Canadian Tamil Congress welcoming the UNHRC resolution on the findings of the UN report into Sri Lanka’s atrocities noted that “a significant” amount of work still remained to be done to “earn the trust and support of the Tamil community.”

“While CTC acknowledges that this resolution is an important step in the right direction, we know there remains significant work to be done to ensure that the ensuing processes earn the trust and support of Tamil victims and war-affected communities.”

CTC went on to call for any accountability mechanism to involve international judges, investigators and prosecutors whilst highlighting the need for full consultation fo victims and confidence building measures.

“In addition, while we note Sri Lanka’s commitment to engage in broad national consultations with the inclusion of victims and civil society, we emphasize that to safeguard the credibility of the process and achieve true accountability, consultations must be extended to the large number of victims outside of Sri Lanka, many of whom provided testimony to the High Commissioner’s investigation. Diaspora groups generally should also be engaged in the process and to this end, we reiterate our strong demand for the repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act, a de-listing of Tamil diaspora organizations and a review and strengthening of the Victims and Witness Protection Act, as called for in the High Commissioner’s report,” said the statement.

See full statement below.