Category: News

Explaining its position on the resolution on Sri Lanka adopted by the UNHRC yesterday, the main opposition the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) said it reflected the utter failure of the government.

A statement issued by the SJB said, “1) The Samagi Jana Balawegaya notes the adoption of a resolution on Sri Lanka at the 46th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council.

2. The SJB stands for the principles of justice and accountability, and the protection and promotion of human rights. The SJB believes that human rights and the Rule of law are universal and remains deeply committed to it.

3. The SJB acknowledges that the end of the armed conflict in 2009 was an important turning point in the country’s history. Many people have sacrificed their lives so that the country could have peace. The SJB is committed to safeguarding Sri Lanka’s unity, sovereignty, territorial integrity, political independence, and to the full and meaningful implementation of the 13th amendment to the Constitution, which will entail maximum devolution within a unitary state. However, lasting peace requires reconciliation among all the communities of the country through addressing the effects and the causes of the war.

4. The resolution on Sri Lanka at the 46th session of the Human Rights Council is a direct result of the government’s major failures. It was brought about by the government’s foreign policy failure, and its current failure in safeguarding human rights and democracy in Sri Lanka.

a. Foreign policy failure: The present government has managed its foreign relations extremely irrationally. Instead of embarking on a careful and thoughtful process of diplomatically convincing the world that Sri Lanka is willing to take its human rights obligations seriously, it embarked on an obnoxious and intransigent campaign. The government lacks coherence, competence, and good faith in dealing with the international community. This dysfunctional approach to foreign relations is one of the main reasons countries that once supported Sri Lanka are now no longer its allies.

A fresh approach is needed to better manage Sri Lanka’s foreign relations. Competent professionals with foreign affairs expertise should be guiding Sri Lanka’s foreign policy.

b. Failures in human rights and democracy: The resolution was adopted in the Council mainly because of the present government’s failure to respect and protect human rights and democracy in the country. The text of the resolution makes that very clear.

The SJB condemns the present rapid deterioration of the human rights situation in Sri Lanka, and the racist, xenophobic, and discriminatory policies of the present government. It also condemns the systematic assault on Sri Lanka’s democratic institutions.

The freedom of people to speak freely is being thwarted, as vocal critics of government are being targeted for their views. Politicians, lawyers, media personnel and activists are being punished for their political activities, and human rights work. Communities, including environmental activists, are not being permitted to air their grievances freely, and are being compelled to take to the streets.

The people’s representatives in opposition parties are being systematically targeted through a process designed to strip them of their civic rights, and disqualify them from contesting elections. The SJB fears that the country is being primed to become a one-party state, or worse – a despotic or tyrannical state, where the democratic choice of the people will be destroyed.

A fresh approach is needed to ensure human rights and democracy in Sri Lanka. If Sri Lanka emerges as a country that respects human rights and democracy, it would certainly not be on the agenda of the UN Human Rights Council.

5. The SJB is committed to an internationally credible, independent domestic accountability mechanism. It intends to build on past credible initiatives such as the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) and later the Paranagama Commission. Both these bodies found that certain violations had taken place, and needed to be investigated. The LLRC in particular made recommendations on measures needed to promote reconciliation in the country. Regrettably, the present government has not implemented these recommendations. Instead, it has promised yet another new commission nearly 10 years after the LLRC report was published. This inaction has directly led to increased international pressure on Sri Lanka.”

The DMK, MDMK and CPM have condemned the Indian Government for not voting on the UN resolution raised against Sri Lanka at the United Nation Human Rights Council (UNHRC) meeting in Geneva on Tuesday, New Indian Express said today.

DMK president MK Stalin dubbed the Centre’s act as betrayal of Eelam Tamils.

“The government is indirectly helping Sri Lanka by boycotting the voting on a resolution, which could have promoted reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka,” he added.

MDMK general secretary Vaiko and CPM general secretary K Balakrishnan also slammed the government.

The resolution on Sri Lanka which was adopted by the UN Human Rights Council will take immediate effect with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) beginning the process to closely monitor Sri Lanka, UN sources told Daily Mirror last night.

Monitoring Sri Lanka will be carried out immediately with existing staff while other related work will be implemented once the UN General Assembly approves funding later this year.

The resolution may not have an immediate impact on Sri Lanka but with over 40 cosponsors, sources said that in the long term there could be an impact on trade with some countries and travel restrictions imposed on some officials as a result of the resolution.

The United States, EU and a number of other countries are among the cosponsors of the resolution, some with no voting rights in the UN Human Rights Council.

The resolution has called on the Office of the High Commissioner to enhance its monitoring and reporting on the situation of human rights in Sri Lanka, including on progress in reconciliation and accountability.

OHCHR has also been told to present an oral update to the Human Rights Council at its forty-eighth session, and a written update at its forty-ninth session and a comprehensive report that includes further options for advancing accountability at its fifty-first session, both to be discussed in the context of an interactive dialogue.

Meanwhile, the United Nations said it would require more funds to fully implement the resolution on Sri Lanka.

OHCHR is looking to recruit 12 new employees to work on Sri Lanka. Among them are legal advisors with experience in international criminal justice and/or criminal investigations and prosecutions to coordinate the team and oversee an information and evidence collection strategy, analysts, two investigators/human rights officers and victim support officers.

Director of Programme Planning and Budget Division at the UN, Johannes Huisman said that draft resolution A/HRC/46/L.1/Rev.1, would require an additional one-time requirement of $2,856,300.

