Sri Lanka Denies War Crimes, Denounces UN’s Call For Investigations
Sri Lanka was the center of human rights controversy this week when the government blatantly rejected UN’s call to investigate the country for alleged war crimes.
Insisting that there were no war crimes committed during the three-decade civil war in Sri Lanka, the island country’s government refused to acknowledge UN Human Rights chief Navi Pillay’s call for international inquiry into the country, calling her initiatives politicized and prejudiced.
In a New York Times report, Sri Lanka denied allegations that the heavy military presence in the northern part of the country led to the increase of sexual violence against women in the region. They also denied the alleged lack of press freedom in the country, citing the widespread use of social media in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka’s government also faced accusations of undermining the country’s judiciary system. Government forces are believed to have been behind massacres across the country during the bloody civil war but almost none of those involved have ever been taken to Sri Lankan courts.
According to the Washington Post, Ms. Pillay gave an official recommendation – posted on her committee’s website – stating that an independent and credible criminal and forensic investigation is needed to probe into Sri Lanka’s thirty-year history of war and violence.
However, the government took matters defensively and said Pillay’s recommendation “gives scant or no regard for domestic process” in Sri Lanka. They also accused Pillay of being biased and dismissed the recommendation as “tantamount to an unwarranted interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign state”.
The civil war in Sri Lanka ended in 2009 and is ranked as one of the most violent civil wars in recent history. At least 40,000 people, mostly civilians have died during the country’s tumultuous period. Both citizens and international groups have criticized Sri Lanka for their alleged lack of regard for human rights.
An increasing number of photos and video footages of summary executions during the civil war are beginning to resurface in Sri Lanka.
Navi Pillay condemned Sri Lanka’s “increasingly authoritative direction” when she visited the country last August.
Human rights organizations around the world are standing behind Ms. Pillay and the UN Human Rights Commission’s Sri Lankan recommendation. Amnesty International said that the organization supports the independent investigation and added that the lack of justice for the victims of the Sri Lanka civil war is “utterly shameful”.
Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice warned Tuesday that the continued refusal of Sri Lanka to engage in human rights investigations will end up badly for the country.
Sri Lanka’s dispute with UN’s human rights wing came a few weeks after the announcement of Pope Francis’ plans to visit to the country.
[Top Image: james_gordon_losangeles via photopin cc – second Image from Noaman Ali – Bottom Image Via Flicker By Eyes on Rights Humanitarian Photography]
