Colombo Port city project to be given special status: Lanka PM

The controversy-hit USD 1.5 billion Colombo Port City Project funded by China will be accorded special status of a "financial and business district" with laws of its own, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe has said ahead of his fence-mending visit here.
"The Port City will become a special financial and business district of Sri Lanka which will have its own laws. Of course the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka must have the final say," Wickramasinghe told China's state-run Xinhua news agency ahead of his four-day visit from tomorrow.
He said a separate financial and legal system will operate in the Port City "where people can come and transact business internationally."

The ambitious project to be built on 583 acres of reclaimed land has raised concerns in India over its proximity to the Indian coast. It is Sri Lanka's biggest foreign investment project.
The project, suspended by President Maithripala Sirisena in March last year over allegations of corruption and concerns over its impact on the environment, was recently cleared after amending the agreement reached during the tenure of Mahinda Rajapaksa, specially the clause relating to the ownership of the land by Chinese firms.
Wickramasinghe said that with China's 21st Century Maritime Silk Road initiative, Sri Lanka hopes to regain its status as the economic hub of the Indian Ocean region.

India has not yet endorsed the Maritime Silk Road proposal because of its strategic concerns over the Chinese domination in the Indian Ocean -- often regarded as India's backyard.

While Wickramasinghe during his election campaign had threatened to scrap the project over environmental threat to the coastal belt from Negombo to Beruwala in the island, his government later put it on hold to probe its controversial clauses including the ownership of the land by Chinese firm.
The proposed city is to be built between the Colombo South Port and the Galle Face Green -- an ocean-side urban park.
According to the project agreement, 20 hectares of land will be given to China Communication Construction Company (CCCC), which is building the project on outright basis.

Concerns have been raised over the deal since the company gets the land on a freehold basis in a high security zone.
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Wickramasinghe said Sri Lanka is seeking to expand economic and trade ties with China and has invited more Chinese companies to invest in the island-nation.
He said he would be looking to set up a long-term economic and investment relationship with China.
"Today, China has become one of the leading economic powers of the world. China has made many investments in Sri Lanka and it has also given loans and grants," he said.
China-Lanka ties were on an upswing during Rajapaksa regime when Beijing committed about USD 7 billion for a host of projects, including the Hambantota port and the Colombo Port City projects. But the ties hit a low when Sirisena took over power in January last year.

Wickramasinghe said that the purpose of his visit is also to discuss a bilateral Free Trade Agreement.
"We like to have more emphasis on Chinese private investments into Sri Lanka and there are some other economic issues such as future loans that I hope to discuss," he said.
This is Wickramasinghe's first visit to China since coming to office in August last year. In 2015, President Sirisena visited Beijing, after visiting India.
Wickramasinghe's United National Party (UNP), defeated the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) led by Rajapaksa. The new government led by Sirisena has set a goal to turn Sri Lanka into South Asia's international economic hub.

Sri Lanka is discussing with China to set up a special economic zone in Hambantota with Chinese investments.
With Mattala Airport and Hambantota port in the area, Sri Lanka hopes to attract Chinese companies that have experience in operating airports and harbors, Wickramasinghe said.
"Once it is set, it will become a major economic zone as we plan to transform Hambantota into the second-largest economic area in Sri Lanka," he said.
In addition, China has also extended its cooperation with Sri Lanka in the government's western megapolis development plan and the integrated development plan in Pollonnaruwa in the North Central Province, he added.