• Chair Dr. Sarath Weerasekera claims foreign experts consulted on tech. aspects of cyber security 

The Sectoral Oversight Committee (SOC) on National Security stated that there would be no change in their observation that the proposed privatisation of the Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) poses a threat to national security, but that the Government is free to make any decision on the matter.

In a recent report, the SOC on National Security had informed the Parliament that they would not recommend the privatisation of the SLT as it poses a threat to national security. It was later reported that the SOC had not made any inquiry from the relevant authorities responsible for national security before preparing the report.

When queried by The Daily Morning regarding the allegation, SOC Chairman Dr. Sarath Weerasekera said that the report had been prepared after making the necessary inquiries from all the relevant parties including foreign experts on national security. "Some say that we should have inquired from the Tri-Forces Commanders, but there is no need for them to be queried about cyber security. They should be reached out to only if it is a matter pertaining to physical security. This is something related to the technical aspect, and we have therefore consulted experts in the field of cyber security, including those from other countries, before preparing the report."

In response to a query as to whether there will be any change to the SOC's observation with regard to the matter, he said that they would continue to stand by their observations. "In the report, we have pointed out how data could be leaked to outsiders, what the possibilities are for adverse effects, and many other issues that may arise. So, there will be no change to our observations. We will stand by our report. The Government can take whatever decision that they want. We have pointed out that there will be a detrimental effect to national security if the SLT is privatised."

Against the backdrop of the SOC on National Security stating that it would not recommend privatising the SLT as matters sensitive to national security could be exposed, the Ministry of Finance, Economic Stabilisation, and National Policies, that is under President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is also the Minister of Defence, recently stated that they were not ready to reverse its reform agenda for any reason. Speaking to The Daily Morning, the State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe said that the Government could assure that nothing harmful to the country’s national security would take place during and after the SLT privatisation process.

Meanwhile, the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna recently stated that it is best to appoint an expert committee to look into the matter, and to take further steps according to its recommendations.