18th September 2015

The UN Human Rights Commissioner’s Office Investigation on Sri Lanka(OISL) report has stated that it has reasons to believe the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam news presenter Shobana Dharmaraja alias “Isaipriya” was captured alive by the security forces who then killed her with gunshots to the head execution-style. The OISL report says Isaipriya was pulled out of the Nandi Kadal lagoon alive but mistaken by the security forces for being the daughter of Prabhakaran. It further says that based on the images of Isaipriya’s dead body and those of many other women, OISL believes that Isaipriya’s dead body was desecrated. Relevant excerpts from the OISL report are stated below – Shobana Dharmaraja alias Isaipriya The well-known LTTE news presenter, Isaipriya, appears in several photographic and […]

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is a non racist who even signed an agreement with LTTE Leader Prabhakaran. nobody has the right to say that he should implement the hybrid special court. The war could have been prevented if he won the 2005 Presidential election which he lost because the Tamil community did not cast their votes, New Left Front (NLF) Dr. Wickramabahu Karunaratne said. Addressing the media in Colombo yesterday, he said the New Left Front vehemently rejects the proposed hybrid special court requested by the UNHRC. “This is a act of defamation aimed at us who fought for democracy”. At least six months is required for Sri Lanka to address the issue because the power of the Parliament and in other key institutions came […]

Do not misinterpret Geneva report – PM Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday requested all to refrain from misinterpreting the Geneva report. Wickremesinghe said the UN Human Rights Council report has pursued that inquiries be made for determining whether war crimes have been perpetrated in Sri Lanka. “I earnestly ask from the media and other parties to desist from giving false accounts or misleading allusions about the report’s content,” he said………………  read all – See more at: http://www.dailynews.lk/?q=local/do-not-misinterpret-geneva-report-pm#sthash.xR3omk9V.dpuf SL hopes hybrid court ‘international’ component will be omitted The future steps with regard to the Report of the Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Investigation on Sri Lanka will be decided after analyzing the US sponsored resolution, Cabinet Spokesman and Health Nutrition and Indigenous Medicine […]

The United Nations Human Rights Council released its report Wednesday on possible war crimes committed during the last years of the Sri Lankan civil war. As many as 40,000 Tamils were killed by the military during the final months of the conflict, which ended in 2009. Citing a “horrific level of violations and abuses” in its report, the council concluded that a “purely domestic court procedure will have no chance of overcoming widespread and justifiable suspicions fueled by decades of violations, malpractice and broken promises.” This is a clear rejection of the proposal made on Monday by Sri Lanka’s foreign minister, Mangala Samaraweera, who told the Council that his government would set up a truth, justice and reconciliation commission, and draft a new constitution. The […]

Many an eyebrow has been raised over Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) call for stringent vetting procedures to prevent those who had been suspected of having committed war time atrocities from taking part in overseas military assignments. The recommendation has been made by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Prince Zeid in accordance with an inquiry conducted by a team headed by Sandra Beidas, formerly of the Amnesty International. Recently, the UN terminated the largest Sri Lankan peacekeeping mission in the Haiti launched in 2004. Since the conclusion of the conflict in May 2009, the US and some of its allies deprived some senior officials of training slots as well as opportunity to participate in various programmes. Geneva-based United Nations Human […]

Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council: What Now? Moving towards accountability A Trojan horse Sri Lanka: Light at the end of the tunnel Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council: What Now? With the long-awaited report on Sri Lanka’s violent history finally out, what’s next for Colombo at the UN Human Rights Council? The long-awaited UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) report that deals largely with wartime abuses in Sri Lanka has finally been made public. It’s a big moment for the island nation and OHCHR has come out with a strong report. This is a detailed, lengthy document that covers a range of disturbing topics, including extrajudicial killings, sexual violence, disappearances, torture, and attacks on civilians. Importantly, […]

Fonseka says no human rights violations happened under his command, Govt. should support probe to bring culprits before law Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka By Shanika Sriyananda Former Army Chief Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka, welcoming the new report released by the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner and its recommendation to set up a special court to investigate alleged human rights violations, said that he would fully support the investigation process to ensure justice. Fonseka, who commanded the final military operations to eliminate the LTTE and end the 30-year-old conflict in 2009, said the Government had to assist the UN investigation and also needed help to bring the culpritswho had committed grave human rights violationsbefore the law. “Justice has to be done for the people of this […]