UNHRC 2014: War Of Words Begin

Top official in Obama administration to make a statement tomorrow Hague, Baird replaced by Swire and Yelich By Easwaran Rutnam Sunday, March 02, 2014 Th e stage is set and the battle lines ha!e been drawn" The #$th session of the %& Human Rights 'ouncil (%&HR') begins in *ene!a tomorrow with a ma+or part of the spotlight placed on Sri ,anka" The opening day of the session tomorrow will see the %& High 'ommissioner for Human Rights &a!i -illay, the %nited States, Britain Prof. G L Peiris, Samantha Power and Hugo and 'anada making references to Sri ,anka Swire in their statements during the High ,e!el segment" Britain was to be represented at the High ,e!el segment by .oreign Secretary /illiam Hague but will instead be represented by State 0inister Hugo Swire, while 'anadian .oreign 0inister 1ohn Baird will also be absent despite being scheduled to speak" Baird will be replaced by his 0inister of State ,ynne Yelich" /ith the %nited States set to present a resolution on Sri ,anka at the #$th session, all eyes and ears will be on Samantha -ower, a top official in the Obama administration, as she is e2pected to comment on the position taken by the %S *o!ernment on Sri ,anka" -ower ser!es as the %S 3mbassador to the %& and is also a member of -resident Barack Obama4s 'abinet" Sri ,anka4s response and position on calls for an international probe will be spelt out by E2ternal 3ffairs 0inister -rofessor *" ," -eiris on /ednesday ($)" Human rights groups are calling on members of the %&HR' to back an international independent in!estigation in Sri ,anka" Human Rights /atch and 3mnesty 5nternational had, last week, issued statements on Sri ,anka urging support for an international probe" 3mnesty 5nternational has also issued a written statement on Sri ,anka to the 'ouncil, while Human Rights /atch has organi6ed a side e!ent in *ene!a on 0arch #7 to discuss Sri ,anka as the main session is underway" The %& High 'ommissioner for Human Rights &a!i -illay had, last week, made public her draft report on Sri ,anka, the final te2t of which she will be formally submitting to the %& Human Rights 'ouncil on 0arch #8" Human Rights /atch said that, going by -illay4s report on Sri ,anka, which includes a call for an international independent in!estigation in Sri ,anka, there now needs to be commission of in9uiry on Sri ,anka" /e e2pect HR' members to support -illay4s call for an independent international

in!estigation" This should be done by a 'ommission of 5n9uiry led by e2perts in +ustice and accountability" 3nything less would betray the tens of thousands of !ictims killed in the final months of the war,: the 3sia ;irector of Human Rights /atch Brad 3dams told The Sunday ,eader" 0eanwhile, South 3sia ;irector for Human Rights /atch 0eenakshi *anguly said that a proposed independent in!estigation will lead to proper accountability and +ustice" &a!i -illay will be submitting her final report under the #7<= resolution" 5f her findings reflect a lack of political will to implement the ,,R' recommendations, we hope that member states will support a resolution to initiate an independent in!estigation into !iolations by both the ,TTE and go!ernment forces that will lead to proper accountability and +ustice,: she told The Sunday ,eader" 3mnesty 5nternational, meanwhile, said that the international community must act on -illay4s report which calls for an international in!estigation into alleged human rights !iolations and war crimes in Sri ,anka" 5t is utterly shameful that, fi!e years after Sri ,anka4s armed conflict ended, the !ictims and family members ha!e yet to see +ustice" &a!i -illay4s latest report is another urgent and poignant reminder that an international in!estigation into alleged human rights !iolations and war crimes cannot wait,: 3mnesty 5nternational4s ;eputy 3sia -acific ;irector -olly Truscott said" Sri ,anka has so far done all it can to throw sand in the eyes of the international community and to block attempts to bring genuine accountability for past human rights !iolations" This report has to be an eye opener, and we urge the %& Human Rights 'ouncil in 0arch to pass a strong resolution establishing an international in!estigation" &a!i -illay4s findings echo our own" /e are still recei!ing new eyewitness accounts and other allegations of gruesome !iolations by both go!ernment forces and the Tamil Tigers during the armed conflict,: Truscott added" The *o!ernment, howe!er, disagrees with -illay and others who are demanding for an international in!estigation" The *o!ernment said it will not lea!e room for such an in!estigation and it has the backing of its allies both locally and internationally" /ith the *o!ernment standing its ground, there are fears that the %nited States will e!entually push for economic sanctions or a tra!el ban on *o!ernment officials" The *o!ernment, howe!er, said that it is ready to face sanctions and is not worried about the economy taking a hit" 0inister &imal Siripala de Sil!a said the *o!ernment has taken measures to ensure economic stability in the country following the end of the war" He said that the *o!ernment will ensure that the economy remains stable e!en if there is pressure from other countries" >/e ha!e brought peace to this country and we will not allow terrorism to raise its head again,: the 0inister said" The 0inister noted that Sri ,anka will face se!eral challenges in future as some among the international community do not like to see a leader who refuses to tow the /estern line" 5f a leader does not tow the /estern line, then those countries try their best to remo!e him,: the 0inister said, adding that the mo!es on Sri ,anka in *ene!a are part of that attempt"

