COLOMBO: Amnesty International said here on Monday that there appears to be a "lack of political will" to bring justice to the many victims of Sri Lanka's three-decade-long internal armed conflict, and called on the international community to work with authorities in the island nation. requested. To lay the foundation of a free and just country.
The upcoming elections in Sri Lanka will have a major impact on the future of the island nation and human rights considerations in the years to come, the global rights NGO said in a statement issued at the end of a five-day visit by its Secretary-General, Agnes. Callamard for the country.
Presidential elections in Sri Lanka are scheduled to be held between mid-September and mid-October."The visit has provided insight into the many challenges that Sri Lanka faces 15 years after the end of the war (with the LTTE)," the statement said.
Callamard visited the northeastern Mullaithu district on Sunday to commemorate the victims of the Tamil side's killings to mark the 15th anniversary of the end of the last conflict.
“A lack of political will as well as complacency in delivering justice prevents reconciliation,” the statement said, calling on the international community to secure truth and justice for all victims of the war and ongoing human rights violations. There have been calls to work with the island's authorities. And laid the foundation of an independent and just Sri Lanka.
Amnesty said that during the visit, the focus was on threats to civil society; Freedom of expression; the right to peaceful protest; the use of anti-terrorism laws such as the Anti-Terrorism Act (PCA) to suppress dissent; Harassment; Threat; Surveillance and constraints on press freedom.It said new laws such as the Online Security Act and the proposed NGO law are worrying evidence of the threats facing civil society in the country.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) waged a military campaign for a separate Tamil homeland in the northern and eastern provinces of the island nation for nearly 30 years before its collapse in 2009.
On 18 May 2009, the Sri Lankan military declared victory with the discovery of the body of dreaded LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.
Nearly 15 years since the end of the armed conflict and several decades since the initial waves of enforced disappearances, Sri Lankan authorities have still failed to ensure accountability for these violations, Tamil groups claimed. That a large number of civilians were killed during the war. war.A report released on Friday by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said the Sri Lankan government should take meaningful action to determine and disclose the fate and whereabouts of thousands of people who have been forcibly disappeared. Those responsible have been held accountable for decades.
It called for renewed action by Sri Lanka domestically to control it through criminal justice. The report also calls on the international community to engage with Sri Lanka to investigate and prosecute targeted sanctions.
Sri Lanka says that OHCHR has not been ordered by member states to issue such reports.
The upcoming elections in Sri Lanka will have a major impact on the future of the island nation and human rights considerations in the years to come, the global rights NGO said in a statement issued at the end of a five-day visit by its Secretary-General, Agnes. Callamard for the country.
Presidential elections in Sri Lanka are scheduled to be held between mid-September and mid-October."The visit has provided insight into the many challenges that Sri Lanka faces 15 years after the end of the war (with the LTTE)," the statement said.
Callamard visited the northeastern Mullaithu district on Sunday to commemorate the victims of the Tamil side's killings to mark the 15th anniversary of the end of the last conflict.
“A lack of political will as well as complacency in delivering justice prevents reconciliation,” the statement said, calling on the international community to secure truth and justice for all victims of the war and ongoing human rights violations. There have been calls to work with the island's authorities. And laid the foundation of an independent and just Sri Lanka.
Amnesty said that during the visit, the focus was on threats to civil society; Freedom of expression; the right to peaceful protest; the use of anti-terrorism laws such as the Anti-Terrorism Act (PCA) to suppress dissent; Harassment; Threat; Surveillance and constraints on press freedom.It said new laws such as the Online Security Act and the proposed NGO law are worrying evidence of the threats facing civil society in the country.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) waged a military campaign for a separate Tamil homeland in the northern and eastern provinces of the island nation for nearly 30 years before its collapse in 2009.
On 18 May 2009, the Sri Lankan military declared victory with the discovery of the body of dreaded LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.
Nearly 15 years since the end of the armed conflict and several decades since the initial waves of enforced disappearances, Sri Lankan authorities have still failed to ensure accountability for these violations, Tamil groups claimed. That a large number of civilians were killed during the war. war.A report released on Friday by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said the Sri Lankan government should take meaningful action to determine and disclose the fate and whereabouts of thousands of people who have been forcibly disappeared. Those responsible have been held accountable for decades.
It called for renewed action by Sri Lanka domestically to control it through criminal justice. The report also calls on the international community to engage with Sri Lanka to investigate and prosecute targeted sanctions.
Sri Lanka says that OHCHR has not been ordered by member states to issue such reports.
