Sri Lanka’s Parliament is scheduled to debate the allegations made in a New York Times investigation detailing how China seized ownership of the Hambantota Port and accusing the former government led by Mahinda Rajapaksa of corruption. 

The United National Party (UNP) is expected to table the relevant Adjournment Motion for the debate. 

The Parliament debate will commence at 10.30am today (19) and continue throughout the day.

State Minister Ajith P. Perera said that they intend to present facts and extensively question regarding the allegations during the debate.

MP Dinesh Gunawardena said that the Joint Opposition is prepared to successfully face the debate.

However, he said that former President Mahinda Rajapaksa will not participate in today’s debate as he is currently oversea. 

The Times article was published on June 26. It detailed how Mr. Rajapaksa had taken on more than $1 billion in loans from China’s government to build a seaport in his hometown of Hambantota allegedly despite feasibility studies that concluded the project was not economically viable.

Unable to pay off the debt, Sri Lanka’s current government handed over Hambantota port last year to China Merchants Port in a 99-year lease. China Merchants is another large, state-owned Chinese company.

The article also cited an ongoing government investigation into payments from China Harbor Engineering Co., a major, Chinese state-owned enterprise, to aides in Mr. Rajapaksa’s campaign before the 2015 elections. China Harbor built the Hambantota port.

On July 1, Mr. Rajapaksa wrote an open letter to editors at The Times in response to the article, rejecting statements that his electoral campaign had received any payments from China Harbor.

Mr. Rajapaksa’s letter denied the article’s assertions that feasibility studies conducted during his presidency had concluded that Hambantota port was not economically viable.