Bangladesh: 1971 War Crimes coming full Circle

by Bhaskar Roy

( November 27, 2015, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The wheels of justice grind slowly, but they grind extremely small. On November 22, Ali Ahsan Mohammed Mujahid and Saluddin Quader Choudhary, two of the worst perpetrators of atrocities against freedom loving Bengalees, were hanged to death. After 44 long years the sufferers got some justice. More importantly, the ghosts of 1971 haunting the nation, are beginning to be exorcised.

Mujahid, till now, the Secretary General of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JEI), was the President of Islamic Chaatra Sangh, the student’s wing of the JEI. The same year, the Sangh was converted to Al Badr in collusion with the Pakistani occupying army. Al Badr’s murderous and rapist activities are well recorded including by Pakistani army officers who served in Bangladesh (then East Pakistan) in 1971.

Mujahid’s worst calculated crime was, perhaps the rounding up and killing of Bengalee intellectuals only a few days before the Pakistani army surrendered to the Indian army. His diabolical aim was to exterminate as many as possible from among the cream of leaders who would build the newly born nation of Bangladesh.

Salauddin Quader Choudhry harboured a special hatred for Hindus. His father Fazlul Qadar Choudury, then the President of the Pro-Pakistan and anti-liberation convention Muslim League, blamed the Hindus of Rowzan, Chittagong, for his defeat in the 1970 elections. Salauddin was charged with killing 111 Hindus. He converted his hill top house into a torture chamber and murder palace for pro-liberation Bengalees.

Mujahid is the third JEI leader to be executed for war crimes after Abdul Qader Mollah and Munammad Kamruzzaman. Salauddin is the first BNP leader to be executed, though he was also a minister in the government of H. H. Ershad. Both Mujahid and Salauddin held ministerial positions in the BNP-JEI led four party alliance government from 2001 to 2006. It is an irony that those who opposed the liberation of the country were brought back to govern the same country by politicians who are suspected to have extra territorial allegiance.

It is, therefore, not surprising that the government of Pakistan expressed concern and the anguish at the execution of Mojahid and Salauddin as well as the execution of Mollah and Kamruzzaman earlier. This is a disturbing sign for Bangladesh. It exposes the support that these anti-liberation forces still enjoy in Pakistan, and the threat these forces pose to secular and progressive Bangladesh.

Unfortunately, Pakistan continues to run terrorists and sabotage intelligence operations in Bangladesh through its old allies. Earlier this year, a Pakistani official from their High Commission in Dhaka was caught giving money to their local agents to foment terrorism. These acts have the potential to cause instability in the region, and create a fertile ground to attract foreign Islamic terrorists.

The weak attempt by the BNP and JEI to put up an alibi for Salauddin boomeranged on them. A forged certificate of Punjab University (Pakistan) was produced to try and prove Salauddin was not in East Pakistan (Bangladesh) in 1971. The court threw out this evidence.

Substantial pressure from abroad, especially the west has been brought on the Bangladesh government to scrap the International Crimes Tribunals (ICTs) – I & II. The BNP and JEI worked hard for it and with some success. International human rights organisations like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW) were most active. They alleged in their campaigns that the Tribunals were illegal, did not meet international standards, and were biased.

The political leanings of both Amnesty International and HRW are well known. They have apolitical agenda, very selective, but are also fast losing credibility. These organisations had also meddled in India especially on Kashmir. India responded with firm position, not getting into debate, but rejecting them without dignifying them.

Amnesty International and HRW must answer what they have done on the state of affairs in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) where the locals have hardly any rights, both legal and human rights. Have they launched a campaign on killings and disappearance of nationalists in Balochistan? No. Then why bleeding hearts for war criminals in Bangladesh who killed people in hundreds and thousands in 1971?

The European Union States want an end to executions as they have done for themselves. But they must understand that they arrived at this moral and legal position after devastating wars, and advancement of their modernity.

Bangladesh and South Asia as a whole have not reached the position of the EU. Societies and conditions are very different. Pakistan’s official position on the execution of the war criminals, and stepped up assassination of liberals and secularists in their own country need to be studied by the international community.