0inister Sil!a was part of a delegation which !isited South 3frica recently to learn about the Truth and Reconciliation 'ommission (TR') and the TR' is now e2pected to be proposed as the ne2t step in addressing the issue of accountability o!er the war" But the Tamil &ational 3lliance (T&3), which had, last week, backed -illay4s report, said that, for there to be real reconciliation, those responsible for committing human rights abuses during the final stages of the war must be held accountable" The T&3 had also decided to brief diplomats on its stand o!er the accountability issue" T&3 leader R Sampanthan, meanwhile, said that the *o!ernment must put forward a final political solution acceptable to all communities" He said that the solution should include reconciliation which ensures the perpetrators of war crimes are punished"

Resolution May Hurt Reconciliation With Diaspora

!oung MPs

3 cross party group of young parliamentarians ha!e raised fears that a resolution against Sri ,anka at the %& Human Rights 'ouncil in *ene!a may hurt reconciliation efforts with the Sri ,ankan ;iaspora" %&- 0- &iroshan -erera told The Sunday ,eader that, at a time when attempts are being made to bridge the gap between the ;iaspora and Sri ,anka, a resolution against Sri ,anka in *ene!a may only e2pand the gap between the two"

"ross Party Parliament delegation in #$

He said that the group of young parliamentarians ha!e had a series of meetings with the ;iaspora in Britain, including those from the Tamil, Sinhala and 0uslim ;iaspora" -erera said that there is a lot the ;iaspora can do to contribute towards rebuilding Sri ,anka and working with the ;iaspora should be an initiati!e both the *o!ernment and the opposition should look at" The 0-s, who ha!e been working towards promoting positi!e and open dialogue with ;iaspora communities since #7<<, ha!e also offered to play the role of mediators if need be" *ampaha ;istrict S,.- 0- ?asantha Senanayake said that a report on the issues raised by the ;iaspora and recommendations in addressing those issues was handed o!er to the *o!ernment by the cross party young parliamentarians" He said that the cross party parliamentarians ha!e the support of their respecti!e party leaders while &ational ,anguages 0inister ?asude!a &anayakara had shown interest in the initiati!e" Senanayake said that, after =7 years of war, Sri ,anka now needs national reconciliation and the ;iaspora can play a key role in achie!ing that goal"

/e do not need sanctions now,: he added, >/hat we need is the international community to help in the reconciliation process": 3ll 'eylon 0uslim 'ongress 0- Hunais .arook said that, as a group, the young parliamentarians are trying to find ways and means to help people affected by the war return to their normal li!es" ;uring our recent !isit to ,ondon, the 0uslim ;iaspora raised concerns about land issues in the ?anni district, resettlement of 0uslim 5;-s, li!elihood assistance for widows and female headed households in the &orth and recent attacks on religious places of worship, among other issues" Since 5 got back, 5 ha!e been able to obtain support for @7 female headed families in need of li!elihood assistance as a first step to address this issue" /hen it comes to reconciliation, we ha!e to start with winning people4s hearts" Then, it is important to ensure that the people4s li!es are returned to normal and their li!elihoods are restored" 3s a group, what we4re trying to do is find ways and means to do this as swiftly as possible" /e welcome all the support we can get to achie!e this goal,: he said" -erera said there is a need for a separate unit to be established in the E2ternal 3ffairs 0inistry to deal with the ;iaspora" He said that the initiati!e of the young parliamentarians has the support of the leaders of all political parties and, as such, the seniors in parliament need to do more to help achie!e the goal of reconciliation with the ;iaspora" -erera admitted that it is difficult to con!ince those with e2tremist !iews in the ;iaspora to work with the *o!ernment on rebuilding the country but he stressed that reaching out to those groups will be an attempt which will not be gi!en up" The most recent of the !isits to the %A by the young 0-s, now known as Young -olitical ,eaders .orum of Sri ,anka (Y-,.S,) was held in 1anuary #7<@, where they held a number of meetings as a part of an effort for continued engagement with the ;iaspora" The pro+ect is supported by 5ndependent -eace Building Organisation 5nternational 3lert" Other 0-s in the group are Harin .ernando (%&-) and Shehan Semasinghe (S,.-)" Tamil &ational 3lliance political acti!ist Raghu Balachandran is also part of the group" (ER)