Sri Lanka’s president reiterated his rejection of any foreign involvement in a war crimes probe in Sri Lanka in an interview with Al Jazeera today.
Rejecting any foreign involvement in a war crimes probe for the third time in a week on international media, President Sirisena said,
“We will always act in accordance with the sovereignty of our country and the constitution. We definitely do not need outsiders. We have an unbiased independent judiciary in this country.”
After a damning UN report into Sri Lanka’s mass atrocities, Sirisena’s government co-sponsored a United Nations Human Rights Council resolution on accountability and reconciliation that called for the set-up of a war crime court with substantial international involvement.
Sirisena’s most recent remarks fly in the face of the undertakings Sri Lanka made at the United Nations Human Rights Council.
Sri Lanka rejects international component to accountability, denies reports of ongoing torture (22 Jan 2016)
Sri Lankan president reiterates rejection of foreign experts (22 Jan 2016)
‘Outrageous reversal of promises’ by Sri Lankan president – FFT (22 Jan 2016)
Sri Lankan president’s comments ‘an insult to victims and witnesses’ – ITJP (22 Jan 2016)
‘No excuse for Sri Lankan backtracking’ says HRW (25 Jan 2016)
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.