Bangladesh continues to be under the threat of unravelling. JEI wants to establish Sharia law in the country, and they are ably supported by forces from outside, the same forces who unleashed terror in 1971. To prevent repeating of such events, these forces need to be rooted out. As reactions to the executions show the overwhelming population was behind Prime Minister Sk. Hasina and her government. Right thinking people do not want the country to roll back.

Sk Hasina must be lauded for her unwavering determination to bring a closure to 1971. She must continue with the catharsis.

(The writer is a New Delhi based strategic analyst. He can be reached at e-mail grouchohart@yahoo.com)

Insanity Plea in Murder of Palestinian Teen May Spark More Violence in the Holy Land

BY SIOBHÁN O'GRADY-NOVEMBER 30, 2015

Early on the morning of July 2 last year, three Israelis abducted 16-year-old Palestinian Muhammad Abu Khdeir from near his home in East Jerusalem, then drove him to a forest, beat him unconscious, and burned him alive. 

His killers — two Jewish teenagers, also minors at the time of the attack — were found guilty of murder in an Israeli court Monday, and will likely besentenced in January after a social worker reviews the case. But a lawyer for Yosef Haim Ben-David, the teenagers’ older relative who allegedly aided and abetted them in the attack, submitted a last-minute psychiatric evaluation to delay his client’s verdict, which was postponed and will be discussed again on Dec. 20. (The two teenagers’ identities are being kept private because they were under 18 when the crime was carried out.)

According to papers used by the prosecutor in court, Ben-David encouraged the murder, and the teenagers did not necessarily plan to kill Abu Khdeir until Ben-David, who was driving, told them to “finish him off.”  

For the many Palestinians following the trial, Ben-David’s delay is now overshadowing the significance of Monday’s two guilty findings. Ghaith Al-Omari, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, toldForeign Policy that the postponement is “being read by Palestinian media at least as a de facto innocent verdict.”

At a time of renewed if sporadic violence between Israelis and Palestinians, Al-Omari added that if Ben-David is ultimately found to have been mentally incompetent at the time of the attack, the “increased tension in the public mood is likely to incite further violence.”

Muhammad’s father, Hussein Abu Khdeir, had throughout the lengthy trial expressed concern that Ben-David would try to lighten his sentencing with an insanity plea. And the two guilty verdicts Monday certainly did not put the older Abu Khdeir at peace with his son’s gruesome death. Instead, he told reporters that by deferring to a psychiatric evaluation, Ben-David “made a joke of the court.”

“My blood is boiling,” he said.

Last July, Israeli authorities quickly labeled Abu Khdeir’s brutal death as a revenge attack. It came just one day after the burial of three Israeli teens kidnapped and shot dead by Palestinians, their bodies abandoned in a shallow grave near Hebron, in the West Bank. But the murder was more than just a single tragic death: It was one in a series of many violent acts between Palestinians and Israelis that summer that helped spark the Gaza War, which over the course of 50 days killedroughly 1,500 civilians and severely damaged relations between Israel and Palestine.

For many Palestinians, Al-Omari told FP, Ben-David’s last-minute claim of psychiatric instability is a bitter reminder of a much earlier case, when Australian Denis Rohan set fire to Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem in 1969. After being ruled insane, he was eventually released home to Australia, where he was reportedly put into psychiatric care. Palestinians saw that as him “basically getting away with it,” Al-Omari said. “That was such a significant case and it’s very much seared in the collective memory of Palestinians.”

Abu Khdeir’s murder was never labeled as terrorism by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who surprised his right-wing colleagues when a year later he condemned a deadly arson attack that killed an 18-month-old Palestinian as “a reprehensible and horrific act of terrorism.” The prime minister had been hesitant to label acts of settler violence in such a way, but Al-Omari told FP that Netanyahu’s condemnation signaled a recognition that violence carried out by settlers toward Palestinians was “more than individualized attacks, but a pattern and a more systemic problem.”

