How India kept pressure off Sri Lanka

Nirupama Subramanian

The Hindu

In the final stages of the war with the LTTE, New Delhi played all sides but discouraged international attempts to halt the operations.

India played a key role in warding off international pressure on Sri Lanka to halt military operations and hold talks with the LTTE in the dramatic final days and weeks of the war in 2009, confidential U.S. Embassy cables accessed by The Hindu through WikiLeaks showed.

The cables reveal that while India conveyed its concern to Sri Lanka several times about the “perilous” situation that civilians caught in the fighting faced, it was not opposed to the anti-LTTE operation.

They also show that India worried about the Sri Lankan President's “post-conflict intentions,” though it believed that there was a better chance of persuading him to offer Sri Lankan Tamils an inclusive political settlement after the fighting ended. 

 How India kept pressure off Sri Lanka                                               Full Story>>>

Sri Lanka Looks Ahead: Will Prosperity Bring Peace?

 Remarks

Robert O. Blake, Jr

.  
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs

Asia Society Event

New York, NY

March 14, 2011

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Good evening, Ambassador Kohona, Asia Society members and guests, and thank you, Jamie, for that kind introduction. It’s a pleasure to be back with the Asia Society, an organization whose work has been unmatched in promoting mutual understanding among, and within the many Asian nations. The last time I participated in an Asia Society program was actually in New Delhi a year ago where I spoke of the importance and strength of the U.S. - India relationship, so it is great to be able to travel just a few hours and not cross any time zones to be with you today. Thank you for the invitation to participate in today’s conversation on Sri Lanka, a country which is important to the United States and significant to me personally after spending three great years there as Ambassador.
Jamie wondered whether prosperity will bring lasting peace and healing in Sri Lanka. I think it’s an essential question to ask. After so many years of conflict, economic growth and improving livelihoods are certainly important for rebuilding the country. But I also believe that reconciliation has important political and social dimensions as well. Thus, I would like to look at economic development in the broader context of the country’s post-conflict healing process of which it is a key factor. Let me start by saying that in the nearly two years since the end of the conflict, Sri Lanka has made steady progress in normalizing life for its citizens and reconciling the differences that devastated parts of the island for so many years, but there is much that remains to be done. Let me focus first on the progress that has been made.
Full Text» More»

Exodus from Japan as nuclear crisis intensifies

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

TOKYO — Foreign countries advised their citizens to evacuate Japan as emergency workers struggled Wednesday to prevent a nuclear meltdown and radiation catastrophe at an earthquake-stricken power plant.
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission chief said the situation at one damaged reactor seemed particularly troublesome because there was no water to stop the fuel rods from getting hotter and ultimately melting.
Workers withdrew briefly from the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant Wednesday because of surging radiation but returned after emissions dropped to safer levels.
Full Story>>>

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A cloud of nuclear mistrust spreads around the world - Asia, World

A cloud of nuclear mistrust spreads around the world - Asia, World - The Independent
                                                                                       

• More pictures

Evacuees from Fukushima are screened for radiation contamination yesterday, after authorities struggled to contain explosions at nuclear plants

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Video: Devastation in Otsuchi - Asia, World 

Video: Devastation in Otsuchi - Asia, World - The Independent

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Video footage from the town of Otsuchi where some 12,000 people out of a population of 15,000 have disappeared.

WikiLeaks: Narayanan in PMO's 'Keralite mafia'

New Delhi: The latest set of India-related cables released by whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks include some that have a potential to embarrass India's power elite.
A leaked cable released on March 15 discusses MK Narayanan's possibility of becoming the National Security Advisor (NSA) following JN Dixit's death. Narayanan, now Governor of West Bengal, was then the Acting NSA. The cable labelled "confidential", was cleared by the then US Ambassador to India David C Mulford.
The cable describes MK 'Mike' Narayanan as a long-time Gandhi family loyalist who is part of the traditional "coterie" around the Congress President Sonia Gandhi.
Narayanan along with Principal Secretary TKA Nair, the cable states, constitute a Keralite "mafia" in the Prime Minister's Office. "In a bureaucratic culture dominated by North Indian Hindi speakers, this Keralite lock on the PM's inner bureaucratic circle represents something of an anomaly, which could in the long term create new faultlines around the Prime Minister," the leaked document elaborates on the impact of the "Keralite mafia."

