The Tamil National People's Front (TNPF) wrote to the Core Group reiterating their previous calls to refer Sri Lanka to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for the genocide it perpertrated against the Tamil people.
"[...] we reiterate that the core group which includes two members of the UN Security Council must initiate steps to table a resolution in the UN Security Council to refer Sri Lanka to the International Criminal Court to inquire into all crimes committed, including the crime of genocide against the Tamil people," the TNPF wrote in a letter yesterday.
In the letter, the TNPF expressed their disapointment with the UN Resolution 46/1 which called on the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to "collect" as well as "consolidate, analyse and preserve” evidence that could be used in future war crimes trials and urged Core Group members to refer Sri Lanka to the ICC instead.
"It is the lived 74 years collective experience of the Tamil people that any further delay in not taking steps to have Sri Lanka referred to the ICC and steps being taken to formally recognise the Tamils as a distinct Nation and its inalienable right to self-determination, will only further alienate the Tamil people from prospects of achieving accountability and a just political solution that upholds their rights under international law," the letter added.
"We wish to reiterate that resoution 46/1 cannot be sustained in the name of accountability and justice for the victims whom we represent," the TNPF stated in their letter.
The resolution states that Sri Lanka must provide the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) with “a written update to the Human Rights Council” in March 2022 and a “comprehensive report including further options for advancing accountability” later this year. However, the TNPF state that during this time "victims wil be further alienated from any real prospects for justice and accountability."
Commenting on Sri Lanka's proposed 'reforms' to the notorious Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), the TNPF stressed that "none of the amendments will result in any material change to the plight of any detainees under the law."
They added that Sri Lanka is only interested in "paying lip service to such standards conveniently timed to shield itself from criticisms that could emanate from the UNHRC sessions."
UN High Commissioner, Michelle Bachelet, released a new report yesterday, expressing her concern over the lack of accountability for human rights violations committed by Sri Lanka and renewed her call to member states to use universal jurisdictions and targeted sanctions against alleged perpetrators of human rights abuses.
The 49tth session of the UNHRC will begin in Geneva on Monday where Bachelet will present the findings in her report.
Read the TNPF's full letter here.
