Peace for the World

Peace for the World
First democratic leader of Justice the Godfather of the Sri Lankan Tamil Struggle: Honourable Samuel James Veluppillai Chelvanayakam

Friday, September 18, 2015

The Liberal Party of Canada welcomes UN report on Sri Lanka

September 17, 2015
September 17, 2015–MONTREAL–Today, the Liberal Party of Canada welcomed the Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on Promoting Reconciliation, Accountability and Human Rights in Sri Lanka released in Geneva yesterday.  The UN report is the result of 6 years of intense work by victims groups, Non-Governmental Organizations and the United Nations Human Rights Council.
“The victims of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in Sri Lanka have waited far too long for answers.”  Said Marc Garneau Liberal Candidate for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount.  “This report, for the first time, gives some hope on the road to accountability and peace in Sri Lanka.  We commend the witnesses for coming forward with their stories – and braving all odds, and at times taking extraordinary risks to be heard so that justice can be achieved.”
Based on its investigation, the UN report concludes that there are reasonable grounds to believe that violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, war crimes and crimes against humanity took place in Sri Lanka.
“Justin Trudeau and the Liberal Party have long maintained that accountability is a precursor to lasting peace in Sri Lanka and an essential starting point for justice to be delivered to the victims and survivors,” said Mr. Garneau. “We are encouraged by the UN report and are confident that it can be the basis of an internationally mandated accountability mechanism that is independent of the Sri Lankan state.”
The Liberal Party of Canada remains committed to working with the international community to ensure that Canada does its part in seeking justice in Sri Lanka. This includes exercising the universal jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute those perpetrators of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide who may be in Canada.  We will also implement a travel ban against those who might have been part of the chain of command within the Sri Lankan armed forces.
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