  Full text of the leaked cable:

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25259: After Dixit, India ponders role of its NSA and who will get the job

 

Two questions now swirl around India's National Security Advisor position: will it lose its major role in the Indian foreign policy establishment, and who will land the job permanently?

25259: After Dixit, India ponders role of its NSA and who will get the job 

 

Call to boycott Colombo defence seminar

 

Western countries and the human rights watchdogs have called for a credible investigation into what happened during the last stages of war

An international human rights watchdog has called on over 50 invited countries to boycott a conference aimed at sharing Sri Lanka's war experience.

The Sri Lankan government has invited militaries of 54 countries for the "Defeating Terrorism Sri Lankan Experience” to be held from 31 May to 02 June in Colombo.

But Human Rights Watch (HRW) said it "understands" that some of the key invitees have already decided not to take part.

“What we are telling the militaries around the world is that they should not attend a meeting to celebrate a military policy that involves killing so many civilians,” HRW Executive Director Brad Adams told BBC Sinhala service, Sandeshaya.

It will endeavour to propose adequate measures to manage and counter global terrorism and discuss strategies for nation building while introducing a Sri Lankan perspective in counter terrorism   Sri Lanka military website

Foreign Minister GL Peiris, Secretary to President Lalith Weerathunga, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Central Bank Governor Ajith Cabraal, terrorism expert Prof Rohan Gunaratne and many senior military officers are among the list of speakers.

"It will endeavour to propose adequate measures to manage and counter global terrorism and discuss strategies for nation building while introducing a Sri Lankan perspective in counter terrorism,” said the statement in the defence ministry run website.

But the rights watchdog says many of the tactics employed by the Sri Lankan military in its war against the Tamil Tigers were “illegal.”

“If militaries around the world are going to meet they should be talking about those illegal activities and not trying to copy the Sri Lankan government’s doctrine,” Mr Adams said.

'Big lie'

"If this was a genuine agenda and it was carried by independent and impartial people to look at the good, the bad and the ugly about the war," the executive director said that HRW welcomes the initiative.

	HRW says Sri Lanka "lying' of political reforms

He says that the Japanese, for example, has a constitution that does not allow them to involve in international arms conflict. “So the Japanese should stay away miles away in the meeting in Colombo.”

The HRW accused the Sri Lankan government of repeatedly “lying” of political reforms to settle the national question.

“I promise that they will never engage in political reforms they have always said that political reforms is part of the process but they have never done it. It is empty rhetoric. It is basically a big lie.”

The watchdog says the planned seminar is an attempt by the Sri Lankan government “to teach the rest of the world how to engage in counter insurgency.”

“We have no doubt that the LTTE was a terrorist organisation. We were extremely critical of the LTTE all along but that does not give a licence to the government to attack civilians the way it did,” Brad Adams added.

The HRW says the timing of the conference which falls on the second anniversary since the government defeated the LTTE sends a "terrible message" to the Tamil community.

Al Jazeera staffer killed in Libya

Al Jazeera staffer killed in Libya

Cameraman Ali Hassan Al Jaber was returning to eastern city of Benghazi from filing report when he was shot and killed. ( 13-Mar-2011 )

An Al Jazeera cameraman has been shot dead while working in eastern Libya. Ali Hassan Al Jaber from Qatar was one of three people travelling in a car when it was ambushed. The network has condemned the attack as a cowardly crime. Gerald Tan reports.

Source: Al Jazeera

Building housing nuclear reactor explodes in Japan

Building housing reactor explodes in Japan

TOKYO — An explosion at a nuclear power station Saturday destroyed a building housing the reactor amid fears that it could melt down after being hit by a powerful earthquake and tsunami. Japan’s...  Read Full Story

An explosion has blown the roof off a Fukishima nuclear power plant

Saturday 12 March 2011

An explosion has blown the roof off a Fukishima nuclear power plant, north of Tokyo - injuring several workers and raising fears of a disastrous meltdown, following yesterday's earthquake and tsunami.

