Sri Lankan President in Bali

President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the Sri Lankan delegation arrived at Norarha International Airport in Indonesia yesterday for a three day official visit. The Sri Lankan President and his delegation were warmly received by the Indonesian Minister of Sports Mr.Andy Malarangan at the Airport.

President Rajapaksa is in Bali on an invitation extended by the Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and will be attending the two-day Forum being held at Nusa Dua in Bali on December 8 and 9.

The theme of this year’s Bali Forum is “Enhancing Democratic Participation in a Changing World: Responding to Democratic Voices” and will focus on efforts towards enhanced people participation by way of responding to democratic voices, and relevant issues involved in the process.

It is expected that 15 head of states in the region would attend the event, with 54 participating countries from the Asia Pacific region, such as Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, Qatar, Sri Lanka and others.

Representatives from more than 66 countries including Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, England, Kenya, Nigeria as well as representatives from the European Union and international organizations are attending the event as observers.

Indonesia launched the first Bali Democracy Forum in 2008 in Bali with goals and objectives to place democracy as a strategic agenda in regional discourse in Asia, to forge closer understanding and cooperation amongst participating countries of the Bali Democracy Forum, to establish a regional cooperation forum that promotes political development, through dialogue and sharing of experience and aimed at strengthening democratic institutions and national capacities, to initiate a learning and sharing process among countries in Asia as a strategy towards the maintenance of peace, stability, and prosperity in the region and beyond, to initiate and build a platform for mutual support and cooperation in the field of democracy and political development and to function as a resource base and information center for research and study as well as a pool of expertise in the various sectors relevant to democracy.

Sri Lankan delegation includes Minister of External Affairs, Prof. G L Peiris, Parliamentarian Sajin Vass Gunawardane, Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunga, Chief of Staff to the President, Gamini Senarath, and Sri Lankan High Commissioner in Indonesia, Major General Nanda Mallawarachchi.

- Asian Tribune -