Sri Lanka’s new High Commissioner to Canada, Ahmed Jawad, has promised an “all-inclusive” approach to engaging with the Sri Lankan diaspora in Canada.
Mr. Jawad, a career diplomat, presented his credentials to Governor General David Johnston in Ottawa.
“The new vision of the government, led by President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, is to follow an all-inclusive approach,” High Commissioner Jawad told Lanka Reporter at Rideau Hall, the official residence of the governor general.
“We are all entitled to our faiths and ethnic identities, but at the end of the day, we are all Sri Lankans,” he added.
Earlier, Governor General Johnston said Canada looks forward to a bright future working with Sri Lanka.
“Dating back 60 years, Canada and Sri Lanka’s long-standing relationship stems from our shared Commonwealth heritage. It is also anchored by our strong people-to-people ties—the Sri Lankan diaspora in Canada is estimated to number between 250,000 and 300,000 people,” Johnston said in his address.
The new envoy to Canada said the Sri Lankan diaspora remains deeply connected to their country of birth.
“We don’t look upon our brothers and sisters in these faraway lands as any different from those of us who live in Sri Lanka,” he said.
“I would like the cooperation of Sri Lankans, irrespective of their differences, to come together now to build a united Sri Lanka.”
