The Kandy donor parley closed two days of dialog on Tuesday adding over US$ 500 mn in new commitments. The new pledges top up US$ 2.5 bn in tsunami aid and debt relief pledged already.
The funds will be available over the medium term but donors warned that pledges could be retracted if the government and the LTTE steer off a negotiated settlement.
On the opening say donor’s were privy to the divide among Sri Lanka’s legislators when the country’s clergy led political party handed over a petition protesting the government’s proposal for a joint mechanism to utilise aid pledged for the post-tsunami reconstruction effort.
The government also faces opposition from within its Marxist coalition in implementing the proposed joint mechanism.
A threatened pull-out from Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, the government’s Marxist-nationalist coalition ally, together with public protests by extremist groupings connected to the party, managed to scuttle a deal with the tigers before a crucial donor confe