Sri Lanka that "true reconciliation" with Tamils will take time, even as he praised the "openness" of the new government in efforts to boost democracy, human rights and reaching out to the minority community.
"Peace has come but true reconciliation will take time," Kerry said while addressing the media following a bilateral meeting with Sri Lankan foreign minister Mangala Samaraweera after the top US diplomat landed in Colombo on Saturday on a two-day trip.
Kerry praised President Maithripala Sirisena's new government for reaching out to the Tamil minority after the end of the nearly three-decade of ethnic conflict that claimed more than 100,000 lives.
"One thing which struck me was the readiness of this government to open its doors, to open its minds to different ideas," he said hailing "the enormous progress Sri Lanka has made in just a few months".
"You are working on creating an enduring peace and you are working on providing prosperity for all of your people," Kerry said.
Since coming to power in January polls, Sirisena has vowed to pursue reconciliation more vigorously than his predecessor Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was known for his hardline Sinhalese nationalism.
"Today, Sri Lanka is well on its way to becoming a fully- fledged parliamentary democracy, laying the foundations for a new Sri Lanka, built on the pillars of democracy and ethnic harmony."
He said both President Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe are not afraid taking "difficult decisions".
"They are willing to make difficult decisions and they are committed to keeping their promises," Kerry said.
The US has noted Sri Lanka's progress on restoring democracy and institutions for greater accountability through the nineteenth amendment, he said.
"There is progress on democratic institutions, progress on creating more accountable government, passage of (the) 19th amendment in which the president kept his promise to reduce powers of the presidency." PTI
Kerry, however, said many challenges and difficult decisions lie ahead. "Peace has come but true reconciliation will take time," he said in a reference to the human rights and reconciliation issues.
During the rule of Rajapaksa, the US had nearly slapped sanctions on Sri Lanka for refusing to allow investigations into claims of mass killings and rights abuses at the end of the war between the Tamil Tiger rebels and government forces.
Kerry said the US wants to work closely with Sri Lanka.
"To that end the foreign minister and I agreed to establish an annual participatory dialogue between our two governments," he said.
Kerry's visit comes following years of strained relations between the US and Sri Lanka under the Rajapaksa regime.
Rajapaksa had faced criticism from the West for refusing to cooperate with a probe into alleged war crimes committed during a crackdown on the LTTE.
Sri Lanka under Rajapaksa was subjected to three consecutive US-backed UN Human Rights Council resolutions, the last of which mandated an global investigations into alleged rights abuses by both government troops and the LTTE.
But Sirisena's government has opted for a domestic mechanism much to the displeasure of the Tamils. They feel given past Sinhala-majority governments' attitude towards the minority, the investigation may end up as an eyewash.
The US is expected to press the Sirisena government for a credible local mechanism.
Image: US Secretary of State John Kerry (L) shakes hands with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera during a news conference following a meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Colombo. Photograph: Andrew Harnik/ Reuters