It was one of two reactors which were placed under a state of emergency yesterday - after the 8.9 magnitude earthquake sent a massive tsunami wave smashing across Japan's north east coast.
The Prime Minister, Naoto Kan, warned there could be a radiation leak at one of the Daichi reactors, after its cooling system broke down.
Repeated efforts to get it working have failed - and the Nuclear Safety Industry Agency said radiation levels inside the plant were 1,000 times the normal level. Nisa also said it had detected cesium - showing the material covering the fuel rods could

Full Story>>>

Posted by Thavam

 

Earthquake devastates Japan

Country hit by worst earthquake in its recorded history, leaving more than 1,000 people dead and many missing

Yokohama residents panic as earthquake shakes Japan Link to this video More than 1,000 people were believed dead and many more missing after the worst earthquake in Japan's records struck its north-east coast, unleashing a 10m-high tsunami, setting towns ablaze and sparking a nuclear emergency. The 8.9-magnitude shock triggered tsunami alerts and evacuations across the Pacific region, with Russia, the Philippines and Hawaii all moving vulnerable citizens to higher ground.

PRIVILEGE : ATTACK ON VECHICLE HON.S.SHRITHARAN WAS TRAVELLING

Hansard of March 08, 2011

If you do not have Acrobat Reader, download here.

Download here.

 Pagas 109-110 in Tamil

Tamil National Alliance Kilinochchi district parlimentarian S. Sreetharan said in Parliament on Wednesday,

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Tamil National Alliance Kilinochchi district parlimentarian S. Sreetharan 

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Thursday, March 10, 2011

No security guarantee for Tamil parliamentarians: TNA MP

[TamilNet, Thursday, 10 March 2011, 07:58 GMT]

Over the attack on his vehicle at Nochchiyagama on Monday, Tamil National Alliance Ki'linochchi district parlimentarian S. Sreetharan said in Parliament on Wednesday, “It is clear that there is no security guarantee for MPs in this country. How can a Tamil here expect security from the state?” He further stated that while he was passing Medawachchiya on Monday at 5:30 p.m., a white colored van without a number plate overtook their vehicle. When they approached Ullukku'lam the said vehicle was parked on the side of the road and three men got off from the vehicle and fired at them using small weapons. In return, his security guards fired back before the assassins threw a grenade at his vehicle and fled the scene.

The assassination attempt follows Mr. Sritharan's criticism against the SL government allowing its military to register details of Tamil civilians with photos. He made the criticism in the local election campaign meetings in Vanni in recent days.

In the past, TNA MP N Raviraj was brutally assassinated in Colombo. Another TNA MP, Joseph Pararajasingham, was assassinated inside a Batticoloa cathedral during a Chritmas eve. The vehicle of TNA MP K Sivanesan was attacked with a claymore mine in Vanni and he was killed on the spot. No investigations have been carried out so far on the above assassinations.

The SL military has a record of passing the blame on the LTTE for all political killings.

Now, when the SL government says that the LTTE is gone, on whom it is going to pass the blame for Monday's attack on Sritharan MP, was the question asked among the opposition.

Sri Lankan Speaker Chamal Rajapaksa, the brother of SL President Mahinda Rajapaksa, told the SL House that there would be a full probe on the incident.

Chronology:

10.03.11  No security guarantee for Tamil parliamentarians: ..

09.03.11  State run daily plays down assassination attempt o..

07.03.11  TNA MP Sritharan narrowly escapes assassination in..

As Gillard Is Asked Of ICC & Australian Sri Lanka Citizen Kohona, UN Still In Denial

By Matthew Russell Lee

UNITED NATIONS, March 9 -- Joint Australian - Sri Lankan citizen Palitha Kohona is the subject of a filing with the International Criminal Court for his role in presumptive war crimes in the final stages of the conflict in Sri Lanka. When contacted by the press, Kohona has refused to “dignify” the case.
  On March 9, Inner City Press asked Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard about this filing against Kohona, who has also represented Australia before he represented Sri Lanka, and about the UN's and Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's handling of his Panel on Sri Lanka, which has not visited the island. Video here.
  “I'm not personally aware of all details of that case,” she answered. “We are a supporter of the ICC and a supporter of proper legal procedure and practice, one rule... is that political leaders should not comment on legal matters that are underway.”
  While some of the journalists traveling with Prime Minister Gillard later called this a dodge, it's more than the UN has had to say. Without explanation, Ban Ki-moon's Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq has denied to other media the existence of the ICC filing against Kohona -- which also mentions and questions the role of Ban Ki-moon's chief of staff Vijay Nambiar in the so called white flag killings.
Gillard & Ban Ki-moon, previously, Kohona and no-fly zone not shown
As Gillard Is Asked Of ICC & Australian Sri Lanka Citizen Kohona, UN In Denial        
Full Story>>>

'UN intervention' to find Prageeth

'UN intervention' to find Prageeth

Five prominent media rights organizations has written to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, calling on the U.N. to intervene in the case of journalist Prageeth Eknelygoda.

