New Sri Lankan envoy in Canada promises ‘all inclusive’ approach

AUDIO – Sri Lanka’s new High Commissioner to Canada Ahmed Jawad speaks to lankareporter.com

Sri Lanka’s new High Commissioner to Canada Ahmed Jawad has promised an ‘all inclusive’ approach to the diaspora living in Canada.

Mr. Jawad, a career diplomat presented his credentials to the Governor General of Canada David Johnston in Ottawa.

“The new vision of the government led by President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe is to follow an all inclusive approach,” High Commissioner Jawad told Lanka Reporter at Rideau Hall, the official residence of the Governor General of Canada.

“We are all entitled to have our faiths and our ethnic identities, at the end of the day we are all Sri Lankans,” he added.

Earlier, Governor General David 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’s 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,” the Governor General said in his address.
The new envoy to Canada says the Sri Lankan diaspora in Canada is very much part of their country of birth.

“We don’t look upon our brothers and sisters in these far away lands as any different from any 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.”