The connection between human rights and a trade concessionBy Sumudu ChamaraLast month, the European Parliament adopted a resolution urging the European Commission to consider a temporary withdrawal of the Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP+) trade concession granted to Sri Lanka, taking into consideration Sri Lanka’s prevailing human rights situation. Sri Lanka’s commitment to protecting human rights is, in fact, a condition upon which the GSP+ trade concession was granted to the country. He explained the overall situation pertaining to Sri Lanka receiving the GSP+ trade concession from an international relations perspective. “This liberalisation does not necessarily mean economic liberalisation, but also human rights and so on. If we have to manage our markets, we have to manage our domestic image, which includes human rights matters.

Source: The Nation July 04, 2021 17:26 UTC