Wife and the son of Prageeth

	Looking for Prageeth year later

The letter notes, his wife, Sandhya Eknelygoda, has been asking the Sri Lankan government for any information about his fate.

“She has been given no information from any person in the government. Eknelygoda’s disappearance and his wife’s efforts on his behalf have been widely reported in Sri Lankan and international media”, says the letter.

“She has been given no information from any person in the government. Eknelygoda’s disappearance and his wife’s efforts on his behalf have been widely reported in Sri Lankan and international media”, says the letter.

Handed over letter to the UN

The letter by media organisations aims to draw attention of the General secretary to the plight of the wife of Prageeth.

On January 24, the anniversary of Eknelygoda’s disappearance, his wife personally handed over a letter addressed to you requesting assistance from the United Nations to U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sri Lanka Neil Buhne. 

The letter was signed by representatives of the Cartoonists Rights Network International, the Committee to Protect Journalists, International Media Support, Reporters Without Borders, and the International Federation of Journalists.

Wife in Geneva

U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky told a press conference in New York on 18th of February that the letter is now being reviewed.

The media organisations asks for a response to the letter.

The media organisations say that they are prepared to assist the United Nations in pursuing this case.

In an effort to draw attention to the dissppearence of her husband, Sandhya Eknaligoda has traveled to Geneva to take part in lobbying human rights organisations during the UN Human Rights Commission hearings on Sri Lanka.
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Media rights groups to UN:

Media rights groups to UN:

 

Posted by Thavam.

 

 

Sri Lanka: Forgotten prisoners: Sri Lanka uses anti-terrorism laws to detain thousands

Sri Lanka: Forgotten prisoners: Sri Lanka uses anti-terrorism laws to detain thousands

Download:

• PDF

Index Number: ASA 37/001/2011
Date Published: 8 March 2011
Categories: Sri Lanka

Thousands of people are languishing in detention without charge or trial under Sri Lanka’s repressive anti-terrorism laws. Sometimes held in secret prisons, they are vulnerable to a whole range of abuses, including torture or being killed in custody. Sri Lanka has been under a state of emergency almost continually since 1971. Successive governments have used national security as an excuse to introduce a range of broad and often confusing emergency regulations.

This document is also available in:
Tamil:

• PDF

Sinhala:

• PDF

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Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Thousands in detention - Amnesty

Charles Haviland
Colombo

The human rights group Amnesty International has called on the President of Sri Lanka to release those it describes as “forgotten prisoners”

	Families still waiting the detainees to be charged or released

people it says have been detained without trial for years and who it says are numbered in the thousands, 1,900 of them officially confirmed.

Two years

It says sweeping emergency and anti-terror laws are still used to arrest people and should be scrapped. In a reaction a government MP has said that efforts are still afoot to revive the Tamil Tiger militants.
Thousands in detention - Amnesty            Full Story>>>

Posted by Thavam

Media rights groups to U.N.: Intervene in Sri Lanka case

Media rights groups to U.N.: Intervene in Sri Lanka case

A missing poster for Eknelygoda.

New York, March 8, 2011--Five prominent media rights organizations sent a letter on Monday to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, calling on the U.N. to intervene in the case of Prageeth Eknelygoda, the Sri Lankan columnist and cartoonist for the Lanka eNews website, who disappeared on January 24, 2010. Since then, the letter notes, his wife, Sandhya Eknelygoda, has been asking the Sri Lankan government for any information about his fate. She has been given no word from any person in the government. Eknelygoda's disappearance and his wife's efforts on his behalf have been widely reported in Sri Lankan and international media.

The letter was signed by representatives of the Cartoonists Rights Network International, the Committee to Protect Journalists, International Media Support, Reporters Without Borders, and the International Federation of Journalists.
Read the letter here.

What few care to know: Challenges and opportunities in post-war Sri Lanka

Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu speech from Centre for Policy Alternatives on Vimeo.

