Published On Wed Mar 21 2012
Three years after bringing Sri Lanka’s bitter 25-year civil war to an end, President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his triumphalist government risk becoming pariahs. At the United Nations they are under fire for not fully probing what the UN calls “credible allegations” of war crimes, and for not healing the broken nation.
Three years after bringing Sri Lanka’s bitter 25-year civil war to an end, President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his triumphalist government risk becoming pariahs. At the United Nations they are under fire for not fully probing what the UN calls “credible allegations” of war crimes, and for not healing the broken nation.In Geneva this week Canada is co-sponsoring an American push at the UN Human Rights Council to demand that Rajapaksa’s Sinhala-dominated government set up a “credible and independent” probe of alleged war crimes, and seek genuine reconciliation with the Tamil minority. It’s a scandal it has taken this long.
Given that UN push, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has picked the right time to send a trio of Canadian lawmakers to Sri Lanka to gauge opinion there. They are parliamentary secretaries Chris Alexander (defence) and Rick Dykstra (immigration), and Sen. Vern White, a member of the Senate human rights committee.
While in Colombo they should deliver a blunt message that Canadians want to see the veil lifted on the ugly closing days of the war, and also more action on Tamil rights. Given that Canada is home to the largest Tamil diaspora, and that Harper declared the Tamil Tigers to be terrorists back in 2006, they have the credibility to speak out.
According to the UN, “tens of thousands” perished in 2008-2009 as Rajapaksa’s forces crushed a Tiger-led secessionist rebellion. The military shelled areas where 300,000 civilians were huddled. The Tigers used people as shields. There were grisly reports of point-blank executions, rape, torture and other crimes by both sides. None of this has been thoroughly investigated.
Now the respected International Crisis Group warns that the Rajapaksa government risks undermining long-term peace prospects. “The Tamil-majority north remains under de facto military occupation,” and efforts are underway to “Sinhalise” the region, the ICG reports. That’s a dangerously provocative policy. Going forward, Tamil regions need a degree of autonomy, not a jackboot.
Harper’s envoys should let Rajapaksa and his officials know that Canadians haven’t forgotten that Tamils were promised “substantive” regional autonomy, plus stronger minority rights and a fair share of positions in the civilian administration and military. The guns have long since fallen silent, but Tamils are still waiting.
