Sri Lanka’s new government has decided to appoint a special presidential task force to identify issues related to reconciliation with the Tamil community and suggest measures to bring about ethnic harmony in the country.
Cabinet spokesman Rajitha Senaratne said the Presidential Task Force on Reconciliation (PTFR) would identify urgent reconciliation needs that require immediate solutions.
Mr. Senaratne said the PTFR would also consider proposals from citizens for the purpose.
President Maithripala Sirisena, who dethroned Mahinda Rajapaksa on January 9, in his Independence Day speech on Wednesday lamented the lack of progress in achieving ethnic reconciliation.
This year’s Independence Day was marked by the presence of mainstream Tamil leaders who attended the celebrations for the first time since 1972 when Colombo promulgated its republican constitution, replacing the British monarchy.
Mr. Senaratne also said the new government was considering the release of political detainees.
