Was Prabhakaran alive? Govt to probe into it – Ruwan

State Minister of Defence Ruwan Wijewardena stated that the government would carry out an investigation on the statement of Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka that LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran was alive when the victory over the war was declared in 2009. Minister Sarath Fonseka, making his maiden speech in Parliament, launched a scathing attack on the previous government and its top echelons on multiple issues. The most important aspect of Fonseka’s speech was the position he took on international involvement in the investigation into alleged war crimes during the final phase of war. Fonseka, in an interesting turn of events, stressed that investigations into alleged human rights violations, including the controversial white flag incident, should be conducted in a transparent and an internationally accepted manner. He said that the support of foreign observers and consultants should be sought in such probes. The former Army Commander’s statement came as the government was doing the spade-work to set up a credible war crimes inquiry mechanism with the help and support of international stakeholders, as per the recommendations of the Geneva UN Human Rights Council resolution last year.