Asian Editors Circle

People's participation and foreign policy

Public discussion of issues in Southern states like Sri Lanka needed as non-alignment fades

Supporters of Sri Lankan presidential contender Sajith Premadasa of the New Democratic Front at an election rally in Colombo (left) last week, while supporters of rival candidate Gotabhaya Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna gathered in Anuradha
Supporters of Sri Lankan presidential contender Sajith Premadasa of the New Democratic Front at an election rally in Colombo (left) last week, while supporters of rival candidate Gotabhaya Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna gathered in Anuradhapura (right). PHOTOS: REUTERS, EPA-EFE
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The prominent emergence of foreign policy issues in public discussion in Sri Lanka, against the backdrop of an upcoming presidential election in the country, needs to be seen as a highly positive development.

This is because foreign policy questions rarely come to the fore as "hot talking points" within the Sri Lankan polity.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on October 13, 2019, with the headline People's participation and foreign policy. Subscribe