He said the funds required to implement the new resolution on Sri Lanka is not in the budget for the year 2021.

In a letter to Goro Onojima, the Secretary of the Human Rights Council, Huisman said that the financial requirements, in accordance with established procedures, would be brought to the attention of the General Assembly at its 76th session.

The resolution seeks OHCHR support for relevant judicial and other proceedings, including in Member States, with competent jurisdiction.

The funds will be required for the process to collect, consolidate, analyse and preserve information and evidence and to develop possible strategies for future accountability processes for gross violations of human rights or serious violations of international humanitarian law in Sri Lanka, advocate for victims and survivors, and support relevant judicial and other proceedings, including in Member States with competent jurisdiction.

The United Nations human rights chief Michelle Bachelet has been authorised to collect and preserve evidence of alleged war crimes during Sri Lanka’s long civil war, which ended in 2009.

The UN believes 80,000-100,000 people died in the 26-year conflict with the Tamil Tiger rebel group.

A resolution passed by the UN Human Rights Council accused Sri Lanka of “obstructing accountability”.

Sri Lanka described the resolution as “unhelpful” and “divisive”.

The council’s resolution also called for trials of suspects in foreign countries.

Both the government and the Tamil Tiger rebels are accused of atrocities during the conflict.

Speaking to the BBC on Tuesday, Ms Bachelet said: “I welcome the Human Rights Council’s decision to continue its monitoring of human rights in Sri Lanka and pursue accountability for past crimes. I salute the courage and commitment of victims from all communities in Sri Lanka in their pursuit of truth and justice.”

She said she hoped Sri Lanka would “change course from its current policies” and “ensure full protection of minorities, human rights defenders and the media”.

In the war’s final few months, the Sri Lankan army pinned the rebels into a strip of north-eastern coast, where the government says the rebels kept thousands of civilians as human shields, exacerbating the death toll.

Yasmin Sooka, a rights lawyer involved in a civil prosecution against Sri Lanka’s current President Gotabaya Rajapaksa for alleged war crimes, said the resolution was “hugely significant for victims”.

“It really is a recognition that at the domestic level, processes have failed and there is no real hope that victims will access justice,” she told the Reuters news agency.

The push to pass the resolution was led by the UK. It passed by 22 votes to 11, with China and Pakistan among those voting against. There were 14 abstentions, including that of neighbouring India.

Ahead of the vote, the British ambassador Julian Braithwaite said: “We bring this resolution in the hope that it will help advance the human rights of all communities, including Buddhist, Christian, Muslim, Sinhala or Tamil.

“And more importantly that it will help prevent the recurrence of past grave violations of human rights which the High Commissioner warned this council about in such clear terms.”

The success of the resolution gives Ms Bachelet’s office new staff, powers and a $2.8 million budget to look at Sri Lanka’s war with a view to future prosecutions.

At a press conference in Sri Lanka’s capital Colombo, the nation’s Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunewardena said the resolution lacked authority as more nations voted against or abstained than in favour.

“The resolution was brought by countries supported by Western powers that want to dominate the Global South,” he said.

The UN Human Rights Council also expressed alarm at the human rights situation in Sri Lanka today, including a “deepening and accelerating militarisation of civilian government functions”, “the erosion of the independence of the judiciary”, and “increased marginalisation” of Tamil and Muslim minorities.

Analysis

Anbarasan Ethirajan, World Service South Asia Regional Editor

Despite weeks of intense behind-the-scenes diplomatic campaigning, the UN Human Rights Council resolution has gone against the Sri Lankan government.

The new resolution gives more powers to the UN human rights chief to ensure accountability for the alleged war crimes during the conflict with the Tamil Tiger rebels which ended in 2009, and the evidence gathered can be used for any future prosecutions.

Sri Lanka is worried that in the long term it may lead to travel and other restrictions on some of the military and civilian officials involved in the war. The government has been defiant, arguing that the resolution cannot be implemented without the consent of the country concerned.

But some Tamil community leaders believe that the UN resolution did not go far enough to impose tougher sanctions on Sri Lanka. For them, their wait to find answers about their relatives missing in the war continues. They want accountability for the thousands of deaths.

The resolution may not satisfy all the parties concerned, but it’s a clear reminder from the international community that the alleged abuses in the Sri Lankan conflict will not be forgotten or ignored.

Sri Lanka on Tuesday rejected a UN move to preserve evidence of war crimes in the country and said the money allocated for the effort would be better spent on housing for the poor.

The resolution adopted by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva called for a $2.8 million budget to collect and preserve evidence of war crimes for future prosecutions.

It follows a damning report from UN rights chief Michelle Bachelet on Sri Lanka’s failure to prosecute war criminals from the island’s separatist conflict that ended in May 2009.

Foreign minister Dinesh Gunawardena said the UN rights council’s censure motion, which 22 voted for and 11 against, was not binding on Colombo.

“It is a waste of money. Highly uncalled for,” Gunawardena told reporters at a hurriedly organised press conference in Colombo shortly after losing the vote.

“Without the consent and acceptance of the country concerned, it cannot be implemented.”

The money would be better spent on providing “housing for the entire population in the Jaffna peninsula”, he said, referring to the heartland of the island’s minority Tamils in the war-battered region.

Successive governments in Sri Lanka have resisted calls for an independent investigation into allegations that troops killed at least 40,000 Tamil civilians while crushing Tiger guerrillas, a charge Colombo denies.