No foreign involvement in war crimes probe - Ranil

The war crimes mechanism mandated by a UN resolution last October will not include foreign participation, despite the binding resolution's call for international involvement in any accountability mechanism.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told senior army officials on Thursday that the judicial mechanism would be made up entirely of Sri Lankan judges, The Sunday Times reported today.

The final decision was conveyed to the army officials after months of speculation. President Maithripala Sirisena said in January that foreign judges will not be allowed to take part in any mechanism, however Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera in February said this was the president's "personal opinion", and that international involvement remained on the table.

The TNA is said to be unhappy with the decision by the government.

TNA leader Rajavarothayam Sampanthan told the Sunday Times,

“The resolution was considerably watered down because the Government showed a positive attitude. We would request that the UNHRC resolution be implemented. There is no room for misunderstanding.”