Since then, he said, Israeli security forces have been given a “freer hand toward dealing with terrorism with settlers,” including the ability to detain suspects for longer periods of time without court rulings.

But if Ben-David’s upcoming psychiatric evaluation essentially gets him off the hook for his role in Abu Khdeir’s murder, any efforts made by the Israeli government to take a harder stance against settler violence may be overshadowed by Palestinian anger.

This fall, violence between Israelis and Palestinians has escalated, and talks of a peace process between Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas have all but ground to a halt. (On Monday, the two shook hands for the first time in five years at a climate summit in Paris, an encounter that likely had little wider political significance.)

At least 20 people, including 18 Israelis, one American, and one Palestinian, have been killed in attacks by Palestinians in the past two months. And around another 100 Palestinians have also been killed, some as they attempted to carry out such attacks, and others in clashes with Israeli forces.

“Today what we’re seeing is the Palestinian narrative is being built as this being another case where the perpetrators will go scot-free,” Al-Omari said. “The situation is primed to escalate.”

Photo Credit: AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images

Israel fans flames as Palestinian death toll soars

Israel’s punitive home demolitions left dozens homeless earlier this month.

The mother of slain teenager Khalid al-Jawabreh mourns during her son’s funeral in al-Arroub refugee camp on 27 November.

Maureen Clare Murphy-1 December 2015

While Israel’s military leaders say there is no end in sight to the current wave of violence, Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu is fanning the flames as the army moves to destroy more homes belonging to families of Palestinians slain during alleged attacks on Israelis.

Palestinians called for a “day of rage” after Israeli forces shot dead 17-year-old Ayman Samih al-Abbasi in theSilwan neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem on Sunday.

Israel Fans Flames as Palestinian Death Toll Soars by Thavam Ratna

Ayatollah Khamenei addresses Basij commanders saying Iran will keep supporting the Palestinian cause.

 (2015/11/25 

Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, in a meeting on Wednesday with a group of 2,500 commanders of volunteer Basij forces, described the Basij as the “blessed and dynamic representative of the whole nation.” Elucidating methods used by hegemonic powers to bear enmity toward the Iranian nation, Ayatollah Khamenei said: “In the genuine battle and war launched by the hegemonic powers’ front against the ‘identity- and independence-seeking front,’ the Iranian nation will fulfill its obligations with regard to defending the brave Palestinian nation and the Intifada in the West Bank.”     

Ayatollah Khamenei Addresses Basij Commanders Saying Iran Will Keep Supporting the Palestinian Cause. by Thavam Ratna

Sunni tribes joining Shia militias as war against IS heats up in Iraq 

Partial rapprochement despite credible allegations that some militia troops abused or killed Sunni civilians and destroyed homes 
Sheikh Qais Jassem al-Khazraji (in brown robe) with Sheikh Abdul Mahdi al-Karbalai and another Sunni tribal leader (MEE / Jonathan Steele) 

Jonathan Steele-Tuesday 1 December 2015

KARBALA, Iraq - Wearing elegant gold-fringed robes and traditional Arab head-dresses, three Sunni tribal leaders waited respectfully in an upstairs reception room inside the Imam Hussein shrine in Karbala one morning last week.

Sunni Tribes Joining Shia Militias as War Against is Heats Up in Iraq by Thavam Ratna

Chicago police superintendent fired by mayor amid outcry over video of shooting

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced the dismissal of Chicago police superintendent, Garry F. McCarthy, Dec. 1. Emanuel also said a police accountability task force is being established, following days of unrest over the alleged murder of a black teenager by a white policeman. (Reuters)

 




By Mark Berman-December 1 
The head of the Chicago Police Department has been fired amid widespread criticism over how authorities responded to the fatal shooting of a black teenager by a white police officer last year.
Hundreds of protesters marched after the release of a graphic video showing the killing of a black teenager by a white officer.
Chicago Police Superintendent Fired by Mayor Amid Outcry Over Video of Shooting by Thavam Ratna

Does the Communist Movement Still Remain Relevant ?

by N.S.Venkataraman

( November 30, 2015, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) At one time, Russia, China and Cuba were considered as the torch bearers of world communist movement. Several parties and groups in other countries received their inspiration from the leadership of the communist parties of these countries.

