In the first decade of this century, the Sri Lankan government massacred more
than 40,000 of its own citizens - men, women and children - in the final days of
its war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
The Tigers, who had been demanding a separate state for the Tamils for more than a quarter of a century, had been systematically denied of their rights as citizens of the country by the Sinhalese majority.
The UN estimates that more than 100,000 civilians had been killed between 1972 and 2009.
In this brutal war against its own citizens, the Sri Lankan
government led by Mahinda Rajapakse managed to satisfy the particular needs,
like investment opportunities, of some countries including Malaysia.Thus earning their support which continues to this day.
President Rajapkse’s Tamil pogrom which made Adolf Hitler’s holocaust, the mass killings of Jews by the Nazi regime during World War II pale into insignificance, stunned the world at large.
In addition to the factual and live reports on the Sri Lankan government’s organised attacks on its Tamil citizens since the 1980s, backed by photographs and videos that were made available by the media throughout the world, the British Channel 4 screened damning evidence on June 14, 2011.
The video corroborated allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the Sri Lankan armed forces against the unarmed civilian Tamils, and called the bluff of the Sri Lankan government that it was only fighting terrorists.
Those who watched the Sri Lanka’s ‘Killing Fields’ video were stunned by the deliberate bombings of civilian targets, hospitals, extra judicial killings, sexual abuses and brutal killings committed against the Tamils.
The Sri Lankan armed forces were acting under the direct orders of Mahinda Rajapkse and his brother Gotabaya, who was acting as the defence secretary.
UN panel finds credible allegations
A three-member panel was set up in September 2010 following the joint statement made by the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon and Rajapkse, after Ban's visit to Sri Lanka shortly after the end of the conflict in May 2009.
The panel consisted of Marzuki Darusman (Indonesia), Yasmin Sooka (South Africa) and Prof Steven Ratner (the US).
The panel of experts found “credible allegations” which
indicated that a wide range of serious violations of international humanitarian
principles and international human rights law were committed both by the
government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE.
It added: “Some of which, if proven, would amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
The panel concluded that the “conduct of the war represented a grave assault on the entire regime of international law designed to protect individual dignity during both war and peace”.
The Sri Lankan government took steps to ward off the mounting pressure from the international community and set up its own Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) following the model of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The LLRC was appointed by Rajapaksa in May 2010 to look back at the Sri Lankan civil war, which was fought from 1983 to 2009, and to provide recommendations for an era of healing and peace building.
After an 18-month inquiry, the commission submitted its report to the president on Nov 15, 2011. The report was made public on Dec 16, 2011, after it was tabled in Parliament.
Observing the nature of the LLRC, the three-member UN panel concluded that the government’s notion of accountability was not in accordance with international standards.
Referring to the commission, the UN panel reported: “…the LLRC is deeply flawed, does not meet international standards for an effective accountability mechanism and, therefore, does not and cannot satisfy the joint commitment of the president of Sri Lanka and the UN secretary-general to an accountability process”.
UNHRC resolution on Sri Lanka
The call for action to investigate those who violated “international humanitarian or human rights law” as recommended by the UN panel of experts on Mar 7, 2012, has since reached a pitch of excitement.
The US in turn submitted a draft resolution to the current 19th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, of which Malaysia is a proud and influential member.
The mildly worded American draft resolution seeks the cooperation of the Sri Lankan government for an international mechanism to investigate the “potential serious violations” committed by all the parties engaged in the final phase of the war in Sri Lanka.
And, also to work closely with the UN Human Rights Council to ensure the implementation of the terms of the resolution.
The Sri Lankan government appears to be shell-shocked over this resolution and is all out to ensure its defeat.
Malaysia, a close ally of Sri Lanka, is yet to make a
decision; it is unlikely Malaysia will vote in favour of the resolution as it is
currently one of the largest investors in Sri Lanka, with investments reaching
RM1 billion.
The majority of Indian Malaysians are Tamils. They, passionately linked with the Tamil language and culture, are angry with the genocide and ethnic cleansing of the Tamils in Sri Lanka.
They have been sending memorandums and post cards to the Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak urging the Malaysian government to sever ties with Sri Lanka.
K. Arumugam, a human rights lawyer, argues: “This is not merely a Tamil issue, the suffering of thousands of internally displaced Muslims in Sri Lanka is another forgotten story of the war and the Sinhala hegemony.”
“Malaysia is publicly committed towards enriching the quality of dialogue, cooperation and action aimed at advancing the promotion and protection of human rights globally.”
In view of this public commitment and as a member of the UN Human Rights Council, Malaysia voting against a resolution seeking investigations into "credible allegations" of war crimes and crimes against humanity will run counter to its position on Palestine, Bosnia, Indonesia and the likes.
At this juncture, it is good to recall the heroic welcome given to the then prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman at the Kuala Lumpur airport in the 1960s upon his return from London.
There, at the Commonwealth Prime Ministers Conference he had successfully moved a motion to expel South Africa from the Commonwealth for its apartheid policy.
Najib’s support for Sri Lanka will earn him the wrath of the general public and the ridicule of the international community.
