Minister britanske vlade, pristojen za zadeve Commonwealtha, je odločno zagovarjal odločitev Združenega kraljestva, da se udeleži vrha voditeljev Commonwealtha na Šrilanki novembra. Minister Hugo Swire se je odzval na pozive, naj Velika Britanija bojkotira ali zniža svoje zastopstvo zaradi zaskrbljenosti glede države gostiteljice Šrilanke, ki se sooča z obtožbami o vojnih zločinih, kritiko njenega stanja človekovih pravic in hitrim odpuščanjem prvega. vrhovni sodnik. Kanada je že napovedala, da njen premier Stephen Harper ne bo protestiral zaradi odločitve o srečanju voditeljev vlad Commonwealtha (CHOGM) v Colombu.
G. Swire je povedal združenju novinarjev Commonwealtha v Londonu, da je vlada seznanjena s polemiko glede Šrilanke, ki gosti srečanje, in dejal: "Ne bomo šli z zavezanimi očmi." Strinjal se je, da je vprašanje Šrilanke, ki letos gosti letni vrh, trnovo. "Če bi se pogovarjali samo s prijatelji, ne bi bili zelo aktivni."
He said that Sri Lanka achieved chairmanship for next two years at a previous summit in Trinidad and Tobago and the decision was endorsed in Perth in 2011. Mr. Swire emphasized that the UK’s presence at CHOGM was not intended to bathe the Rajapakse government in a golden light. He said the UK would raise points of concern such as disappearances and other unacceptable things taking place in Sri Lanka. He said the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, would be travelling to the Tamil-dominated north during his visit. This would make him the first foreign head of government to visit the region since the bitter ethnic war ended in 2009. The Sri Lankan government is facing charges of war crimes during the last stage of the conflict when the UN estimates up to 40,000 civilians may have been killed.
G. Swire je dejal, da bo britansko delegacijo spremljal tiskovni zbor in bo sliko poročal, kot jo vidi. Povedal je, da bo Velika Britanija razpravljala o napredku, ki je bil dosežen, kot so volitve na severu in pri odstranjevanju min, vendar bo izpostavil tudi zaskrbljenost glede izginotij ter zatiranja svobode medijev in človekovih pravic.
Mr. Swire said the British government was going to Sri Lanka to support the Prince of Wales who will be representing the Queen, the location was incidental. Mr. Swire underlined that the government saw the meeting as an opportunity for Commonwealth leaders to meet and discuss developments which affected all member countries. “We will make the point that the meeting is about the Commonwealth and not just Sri Lanka.” He said Britain wished to discuss issues such as development in the post-2015 era. He said other topics would be raised on the margins of the summit including worries about the disputed Presidential election in the Maldives and Gambia’s decision to withdraw from the Commonwealth.
Na vprašanje, kaj bi Velika Britanija menila, da je najboljši izid vrha v Colombu, je g. Swire dejal, da upa, da bo tisk omogočen prost in neomejen dostop ter da bodo obravnavana vprašanja o izginotju novinarjev; da bodo izpolnjene obljube o spravi in obnovi; osvetlili bi spoštovanje Šrilanke listini Commonwealtha in videli bi cvetočo severno provinco pod njeno novo ustanovljeno provincialno vlado. G. Swire je dejal, da se mu zdi vrh Commonwealtha manj sporen od pričakovanega. Dejal je, da se bo Šrilanka zavedala, da bodo oči sveta uprte vanjo, in se bo želela oddati v dobri luči. Povedal je, da bo Britanija poročala o tem, kaj je ugotovila – dobro in slabo. Končal je z vprašanjem – kaj bi pridobila, če se Britanija ne udeleži vrha?
