A government minister said the inclusion of foreign judges in a judicial mechanism to address accountability, as laid out in a resolution by the UN Human Rights Council, would be "unconstitutional".
Skills Development Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said President Maithripala Sirisena had ruled out any foreign participation and insisted that there could not be any doubt over this. The minister accompanied President Sirisena during his European tour last month and is known to be an informal advisor on foreign affairs to the president.
His comments at a news briefing from the Department of Information had the concurrence of President Sirisena, according to the Sunday Times.
"Samarasinghe’s assertions also comes as answer to Foreign Minister, Mangala Samaraweera. After he delivered a speech at the Washington based Peace Institute, he was asked about President Sirisena’s remarks that he would not allow any foreign participation, Samaraweera had opined that it was Sirisena’s personal view," the paper wrote.
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.