Caught in the wilderness:

Now, the world communist movement appears to have lost it’s sense of direction and looks like being caught in the wilderness, as the one-time leader of communist movement namely Russia gave up the communist philosophy in toto and reversed its approach to the methodology of governance. Though China continues to claim that it is a communist country, everyone knows that it is no more so for all practical purposes. Many were believe that at present, China’s approach to governance is more capitalist-oriented than a few of the capitalist countries themselves.

Neither communism nor democracy in China

Of course, China does not have the credible democratic form of governance and it is ruled by the so-called communist party, which does not anymore follow the philosophy of communism as was originally conceived and evolved. In China, the so-called ruling communist party is really an organised group, which does not permit any other political party to evolve and exist and is virtually a dictatorship by the group of people. As dissent is often suppressed with great force, there is now neither democracy nor communism in China.

No more conflict of interest between Cuba and the USA

The governance in Cuba, once a highly focussed communist country, has also undergone a sea change now, with the relationship between USA and Cuba becoming more friendly and perhaps with Cuba not anymore seeing a conflict of interest or focus with regard to the type of governance with that of USA. Instead of the state ownership of all production machinery and systems, Cuba is also now inviting private investments, which is the negation of communist philosophy.

Directionless communism in other regions:

In a few countries like India, communist parties do exist but look to be directionless, as they do not have role model governance depicting communism in true sense anywhere in the world.

Why communist movement collapsed? :

Obviously, the world communist movement virtually collapsed because the once communist countries like Russia, China and Cuba virtually functioned like the dictatorship of a group and thrived on denying freedom to the people and ruthless suppression of independent thinking and contrary ideas of common man. Certainly, this sort of governance is bound to collapse sooner or later, as they are against the basic and fundamental aspirations of any individual with regard to freedom in thoughts and actions.

The failure of the communist movement happened, as the communist leadership in different countries, went into the hands of a group of dictators who mistakenly thought that freedom of individuals cannot co-exist in a communist country. The tight-fisted control by self-centred dictatorship like governance effectively prevented the evolution and fine tuning of the communist philosophy in tune with the aspirations of the people for political and social liberty as much as economic comfort.

. Unfortunately, the practice of communist philosophy did not go into the hands of enlightened leadership, with the capability to align communist philosophy with the people’s aspiration for freedom.

Basic philosophy remains relevant:

While the visible battle between the communist and non-communist form of governance is no more there, this scenario cannot make anyone conclude that communist philosophy as such has lost its sense of relevance.

The basic philosophy of communism, which pledges on uplifting the poor and downtrodden and preventing the exploitation of the poor and deprived persons by the rich people, continue to remain relevant. This is particularly so in the present world context, where several countries, particularly in Africa, remain impoverished and millions of people around the world do not know as to where their next meal would come from.

What has failed is not communist philosophy as such reflected by it’s objectives. The objective of the communist philosophy of standing by the cause of poor and downtrodden cannot become obsolete and irrelevant when millions of people live below poverty line.

Buddhist extremism in Thailand fits neatly into junta’s plans

Thai Buddhist monks pray at Wat Dhammakaya. Pic: AP.

Controversial Buddhist monk Wirathu, who is accused of instigating sectarian violence between Buddhists and Muslims through his sermons in Myanmar. Pic: AP.

by Alistair Denness-1st December 2015

BESET by a painful economic downturn, clouded by political uncertainties and plagued by numerous human rights abuses attributed to the ruling junta, Thailand’s rulers are throwing a spanner in the media narrative by launching a controversial campaign to establish Buddhism as the country’s official religion.
Buddhist Extremism in Thailand Fits Neatly Into Junta’s Plans by Thavam Ratna

MSF hospital in Syria hit by 'double-tap' barrel bombing

Seven killed in Homs attack, latest in apparent escalation of strikes on medical facilities in civil war

 Syrian government forces patrol in Homs. MSF said the deaths from the hospital bombing included a young girl. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Kareem Shaheen in Beirut-Tuesday 1 December 2015

A hospital supported by Médecins Sans Frontières in Homs has been partially destroyed in a “double-tap” barrel bombing, a signature tactic of the Syrian air force.

