manlion
SENIOR MEMBER
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2013
- Messages
- 7,568
- Reaction score
- -3
Sri Lankan army destroyed mass graves to hide evidence of large-scale civilian deaths, report alleges
Mass graves may have been “systematically destroyed” by Sri Lankan security forces at the end of the island’s separatist conflict to hide evidence of large-scale civilian deaths, a new report says.
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre said the demolition of burial sites containing thousands of war dead was one of many apparent “grave violations” that called out for international investigation.
Prepared by a panel that included a former chief United Nations war crimes investigator and the UN’s former spokesman in Sri Lanka, the report pointed the finger at senior government and military officials.
Flagrant and reckless disregard for the laws of war
Given the “well-established” command-and-control structures of the opposing forces, the “flagrant and reckless disregard for the laws of war” may well have been intentional and result in prosecutions, it said.
“More than four years after the end of the Sri Lankan civil war, the Sri Lankan government has failed to address serious and credible alleged violations of international law,” the panel wrote.
“An independent and comprehensive international investigation is needed into these alleged violations of international law. Failure to do so can only damage the prospects of meaningful and enduring reconciliation in Sri Lanka.”
The report is the latest to urge the international community to hold to account those responsible for the unknown number of deaths that occurred when the Sri Lankan army cornered and defeated the Tamil Tigers in 2009.
Sri Lanka has consistently denied any misconduct and accused Western governments and rights groups of sympathizing with the Tamil rebels. “Influential countries should realize the difficulty of fighting such a ruthless terrorism,” President Mahinda Rajapaksa said at independence day ceremonies Tuesday.
The report lists a litany of violations by both sides, notably indiscriminate artillery fire, rapes, disappearances, torture, use of human shields and conscription of children. But it blamed the Sri Lankan forces for the vast majority of abuses.
“It’s a damning report,” said David Poopilapillai, spokesman for the Canadian Tamil Congress, which has asked Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird to push for sanctions against Sri Lanka. “What is alarming is there was an intent to commit these crimes.”
Asked about the call for sanctions, Rick Roth, Mr. Baird’s press secretary, said Canada was “prepared to take principled actions to encourage tangible progress.” He pointed out that Prime Minister Stephen Harper had declined to attend last November’s Commonwealth summit in Colombo in protest.
The United States was expected to sponsor a resolution at the UN Human Rights Council in March calling for accountability for violations of international law during the final stage of the conflict.
Among the report’s more chilling allegations are the apparent executions of several captured rebels as well as Tamil Tigers chief Velupillai Prabhakaran’s 12-year-old son, Balachandran, who was shot five times at close range.
While the report is consistent with previous findings, it contained new allegations about what may have been an attempt to cover up the extent of civilian losses by tampering with graves where “hundreds, and in some instances, thousands” of bodies had been buried.
Citing an eyewitness, the report said mass burial sites had been exhumed and razed after the conflict by the Sri Lankan military and police. “Self-evidently, these allegations are very serious and there is an urgent need for further investigation to determine their veracity,” it said.
National Post
Mass graves may have been “systematically destroyed” by Sri Lankan security forces at the end of the island’s separatist conflict to hide evidence of large-scale civilian deaths, a new report says.
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre said the demolition of burial sites containing thousands of war dead was one of many apparent “grave violations” that called out for international investigation.
Prepared by a panel that included a former chief United Nations war crimes investigator and the UN’s former spokesman in Sri Lanka, the report pointed the finger at senior government and military officials.
Flagrant and reckless disregard for the laws of war
Given the “well-established” command-and-control structures of the opposing forces, the “flagrant and reckless disregard for the laws of war” may well have been intentional and result in prosecutions, it said.
“More than four years after the end of the Sri Lankan civil war, the Sri Lankan government has failed to address serious and credible alleged violations of international law,” the panel wrote.
“An independent and comprehensive international investigation is needed into these alleged violations of international law. Failure to do so can only damage the prospects of meaningful and enduring reconciliation in Sri Lanka.”
The report is the latest to urge the international community to hold to account those responsible for the unknown number of deaths that occurred when the Sri Lankan army cornered and defeated the Tamil Tigers in 2009.
Sri Lanka has consistently denied any misconduct and accused Western governments and rights groups of sympathizing with the Tamil rebels. “Influential countries should realize the difficulty of fighting such a ruthless terrorism,” President Mahinda Rajapaksa said at independence day ceremonies Tuesday.
The report lists a litany of violations by both sides, notably indiscriminate artillery fire, rapes, disappearances, torture, use of human shields and conscription of children. But it blamed the Sri Lankan forces for the vast majority of abuses.
“It’s a damning report,” said David Poopilapillai, spokesman for the Canadian Tamil Congress, which has asked Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird to push for sanctions against Sri Lanka. “What is alarming is there was an intent to commit these crimes.”
Asked about the call for sanctions, Rick Roth, Mr. Baird’s press secretary, said Canada was “prepared to take principled actions to encourage tangible progress.” He pointed out that Prime Minister Stephen Harper had declined to attend last November’s Commonwealth summit in Colombo in protest.
The United States was expected to sponsor a resolution at the UN Human Rights Council in March calling for accountability for violations of international law during the final stage of the conflict.
Among the report’s more chilling allegations are the apparent executions of several captured rebels as well as Tamil Tigers chief Velupillai Prabhakaran’s 12-year-old son, Balachandran, who was shot five times at close range.
While the report is consistent with previous findings, it contained new allegations about what may have been an attempt to cover up the extent of civilian losses by tampering with graves where “hundreds, and in some instances, thousands” of bodies had been buried.
Citing an eyewitness, the report said mass burial sites had been exhumed and razed after the conflict by the Sri Lankan military and police. “Self-evidently, these allegations are very serious and there is an urgent need for further investigation to determine their veracity,” it said.
National Post
