The United Nations Human Rights Office has released their annual report on Sri Lanka, which called on the Government to “seize the historic opportunity to break with entrenched impunity, implement transformative reforms, and deliver long-overdue justice and accountability for serious violations and abuses committed in the past, including international crimes”.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, who visited the island recently, has stated: “Today, an opportunity presents itself for Sri Lanka to break from the past, with the leadership pledging a fresh direction on long-standing issues, including delivering justice to victims, restoring the rule of law, and eliminating discrimination and divisive politics. It now needs a comprehensive roadmap to translate these commitments into results.” And Türk is right. Sri Lanka has given the National People’s Power (NPP) Government a massive mandate for serious change. Sri Lanka can’t afford to maintain the ‘status quo’ of little or no action on the critical issues related to conflict-era allegations, systemic practices of impunity, and abuse of power.
However, the Government must be careful in how it delivers on justice and reconciliation. Both require a mirror to be held to the past and for painful measures to be taken to bring reconciliation. What is needed from the Government is not appeasement of one group of victims and the international community, which seems to be fixated on one side of the story, with little consideration given to the other. Justice and reconciliation, for it to be meaningful and lead to lasting peace and unity, must deliver justice to all parties, and acknowledge the suffering of all the victims.
“This process should start with a clear and formal acknowledgment of the violations, abuses, and crimes that occurred, including during the civil war, of the responsibility of the State and security forces personnel, as well as non-state armed groups such as the LTTE, and of the enduring impact of this violence on victims and communities. As I witnessed first-hand during my visit to Sri Lanka, the pain and suffering of victims remains palpable and their demands for truth and justice must be addressed” Türk has stated.
It is noteworthy, that like many UN big wigs who parachute into Sri Lanka for carefully planned visits, which meets the same faces from the Opposition, ‘Civil Society’ community and rights activists who lobby the diplomatic quarter of Colombo, Türk did not make an effort to meet ‘the others’ who were victims of the 30-year-long internal conflict.
Shouldn’t the UN seek to engage a wider Sri Lankan audience to gauge the impact of the conflict on all its victims? Or does the UN, like many Western missions in Colombo, view the conflict and understand it through the lenses of a few lobbyists, that push one narrative, and discredit those which they don’t find helpful. During the UN rights chief’s visit to Sri Lanka, no visit was made to where 600 policemen who surrendered, were massacred and buried in a mass grave they were forced to dig themselves. Families of missing Sri Lankan servicepersons, and POW’s who are still not found were not met, no lamps nor candles were lit for them or the thousands of Sinhalese and Muslim villagers who were methodically murdered in night raids, forcing them out of their own homes. Did Türk make an effort to engage retired personnel from the armed forces, who today shoulder all the blame for the dark and bitter hours of the three-decade-long conflict? Those personnel from the armed forces, who are today – on their own, seemingly abandoned by their own state and government, denied due process or their day in court, today, have domestic and international sanctions placed on them, with little room to defend themselves.
Like with those who are detained for decades under the PTA laws, many who are under sanction remain in limbo, with neither justice nor evidence to prove their guilt submitted before a court of law. Did Türk speak to the families of the thousands of Tamils, Sinhalese, and Muslims who were killed or bombed into oblivion by the LTTE? Has the UN rights body taken any effective action on compiling information about those who funded such terrorism and ethnic cleansing that now resides in the cities in Europe, lobbying for political pressure on Sri Lanka? Isn’t justice and reconciliation a two-way street?
The report also points to the failure of the new Government to repeal the PTA law, despite its commitment to do so during the lead up to the elections and flags the continued use of the law to arrest and detain people. It also calls for the amendment or repeal of other laws or proposed laws that restrict fundamental rights, such as to freedom of opinion and expression, association and peaceful assembly, including the Online Safety Act, the ICCPR Act, the draft NGO Bill, and the draft Personal Data Protection Act No. 9.
The delays in replacing or scrapping the PTA and the issues with ICCPR and the OSA are all issues which the NPP promised to address, yet has failed to do so. Time is running out for them to act. When they do, they need to act in Sri Lanka’s national interest. Justice and reconciliation is necessary for all Sri Lankans.