President calls on US diaspora to champion tourism, investment

SPEAKING before a packed audience of Sri Lankans at the Centre for the Arts, College of Staten Island, President Anura Kumara Disanayake on Thursday urged the diaspora to play an active role in promoting tourism, boosting investments, while strengthening ties with the homeland.

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• Notes Sri Lanka now seen as a country that respects democracy and upholds human rights

• Says independent investigations underway into political corruption, assassinations, abductions and wartime human rights abuses

• Asures SL will return to its pre-crisis economic level by next year

• Expresses confidence in resuming debt repayments by 2028

He made a strong appeal to Sri Lankans living in overseas to actively contribute to the economic progress, insisting that their participation is not sought through charity, but through investment and engagement.

"You can make a substantial contribution to the tourism industry. Collaborative programs can be organised in partnership with the Embassy, enabling active engagement with Sri Lanka rather than remaining distant observers.

We invite everyone to become a community actively involved in supporting the country in various ways,” he said.

Delivering a candid and detailed review of his Government’s progress one year after coming to power, the President stressed that the administration is delivering on its mandate to build a corruption-free State and restore faith in justice.

Disanayake underscored his administration's commitment to ending impunity and restoring public confidence in justice. "No one in Sri Lanka is beyond the reach of the law," he said, asserting that both high-profile corruption and past political crimes are under investigation. The President was careful to emphasise that these investigations are not politically motivated, but are being conducted by independent institutions like the Bribery or Corruption Commission and the Criminal Investigation Department.