Amnesty International released a statement today condemning the Sri Lankan government's repression of civil society on the eve of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

Speaking from Colombo, representing Amnesty International at CHOGM ,Steve Crawshaw, Director of the Office of the Secretary General, said,

“It may be astonishing to some that even on the eve of CHOGM, the Sri Lankan government feels free to abuse rights at the heart of the Commonwealth charter. But such government repression of civil society was expected."

"Commonwealth leaders must not just turn a blind eye.

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Condemning government moves to block Tamil protestors from coming to COlombo earlier today, and nothing that the  International Bar Association Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) was blocked from the country, Crawshaw went on to say,

“Sri Lanka is trying to use CHOGM to whitewash its despicable human rights record and hide ongoing abuses under the carpet. The government must not be allowed yet again to get away with this.”

"This is a blatant attempt by the authorities to stifle people’s right to peaceful protest. It fits a familiar pattern in Sri Lanka, where the government has in recent years done everything in its power to silence dissent.”

“It is notable that the Commonwealth has been shamefully silent throughout this, and has yet to condemn the human rights violations that are still so clearly business as usual for Sri Lanka.”

"These developments have confirmed what Amnesty International has long argued. Given Sri Lanka’s atrocious human rights record and its refusal to address ongoing violations, the country should not have been allowed to host CHOGM in the first place”.

“The Commonwealth and those attending the summit must use the coming days to highlight and condemn ongoing human rights violations in Sri Lanka. Under no circumstances should Sri Lanka be handed the chair of the organization for the next two years.”