2013-03-22 15:21:36

UN rights body urges more thorough Sri Lanka probe


March 22, 2013 - For the second time in as many years, the United Nation’s top human rights body approved a U.S.-backed resolution on Thursday calling on Sri Lanka to more thoroughly investigate alleged war crimes committed by both sides during the country's quarter-century civil war with the Tamil Tiger rebels. By a 25-13 vote, the 47-nation U.N. Human Rights Council urged the South Asian nation ``to initiate credible and independent actions'' to ensure justice and accountability in the aftermath of the conflict, which ended in 2009. Those who opposed argues it unduly interfered in the country's domestic affairs and could hinder its reconciliation process. The resolution followed a U.N. report alleging the government may be to blame for tens of thousands of civilian deaths during the military campaign to defeat the rebels. Like a similar resolution in March 2012, the measure asks Sri Lanka to probe allegations of summary executions, kidnappings and other abuses, but stops short of calling for an international investigation. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said following the vote that the resolution builds on the previous and ``encourages the government of Sri Lanka to continue on the path toward lasting peace and prosperity following decades of civil war and instability.'' ``While some important progress has been made, there is much work still to be done,'' he said in a statement.
The Sri Lanka government has argued that its own investigation should suffice. A Sri Lankan commission report, released in December 2011, cleared government forces of wrongdoing. Rights groups and government critics say the regime of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has ignored previous calls for accountability _ including last year's resolution _ and has dragged its feet in implementing even the limited recommendations made by its own war panel. Philippe Dam of Human Rights Watch said on Thursday that the U.N.'s failure to demand an independent, international probe _ after passing a resolution last year that had virtually no effect - means ``the council has failed victims again this year.'' (Source: AP)








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