Work of Tamil judges in Sri Lanka often compromised by fear of consequences

Tamil judges are often too intimidated to pass the right judgements, the Chief Minister of the Northern Province has said.

Meeting with the Japanese ambassador, Kenichi Suganuma on Wednesday, Mr Wigneswaran said that a domestic accountability mechanism would be of no good to victims of atrocities, and that unbiased international judges would be crucial to the process.

When asked whether there were no Tamil judges in the country, the Chief Minister responded that the existence of a few Tamil judges did not improve the outlook, as their ability to pass judgements was often compromised by intimidation and fear.

"Tamil judges do not always make the right judgements because in some cases, they are seized by fear," Mr Wigneswaran said.

"They have the belief that they will be trapped in the consequences of certain decisions they might make."

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