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Majority didn’t vote for resolution: Dinesh

24 Mar 2021

  • Claims pressure from Western nations failed

  The Government highlighted that the majority of United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Member States had not voted for the Resolution on Sri Lanka yesterday (23), as 25 countries out of the total 47 had either voted against it, or abstained from voting. This was following the adoption of the Core Group of Countries Resolution on Sri Lanka at the 46th Session of the UNHRC, with 22 votes in favour of it, 11 votes in opposition, and 14 Member States abstaining from voting. “The Resolution did not get the vote of 25 of the 47 countries, despite great pressure from the domineering Western countries,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Dinesh Gunawardena said in a statement to the press in the aftermath of the vote.  Gunawardena further said that Japan and India abstained from voting to show that “they did not follow the call of the European nations” either.  The A/HRC/46/L.1 Resolution, titled “Promoting reconciliation, accountability, and human rights in Sri Lanka”, has recognised the importance of preserving evidence relating to violations of human rights in Sri Lanka to advance accountability, and as such, a call has been made to implement an “evidence-preserving” mechanism in the country.  However, Gunawardena said that the implementation of such mechanisms cannot take place on the sole basis of the adoption of a Resolution. He also commented on the cost of such a mechanism, claiming that houses for the entirety of the Jaffna Peninsula could be built for a similar cost. Although India abstained from the vote, in its pre-vote statement to the Council, it said that India is still committed to ensuring equality, justice, dignity, and peace for Tamils in the country. Thus, India called on the Government of Sri Lanka to “fulfil its commitments on the devolution of political authority” by holding the Elections for the Provincial Councils and for their effective operations. Speaking to The Morning yesterday, Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) MP and Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Member M.A. Sumanthiran PC said that the TNA is grateful to the Core Group (the UK, Germany, Canada, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Malawi) for leading the vote.  “This was a great conclusion, as twice as many Members voted in favour of the Resolution, compared to the 11 States who opposed it. The Government does not seem to know how to count, as they are claiming that those who abstained from the vote account for a vote against the Resolution,” Sumanthiran further said.  Sumanthiran added that it is now time for the Government to listen to the voice of reason, and co-operate with the UNHRC body in the future.  Commenting on India’s abstention, Thamil Makkal Thesiya Kuttani (TMTK) MP C.V. Wigneswaran told The Morning that he believes that India had to make the tough call between balancing the aspirations of the Tamil people and ensuring that Sri Lanka is “not pushed further into the arms of China”.  “Thus, we understand India’s stance,” added Wigneswaran.  Wigneswaran also said that the Tamil community is not entirely happy with the Resolution, as it does not call for strict enough measures on Sri Lanka’s past crimes against humanity.  Meanwhile, ITAK MP Shanakiyan Rasamanickam told The Morning that the Resolution must not be seen as the “world being against Sri Lanka”. “There would be ridiculous claims from the side of the Government about how it did not bow down to Western pressure. We must now consider where we go from here and think about our country,” stressed Rasamanickam.  Also speaking to The Morning, Samagi Jana Balawegeya (SJB) MP Lakshman Kiriella pointed out that there was no resolution against Sri Lanka during the rule of the United National Front-led Government.  “We maintained a good dialogue with the international community when we were in the Government. The current Rajapaksa Government cannot even effectively communicate with the Opposition, so it is no surprise that it could not communicate properly with the international community either,” said Kiriella.


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