What few care to know: Challenges and opportunities in post-war Sri Lanka

8 Mar, 2011 Groundviews 18th Amendment, Colombo, Features, Human Rights, Human Security, Peace and Conflict, Politics and Governance, Post-War, Reconciliation

Transcript of speech delivered by Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu accepting the first Citizens Peace Award, 28 February 2011. Video of speech below.
Members of the Head Table, Venerable Sirs, Your Excellency President Kumaratunga and Friends,
Let me begin by thanking the National Peace Council for this inaugural Citizens’ Peace Award, which I accept in all humility. I am acutely conscious that the objective of peace, securing human rights protection and good governance cannot be achieved by the singular efforts of a single individual or similar acts by many – it is a continuous process, it is a struggle and it goes on and on, irrespective of the few high moments we celebrate. We have to recommit ourselves and steel ourselves to the challenge that lies ahead.
What few care to know: Challenges and opportunitFull Story>>>

TNA MPs vehicle comes under attack at Nochchiyagama

TNA MPs vehicle comes under attack at Nochchiyagama

Monday, 07 March 2011 21:09

TNA MP S. Sritharan's vehicle came under attack by a mob at Nochchiyagama today evening, party sources said.
The MP was returning from Jaffna to Colombo.
The MP escaped,  but the vehicle had been damaged.
Police said they were investigating, but no arrests have been made.

TNA MPs vehicle comes under attack at Nochchiyagama

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TNA MP Sritharan narrowly escapes assassination in Anuradhapura

[TamilNet, Monday, 07 March 2011, 14:54 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance parliamentarian from Vanni, S. Sritharan, narrowly escaped from a group of attackers who lobbed two hand grenade targeting his vehicle and fired at the vehicle using pistols from behind Monday evening around 6:00 p.m. at Nochchiyaagama in Anuradhapura, TNA parliamentarians told media. The parliamentarian was on his way to Colombo from Vavuniyaa when the attackers targeted his vehicle at Anuradhapura.
The armed men fled the site when the security guard of the parliamentarian opened fire in self-defense, the sources further said.
The MP has complained to the Sri Lankan Police hierarchy and has sought refuge at a secure place.
The assassination attempt on Mr. Sritharan comes 3 years after TNA MP for Vanni Mr. Sivanesan was assassinated in a targeted Claymore attack allegedly by Sri Lanka Army Deep Penetration Unit (DPU) inside the then LTTE controlled Vanni. Full story >>

The Problem with Karma: Notes from the Conflict in Sri Lanka

Amarnath Amarasingam

Doctoral candidate, Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario, Canada

Posted: March 4, 2011 09:02 PM

The Problem with Karma: Notes from the Conflict in Sri Lanka

Read More: Buddhism , Hinduism , Karma , Karma And Buddhism , Karma And War , Killing And Karma , Mahinda Rajapaksa , Religion And Politics , Sri Lanka , Sri Lankan Civil War , Tamil Tigers , Religion News 

Over the past month, there has been some speculation among members of the global Tamil community on whether Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa visited Texas to obtain cancer treatment in secret. The story in itself is not particularly interesting, but it does have relevance for the post-conflict situation in Sri Lanka. Many reacted to the news not with sadness, but with a sense that cosmic justice was being meted out. Some argued that Rajapaksa, responsible for mass human rights violations during the final months of the Sri Lankan civil war, was now getting his just desserts. Although many nationalist Tamils profess to be atheist or secular, the reaction to the news was always framed in Hindu and Buddhist notions of karma, popularly defined in the West as "what goes around comes around."

The Problem with Karma: Notes from the Conflict in Sri Lanka 

Full Story>>>

The Ground Report India

UN BAN’S CHALLENGE- DELHI ‘S CONSPIRACY TO KILL OFF SRI LANKA WAR CRIMES INITIATIVES

The Ground Report India

by Vssubramaniam for The Ground Report India    March 04, 2011

UN BAN’S CHALLENGE- DELHI ‘S CONSPIRACY TO KILL OFF SRI LANKA WAR CRIMES INITIATIVES  

The Inner City Press reports (24th February and 3rd March) on the proceedings in the meetings that UN Ban had with Sri Lankan officials with war crimes record that the Ban’s ‘expert panel’ was to address distresses Eelam Tamils, the victims of the SL genocide crimes. More distressing is the involvement of Ban’s deputy, Nambiar who according to reports contributed to the massacres of the white flag waving Eelam Tamil resistance leaders obeying the orders to surrender. Nambiar who has a vested interest in neutralizing the work of Ban’s ‘expert panel’ being involved in its work endangers UN’s war crimes initiatives. Addressing this conflict of interest issue is a challenge at the very least to the moral authority of the UN, specifically the offices of UN Secretary General  and UNHRC, the duly authorized bodies entrusted to deliver justice to the victims of the heinous genocide crimes that shocked humanity. The Secretary General’s office meeting with officials of the crime tainted SL regime that challenges Ban’s authority to appoint the panel and with SL officials like Palitha Kohona an accused in a case filed with ICC, and General Shavendre Silva involved in the Mullivaykkal (M’kal) massacres is morally most unacceptable. These are bound to compromise the standards of justice eventually delivered by the UN mandated courts. Analysts have discussed at length Nambiar’s role as Delhi’s South Block agent colluding with the ‘in the loop’ M’kal Narayanan and Shiva Shankar Menon who names also surface in SL’s crimes once Gothabhaya Rajapakse holds on to his ‘in the loop’ defense in any international court proceedings on SL massacres.

