Calls for Sri Lanka human rights probe grow ever louder
March 6, 2014: Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa and other human rights campaigners
have urged the United Nations Human Rights Council to commit to an independent international
investigation in the form of a Commission of Inquiry into human rights violations
in Sri Lanka. The following is the text of their statement:
We, concerned
individuals and organisations from around the world, urge the UN Human Rights Council
(UNHRC) to use their March 2014 session to pass a resolution that will include a commitment
to an Independent International investigation in the form of a Commission of Inquiry.
Only this will help to put the country on the path to justice and reconciliation.
Although
the long-running civil war ended in May 2009, a lasting peace is not in sight and
we remain gravely concerned for the future of the people of Sri Lanka. A fear and
sense of injustice persists, not just among minorities and political activists, but
among ordinary people desperately trying to rebuild their lives. A number of unresolved
issues remain, including ongoing human rights violations, credible allegations of
crimes against humanity and war crimes, and the lack of progress towards longer-term
political solutions and reconciliation. Left unaddressed, these issues could lead
to renewed conflict.
Post-conflict processes do take time, but what matters
is getting on the right path. Nearly five years after the war ended, the situation
appears to be getting worse, not better.
The biggest issue Sri Lanka faces
is a systemic lack of respect for the rights of its citizens, particularly — but not
exclusively — its minority citizens. This is rooted in a culture of impunity which
is in turn rooted in a failure to hold to account those, on both sides, who committed
some of the worst atrocities this century.
Only an independent international
investigation of these atrocities will end this culture of impunity and give the people
of Sri Lanka a chance to climb out of the cycle of violence towards a lasting peace.
For these reasons, there have been numerous calls over the years for such an investigation:
from a renowned panel of experts appointed by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, from
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, from a host of Sri Lankan and international
individuals, Non-Governmental Organisations, and politicians, and from many thousands
of petitioners all over the world.
We represent organisations and individuals
in many countries. The Sri Lankan government claims that attempts to set up an international
inquiry in Sri Lanka come exclusively from the west, and represent a form of imperialism.
Not so. Many of us come from countries that have also seen conflict, and attempts
at reconciliation after it. Standing in solidarity with the many Sri Lankans who feel
their government is making a mistake, we urge the United Nations to establish a Commission
of Inquiry.
Signed by: Archbishop Desmond Tutu, South Africa; Yasmin Sooka,
Executive Director, Foundation for Human Rights, South Africa; Rayappu Joseph, Bishop
of Mannar and President of Tamil Civil Society in Sri Lanka; R. Sampanthan, Leader
of the Tamil National Alliance;C.V.Wigneswaran, Chief Minister of Northern Provincial
Council; Danny Sriskandarajah, Secretary General, CIVICUS, the world Alliance for
Civilian Participation, South Africa; Irene Fernandez, Right Livelihood Award, Malaysia;
Bashana Abeywardane, Co-ordinator, Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka ... and
others representing human rights activists and organisations in South Africa, Lebanon,
Nepal, Afghanistan, Kosovo, Pakistan, Uganda, India, Cambodia, Malaysia, Brazil, and
Japan.