The UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues Rita Izsák-Ndiaye’s report on Sri Lanka submitted to the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) ahead of its 34th session in Geneva is debated today (March 15) by the UNHRC member states.
In the report Rita said there is mounting frustration in Sri Lanka with the pace of progress in the accountability process almost two years after the change of Government.
Ms. Ndiaye said that to achieve peaceful coexistence after the long, devastating civil war, a comprehensive, well-planned and well-coordinated truth, reconciliation, healing and accountability process must take place, and it cannot be done overnight.
Rita Izsák-Ndiaye says the specific policy interventions to address the needs of different minority groups should be based on accurate data that are disaggregated by, inter alia, gender, ethnicity, language and religious affiliation.
“Such data are crucial to highlight the vulnerability of the different population groups, including those that face multiple forms of discrimination, and enable legislators and policymakers to establish targeted programmes. Census questions should allow open and multiple responses that enable respondents to self-identify according to their national, ethnic, religious and linguistic affiliation, including multiple identities,” she said.
She also noted that past acts of repression of culture and expression, ethnic intolerance and discrimination, as well as the crimes and violations committed during the conflict and the prevailing impunity, have severely damaged social and cultural norms and feelings of identity, belonging and trust.
Therefore, she said the Government should also consider supporting psychosocial programmes and counselling and support interventions to help victims, especially women, overcome the trauma, which often manifests in complex and intertwined physical, emotional and mental health complications.
