08.03.2023

Sri Lanka holds together in crisis

The Participants of the Forum in Kandy. Foto by: MC-SL

At the beginning of March, representatives from religion and civil society in Sri Lanka met with the German network "Sri Lanka Advocacy" for consultations. The aim was to discuss ways to a more sustainable, solidary and democratic future against the background of the economic crisis. Almost seven million people are affected by extreme poverty and hunger due to the economic crisis and the state bankruptcy.

Sri Lanka Advocacy was founded after the end of the war in Sri Lanka in 2010. Its members are the United Evangelical Mission, Bread for the World, Misereor and Kindernothilfe.

One of the expectations of civil society in Sri Lanka is that economic and political crises will not be dealt with one after the other, as has been the case so far. In February, for example, regional elections were postponed for lack of money. Here, civil society representatives insist that both of the crises should be seen as interconnected and therefore dealt with simultaneously.

Jochen Motte, member of the Management Team of the UEM, sees the German government as jointly responsible for the severe economic crisis, especially in the area of humanitarian aid. As a member of the Paris Club, in which the creditor countries are united, Germany must also work to ensure that possible agreements to solve the debt crisis are not carried out on the backs of the poor. Furthermore, Germany should work towards strengthening and guaranteeing political, civil and minority rights in Sri Lanka.