The strikes on the hospital in Zafarana, a besieged town in northern Homs, killed seven people including a young girl, MSF said in a statement, and prompted the movement to nearby field hospitals of many wounded, some of whom died on the way.

Saturday’s strikes were the latest in an apparent pattern of escalating attacks on medical facilities and doctors in the Syrian civil war, according to human rights organisations.

MSF, which operates and supports a number of health centres and field hospitals in Syria, said the attack bore the hallmark of a double-tap strike, whereby the first bombing is followed by a second one after paramedics have arrived to help the victims. “This double-tap tactic shows a level of calculated destruction that can scarcely be imagined,” said MSF’s director of operations, Brice de le Vingne.

MSF said a barrel bomb was dropped from a helicopter on a populated area of Zafarana at 9.40 am on Saturday, followed nearly an hour later by two barrel bombs at the entrance of the hospital, wounding 47 patients and medical staff in total.

The attack is the third on an MSF facility in two months. In October, an MSF hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan, was all but destroyed by US airstrikes, killing 30 people including 13 medical staff in what the organisation called a blatant breach of international law. Later that month, an MSF-run hospital in the northern Yemeni province of Sa’ada was destroyed in a missile strike.

Medical staff and facilities are coming under increasing attack in Syria as the civil war nears the five-year mark. Physicians for Human Rights, a New York-based organisation, said it documented 16 attacks on medical facilities in Syria in October, making it the deadliest month on record for medical staff. Ten of the attacks were carried out by Russian warplanes, and five were conducted by either the Syrian or Russian air forces, the organisation alleged.

Moscow has conducted several airstrikes in Syria since it launched a military intervention in early October aimed at shoring up the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, which had endured a series of military setbacks after a manpower shortage debilitated its army. Many towns in northern Homs are held by rebels who oppose the Assad regime and have been repeatedly bombed by both Damascus and Moscow.

A barrel bomb is an improvised explosive device packed with TNT and other material and dropped manually from planes and helicopters. Its inaccuracy has led some observers to conclude that its use is a de facto war crime.

A report released in May by Amnesty International on the use of barrel bombs in Aleppo concluded that they had killed 3,000 civilians and 35 fighters between January 2014 and March 2015. The weapons had killed more than 12,000 people throughout the country from their deployment in 2012 until the date of the report’s release.

The report outlined the use of double-tap strikes in Aleppo, and activists and local journalists have documented similar attacks on medical facilities, markets and mosques.

“MSF once again reiterates its call that all efforts should be taken by all parties to the Syrian war to avoid civilians and civilian infrastructure, including hospitals and ambulances,” the organisation said. “The multiplication of these atrocious attacks, with overwhelmingly high numbers of civilians, including women, children and medical staff, wounded or killed, must cease.”

India restores federal funding for AIDS programme after criticism

A volunteer (R) from a non-governmental organisation (NGO) distributes free condoms to villagers during an AIDS awareness campaign on the outskirts of Agartala, India, November 6, 2015.

REUTERS/JAYANTA DEY

 BY ADITYA KALRA-Tue Dec 1, 2015

India will fully fund its AIDS control programme federally, the health minister said on Tuesday, restoring support months after it was criticised for slashing its contribution and asking individual states to fill the gap.

India's globally-lauded AIDS programme has been in disarray since last year due to payment delays that worsened after Prime Minister Narendra Modi slashed the federal budget in February by a fifth and asked states to pitch in.

Several states complained of lack of clarity about how much they need to contribute and payment delays have left thousands of health workers unpaid and hampered prevention activities.

Health Minister J.P.Nadda said Modi had decided the expenses incurred in running the nationwide programme will be borne by New Delhi, effectively restoring the earlier funding arrangement.

