The UN’s ‘grave failure’ in Sri Lanka demands an Answer Posted on September 27, 2023 By Admin FRANCES HARRISON THE GLOBE AND MAIL Last updated Friday, Nov. 16 2012, 4:37 PM EST It’s been called Ban Ki-moon’s Rwanda moment: a little-reported war three years ago on a tiny Indian Ocean island where tens of thousands of civilians were slaughtered, waiting for the United Nations to come and rescue them. What happened in Sri Lanka in 2009 has come back to haunt the UN with the leak of an internal inquiry commissioned by the Secretary-General. The independent report concluded that the UN’s own conduct during the final months of Sri Lanka’s civil war marked a “grave failure.” There was damning criticism of senior staff, who “simply did not perceive the prevention of killing of civilians as their responsibility.” Britain’s Cameron urged to follow Harper’s lead on Sri Lanka rights abuses 27 inmates killed after Sri Lankan prison riot Slaying of Tamil-Canadian underscores enduring ethnic violence in Sri Lanka Would the entire report have seen the light of day if a draft hadn’t been leaked to the BBC? A reluctant UN in New York had to publish the document, but chose to do so without its powerful executive summary that set the conflict in the context of post-9/11 global attitudes to terrorism that tragically skewed the reporting of the bloodshed. Internal communications show senior UN officials struggling to portray the proscribed terrorist group, the Tamil Tigers, as the ones primarily to blame for the killings. Read Full Article Uncategorized
UN Rights Council: Act on Sri Lanka Report – HRW Posted on October 2, 2023 Failure to Follow Up Would Be Shameful September 13, 2011 (Geneva) – The United Nations Human Rights Council should act on the recommendations in a report commissioned by the UN Secretary-General detailing grave abuses during the final months of Sri Lanka’s armed conflict, Human Rights Watch said today. UN Secretary-General… Read More
The UN Investigation Into Human Rights In Sri Lanka; Its Legal Basis, Nature And Scope Posted on September 27, 2023September 27, 2023 A UN investigation into allegations of violations of human rights in Sri Lanka is about to commence. As an aid to public discussion, Friday Forum sets out below information to help the general public understand the legal basis, origin, nature and scope of this inquiry Navi Pillay – United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Frequently Asked Questions… Read More
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC STATEMENT -JUNE 2012 Posted on September 27, 2023 AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC STATEMENT AI Index: ASA 37/009/2012 13 June 2012 The Human Rights Situation in Sri Lanka, June 2012 A statement for the June Human Rights Council Session Sri Lanka is not fulfilling many of its international human rights obligations. Impunity remains the norm for gross violations of human… Read More