Potomac Institute Remembers Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Kadirgamar

Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Kadirgamar and
ICTS Director Yonah Alexander at the Potomac
Institute in September 2000.

August 16, 2005

News Release

Arlington, VA—The Potomac Institute offers its deepest condolences to the family, friends, and country of the Honorable Lakshman Kadirgamar, the slain Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka.

Potomac Chairman & CEO Mike Swetnam said, "I am greatly saddened to see such a great man who stood for peace and freedom be struck down by these barbarous terrorists. The Minister was a respected and honored friend of the Potomac Institute. We mourn his loss and honor his leadership and clarity of vision about the evils of terrorism, despite the permanent personal threat it posed to him and other Sri Lankans. The world is poorer today than it was yesterday."

Minister Kadirgamar visited the Institute in September 2000 at the invitation of Professor Yonah Alexander and spoke on “The Terrorism Challenge to Democracies.” In his address, he emphasized the importance of consistent and cohesive global anti-terrorism actions to protect the essential components of democracies. He spoke passionately about the wasted lives of Sri Lankan rebel child soldiers. He also challenged Western democracies to be unflinching in the fight against terrorism and not fall prey to various false blandishments.

The Honorable Kadirgamar championed peace between the Buddhist Sinhalas and the Hindu Tamil rebels in his native country; there is no doubt that his death will have a significant impact on the current peace process in Sri Lanka.

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