Group of Prominent Individuals calls upon International Investigation into the war crimes in Sri Lanka

A Group of 'Eminent Persons' call for International Judicial Process into alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka.

A group of eminent persons from various countries has called upon the UNHRC-United Nations Human Rights Council to establish an international independent judicial process under the UN auspices to go into alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka. In an open letter, the group contended that “very little has changed” since the Council adopted a resolution in March 2014, setting up an international investigation into allegations of crimes committed during and since the war through the OISL-Office of the UN High Commissioner’s Investigation on Sri Lanka. The proposed international process should have the elements of the application of international criminal law, including the war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide; consultation on the mechanism’s design with all affected groups, especially victims; independent operation and adequate funding; guarantees of witness protection; access to information from all sources, including the government and military and the appointment of independent and competent personnel. The group of eminent persons, however, said: “these reforms, however, while welcome, should not be confused with justice for victims.” It argued that democracy was being restored in Sri Lanka’s south “while the largely Tamil lands of the North [and] East remain under the military occupation.” Despite the talk of reconciliation, the Srilankan government administration had not “acted on an essential confidence-building measure: releasing the names and details of prisoners it holds or who surrendered at the end of the war,” added the group. These groups of prominent individuals, which includes, the eminent persons like Indian social activist; David Rampton of the London School of Economics and Political Science; Frances Harrison, author; Callum Macrae, British filmmaker and Anuradha Mittal, Executive Director of the US-based Oakland Institute. In the Meanwhile, in Sri Lanka, M.K.Shivajilingam and Ananthy Sasitharan, members of the Tamil National Alliance in the Northern Provincial Council, along with others, concluded a five-day protest walk this evening in Nallur of Jaffna, demanding an international mechanism. They began their protest demonstration walk in Killinochchi last week.