"We can't be complacent ... the government of India is very serious on this issue," Nadda said while addressing a gathering on the occasion of World AIDS Day in New Delhi.

It was not immediately clear whether the budget cut would be restored, but an official at the National AIDS Control Organisation said they were in talks with the finance ministry.

The United Nations envoy for AIDS in Asia and the Pacific told Reuters in October new HIV infections in India could rise for the first time in more than a decade, as states were mismanaging the prevention programme.

Government data released on Tuesday showed 86,000 new HIV infections were recorded in 2015, compared to 128,000 in 2007, but the rate of decline has slowed.

"The slowdown identified in the rate of decrease of new HIV infections in last few years is a key issue," the government said in a statement. "The current estimates highlight key challenges that will need to be addressed with urgency."

India's AIDS programme has been largely successful -- estimates showed HIV prevalence during 2007-15 declined from 0.34 percent to 0.26 percent among adults, while annual HIV-related deaths declined by more than half to 67,000.

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra/Ruth Pitchford)

Safer way to do gene editing

By Michelle Roberts-1 December 2015

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Scientists say they have fine tuned a gene editing method to make it safer and more accurate - vital if it is to be used in humans to cure inherited diseases or inborn errors.

The advance, outlined in Science Magazine, comes as world leaders in the field gather to debate the ethics of altering human DNA using the method, known as Crispr-Cas9.

Gene editing holds medical promise.

But changing a person's DNA also has potential risks and ethical quandaries.

The first International Summit on Human Gene Editing will debate how far the science should progress.

Crispr-Cas9

Crispr-Cas9 is a DNA cutting and pasting system that scientists have borrowed from nature. Bacteria use it to protect themselves against foreign DNA from viruses.

Scientists have been using it in the lab to target and cut out faulty DNA in human cells that cause illnesses.

While effective, the process is less than perfect and can cut out too much DNA, experts have found.

How gene editing works

These unwanted or 'off-target' edits could alter other important genes, inadvertently triggering cancer, for example.

Researchers at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard believe they have solved this problem by changing the molecular structure of the Cas9 enzyme.

Their modified version should now only snip out the DNA it is designed to, leaving the rest of the precious genetic code intact, the US team say.

They made changes to amino acids - the building blocks of Cas9 - and found this improved its accuracy, reducing the risk of 'off-target' cuts.

In repeated tests on human embryonic kidney cells, the researchers were unable to detect any cutting errors.

Researcher Feng Zhang said this should help address some of the safety concerns.

But he added: "We certainly don't see this as a magic bullet. The field is advancing at a rapid pace, and there is still a lot to learn before we can consider applying this technology for clinical use."

Prof Malcolm White, an expert in Crispr and DNA repair at the University of St Andrews, said the early work was promising.

"The altered version of Cas9 seems to be a safer tool, which would be useful if scientists want to correct defects in human genes. But more studies are needed and ethical debates about when we should use gene editing will no doubt continue."

Foreign judges for war crimes tribunals: BASL on the fence

Sunday, November 29, 2015

The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) yesterday took a non-committal stand on the issue of foreign judges sitting on war crimes tribunals expected to be set up soon.

It stated that these must inspire the confidence of “stakeholders” and be within the country’s Constitution, a position the Government has also taken.

A statement issued by the BASL admitted that Sri Lanka’s existing judicial and prosecutorial systems have “not met the confidence of many concerned”.

Having considered the UN Human Rights Council resolution on Sri Lanka, along with the reports of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Paranagama and Udalagama Commission reports, the BASL states they point to the need for further inquiries into crimes that allegedly occurred during the ‘war years’.

The BASL recognises the need for a broader process of reconciliation, and offers its services towards this end, the statement adds.

Meanwhile, the Government on Friday appointed a retired High Court Judge as High Court Commissioner to expedite cases under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and the Emergency Regulations.

Irangani Perera was recommended by Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, approved by President Maithripala Sirisena and sworn in before the Chief Justice.

The appointment raised protests from the BASL which said a retired judge was unnecessary when there were High Court judges in the present cadre who could be considered.