UN BAN’S CHALLENGE- DELHI ‘S CONSPIRACY TO KILL OFF SRI LANKA WAR CRIMES INITIATIVES

                                                                               more>>>

Expressing support for internal rebuilding, resettlement, and reconciliation within Sri Lanka that are necessary to ensure a lasting peace.

 THOMAS
In the spirit of Thomas Jefferson, legislative information from the Library of Congress

Bill Text

112th Congress (2011-2012)
S.RES.84.ATS

S.RES.84 -- Expressing support for internal rebuilding, resettlement, and reconciliation within Sri Lanka that are necessary to ensure a lasting peace. (Agreed to Senate - ATS)
SRES 84 ATS

112th CONGRESS 1st Session S. RES. 84
Expressing support for internal rebuilding, resettlement, and reconciliation within Sri Lanka that are necessary to ensure a lasting peace.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

March 1, 2011

Mr. CASEY (for himself, Mr. BURR, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. LEAHY, Mrs. BOXER, Mrs. HAGAN, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mr. MANCHIN, Mr. UDALL of New Mexico, and Mr. LAUTENBERG) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to

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RESOLUTION
Expressing support for internal rebuilding, resettlement, and reconciliation within Sri Lanka that are necessary to ensure a lasting peace.
Whereas May 19, 2010, marked the one-year anniversary of the end of the 26-year conflict between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Government of Sri Lanka;
Whereas the Government of Sri Lanka established a Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) to report whether any person, group, or institution directly or indirectly bears responsibility for incidents that occurred between February 2002 and May 2009 and to recommend measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future and promote further national unity and reconciliation among all communities;
Whereas United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appointed a panel of experts, including Marzuki Darusman, the former attorney general of Indonesia; Yazmin Sooka, a member of South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission; and Steven Ratner, a lawyer in the United States specializing in human rights and international law, to advise the Secretary-General on the implementation of the commitment of the Government of Sri Lanka to human rights accountability;
Whereas the Government of Sri Lanka expressed its commitment to addressing the needs of all ethnic groups and has recognized, in the past, the necessity of a political settlement and reconciliation for a peaceful and just society;
Whereas the United States Government has yet to develop a comprehensive United States policy toward Sri Lanka that reflects the broad range of human rights, national security, and economic interests; and
Whereas progress on domestic and international investigations into reports of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other human rights violations during the conflict and promoting reconciliation would facilitate enhanced United States engagement and investment in Sri Lanka: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Senate--

(1) commends United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for creating the three-person panel to advise the Secretary-General on the implementation of the commitment of the Government of Sri Lanka to human rights accountability;

(2) calls on the Government of Sri Lanka, the international community, and the United Nations to establish an independent international accountability mechanism to look into reports of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other human rights violations committed by both sides during and after the war in Sri Lanka and to make recommendations regarding accountability;

(3) calls on the Government of Sri Lanka to allow humanitarian organizations, aid agencies, journalists, and international human rights groups greater freedom of movement, including in internally-displaced persons camps; and

(4) calls upon the President to develop a comprehensive policy towards Sri Lanka that reflects United States interests, including respect for human rights, democracy and the rule of law, economic interests, and security interests.
 
 

US Senate Resolution calls for accountability for Sri Lanka war crimes

[Thu, 03 Mar 2011, 03:37 GMT]

United States Senate unanimously passed resolution S. Res. 84 introduced by Senator Casey which commended UN Secretary General for appointing a panel to advise UNSG on Sri Lanka's human rights accountability and called "on the Government of Sri Lanka, the international community, and the United Nations to establish an independent international accountability mechanism to look into reports of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other human rights violations committed by both sides during and after the war in Sri Lanka and to make recommendations regarding accountability," as one of the four elements of the resolution. Full story >>