He cannot feign ignorance of one of his predecessors’ action on a matter concerning the violation of human rights.
Source : http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/192696
The Tigers, who had been demanding a separate state for the Tamils for more than a quarter of a century, had been systematically denied of their rights as citizens of the country by the Sinhalese majority.
The UN estimates that more than 100,000 civilians had been killed between 1972 and 2009.
In this brutal war against its own citizens, the Sri Lankan
government led by Mahinda Rajapakse managed to satisfy the particular needs,
like investment opportunities, of some countries including Malaysia.Thus earning their support which continues to this day.President Rajapkse’s Tamil pogrom which made Adolf Hitler’s holocaust, the mass killings of Jews by the Nazi regime during World War II pale into insignificance, stunned the world at large.
In addition to the factual and live reports on the Sri Lankan government’s organised attacks on its Tamil citizens since the 1980s, backed by photographs and videos that were made available by the media throughout the world, the British Channel 4 screened damning evidence on June 14, 2011.
The video corroborated allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the Sri Lankan armed forces against the unarmed civilian Tamils, and called the bluff of the Sri Lankan government that it was only fighting terrorists.
Those who watched the Sri Lanka’s ‘Killing Fields’ video were stunned by the deliberate bombings of civilian targets, hospitals, extra judicial killings, sexual abuses and brutal killings committed against the Tamils.
The Sri Lankan armed forces were acting under the direct orders of Mahinda Rajapkse and his brother Gotabaya, who was acting as the defence secretary.
UN panel finds credible allegations
A three-member panel was set up in September 2010 following the joint statement made by the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon and Rajapkse, after Ban's visit to Sri Lanka shortly after the end of the conflict in May 2009.
The panel consisted of Marzuki Darusman (Indonesia), Yasmin Sooka (South Africa) and Prof Steven Ratner (the US).
The panel of experts found “credible allegations” which
indicated that a wide range of serious violations of international humanitarian
principles and international human rights law were committed both by the
government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE.It added: “Some of which, if proven, would amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
The panel concluded that the “conduct of the war represented a grave assault on the entire regime of international law designed to protect individual dignity during both war and peace”.
The Sri Lankan government took steps to ward off the mounting pressure from the international community and set up its own Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) following the model of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The LLRC was appointed by Rajapaksa in May 2010 to look back at the Sri Lankan civil war, which was fought from 1983 to 2009, and to provide recommendations for an era of healing and peace building.
After an 18-month inquiry, the commission submitted its report to the president on Nov 15, 2011. The report was made public on Dec 16, 2011, after it was tabled in Parliament.
Observing the nature of the LLRC, the three-member UN panel concluded that the government’s notion of accountability was not in accordance with international standards.
Referring to the commission, the UN panel reported: “…the LLRC is deeply flawed, does not meet international standards for an effective accountability mechanism and, therefore, does not and cannot satisfy the joint commitment of the president of Sri Lanka and the UN secretary-general to an accountability process”.
UNHRC resolution on Sri Lanka
The call for action to investigate those who violated “international humanitarian or human rights law” as recommended by the UN panel of experts on Mar 7, 2012, has since reached a pitch of excitement.
The US in turn submitted a draft resolution to the current 19th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, of which Malaysia is a proud and influential member.
The mildly worded American draft resolution seeks the cooperation of the Sri Lankan government for an international mechanism to investigate the “potential serious violations” committed by all the parties engaged in the final phase of the war in Sri Lanka.
And, also to work closely with the UN Human Rights Council to ensure the implementation of the terms of the resolution.
The Sri Lankan government appears to be shell-shocked over this resolution and is all out to ensure its defeat.
Malaysia, a close ally of Sri Lanka, is yet to make a
decision; it is unlikely Malaysia will vote in favour of the resolution as it is
currently one of the largest investors in Sri Lanka, with investments reaching
RM1 billion.The majority of Indian Malaysians are Tamils. They, passionately linked with the Tamil language and culture, are angry with the genocide and ethnic cleansing of the Tamils in Sri Lanka.
They have been sending memorandums and post cards to the Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak urging the Malaysian government to sever ties with Sri Lanka.
K. Arumugam, a human rights lawyer, argues: “This is not merely a Tamil issue, the suffering of thousands of internally displaced Muslims in Sri Lanka is another forgotten story of the war and the Sinhala hegemony.”
“Malaysia is publicly committed towards enriching the quality of dialogue, cooperation and action aimed at advancing the promotion and protection of human rights globally.”
In view of this public commitment and as a member of the UN Human Rights Council, Malaysia voting against a resolution seeking investigations into "credible allegations" of war crimes and crimes against humanity will run counter to its position on Palestine, Bosnia, Indonesia and the likes.
At this juncture, it is good to recall the heroic welcome given to the then prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman at the Kuala Lumpur airport in the 1960s upon his return from London.
There, at the Commonwealth Prime Ministers Conference he had successfully moved a motion to expel South Africa from the Commonwealth for its apartheid policy.
Najib’s support for Sri Lanka will earn him the wrath of the general public and the ridicule of the international community.
He cannot feign ignorance of one of his predecessors’ action on a matter concerning the violation of human rights.
Source : http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/192696
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