The President has been asked to revoke this appointment in order to ensure the efficient administration of justice.

The functions that the High Court Commissioner will be expected to carry out “can be performed by High Court Judges appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Judicial Services Commission”, the BASL said in a statement.

“There is no justification in appointing a High Court Commissioner for this purpose”.

There are presently four vacancies in the High Court, BASL President Geoffrey Alagaratnam said. These must be filled and a suitable judge selected from amongst them to hear cases under the PTA and the Emergency Regulations as a matter of priority.

He said the appointment of a retired judge as High Court Commissioner amounted to “undue interference” and should have been done only under exceptional circumstances.

War Crime Investigations, a necessary step towards

The following statement issued by the People for Human Rights and Equality based in Clayton, Victoria, Australia

( November 30, 2015, Clayton- Victoria, Sri Lanka Guardian) People for Human Rights and Equality (PHRE) supports the Sri Lankan government’s effort to carry out a judicial probe as necessitated by the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Resolution 30 on Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka adopted on 1 October 2015 with the support of the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL).

This UN Resolution was a follow-up of the formal presentation of the Report of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Investigation on Sri Lanka at the UNHRC. In

March 2017, the GoSL is expected to report back to the UNHRC on the timetable for the implementation of the Resolution. To ensure the credibility of the justice process, the Resolution crucially calls for the involvement of international judges, defence lawyers, prosecutors and investigators.

The Report’s recommendations include security sector reform; return of private land; ending military involvement in civilian activities; a political settlement on the devolution of political authority; accountability for attacks on journalists and human rights defenders; and the repeal of specific legislation such as the Prevention of Terrorism Act. However, the Resolution, instead of an ad hoc hybrid special court, calls for a Sri Lankan judicial mechanism.

Sinhala nationalists interpret the UN investigation as being for the sole purpose of reversing the military defeat of the LTTE separatist forces. On the other hand, Tamil nationalists have expressed their disillusionment with a domestic Sri Lankan mechanism on the grounds of Sri Lanka’s dubious track record of domestic accountability. They are of the view that it is the very absence of a credible national process of domestic accountability that has created the need for an international mechanism that should follow up to the UN investigation.

PHRE notes that Sri Lanka has been both unwilling and unable to investigate war crimes allegations against its own forces, or hold perpetrators of grave human rights violations to account, including the perpetrators of atrocities in the South during the JVP uprising in the late ‘80s. After denials and rejections for many years, the former regime promised domestic inquiry with the help of three of the best war crimes prosecutors which were seen as little more than an attempt to deflect international pressure. By co-sponsoring the Resolution, the current GoSL has taken the initiative to implement its recommendations. The resolution notes  not only the passage of the 19th Amendment and its potential contribution to promoting good  governance, but also highlights the steps the government has taken to improve life for the  war-affected people of the North and East. It also acknowledges the progress made in rebuilding infrastructure, demining, returning land taken over as high-security zones and resettling displaced persons.

This replacement of emphasis given to the hybrid judicial mechanism provides the GoSL a greater measure of credibility in dealing with the local nationalist sentiments. However, any accountability process needs an international component for it to have any credibility and to provide the necessary judicial skills and expertise. Ensuring that victims and their families are genuinely consulted in uncovering truth and achieving justice, and undertaking a wide range of institutional reform, including strengthening witness protection legislation are also required.

We consider this UN Resolution and the establishment of appropriate mechanisms for the proper investigation into the alleged serious violations of human rights by all parties to the armed conflict in Sri Lanka as an important step for reconciliation between its peoples. For the reconciliation of the Sri Lankan society and the wellbeing of its people, ascertaining the truth with regard to what happened during the armed conflict is necessary. It is also important to implement the other recommendations of the UN resolution. In light of the previous negative experiences on such investigations the involvement and participation of international investigators, prosecutors and judges in Sri Lanka’s justice processes are an essential condition for ensuring the fairness of any domestic inquiry. If the Resolution and its underlying commitments of Sri Lanka’s government are implemented in potential to bring justice to the victims and closure to their suffering.