The head of Amnesty International has urged the Australian Foreign Minister to take action on Sri Lanka, in a meeting with him on Tuesday.
Amnesty Secretary-General Salil Shetty met with Kevin Rudd and pressed him to back calls for an independent international investigation into war crimes.
Previously Rudd had stated that Australia would await the outcome of Sri Lanka’s LLRC report before acting, but Shetty told reporters,
"We know what it's going to say because we know that the process was deeply flawed.
We've waited long enough. The time is right to call for an independent investigation."
Shetty said that the Foreign Minister was receptive to his proposals, stating,
"He understands where we are coming from. I think they're going to actively consider our request.”
Rudd met with members of the Tamil diaspora in June, telling them that allegations of war crimes should be "tested, assessed and, if accurate, substantiated".
After the screening of “Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields” on Australian television in July, Rudd then tweeted that the footage was "deeply disturbing" and said,
"(The) UN Human Rights Council can't simply push this to one side. Action needed."
We need your support
Sri Lanka is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a journalist. Tamil journalists are particularly at threat, with at least 41 media workers known to have been killed by the Sri Lankan state or its paramilitaries during and after the armed conflict.
Despite the risks, our team on the ground remain committed to providing detailed and accurate reporting of developments in the Tamil homeland, across the island and around the world, as well as providing expert analysis and insight from the Tamil point of view
We need your support in keeping our journalism going. Support our work today.
For more ways to donate visit https://donate.tamilguardian.com.
