Sri Lankan president to participate in Commonwealth summit

Sri Lankan President Mahindra Rajapaksa will lead a high powered delegation to attend the upcoming Commonwealth summit in Australia, the External Affairs Ministry said here on Monday. Rajapaksa will fly to Perth on Tuesday to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting accompanied by a delegation including External Affairs Minister G.L. Peiris and Presidential Secretary Lalith Weeratunga, the ministry said in a statement. Rajapaksa will take over from Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard as the Commonwealth Chairin-Office for 2013-2015. The summit will be held under the theme "Building National Resilience, Building Global Resilience." The gathering will examine issues faced by the member countries of the Commonwealth, especially the most economically vulnerable states. The leaders are also expected to consider matters relating to good governance, human rights, climate change, wealth creation, food security and natural resource management in the face of deepening global financial concerns and the debate on aid effectiveness. At the summit, which will kick off on Friday, a report offering 106 recommendations on sharpening the impact, strengthening the networks and raising the profile of the Commonwealth will also be taken up for consideration. However, Sri Lanka is expected to oppose the establishment of a Commissioner for Democracy, the Rule of Law and Human Rights, which is recommended in the report.