Careful to avoid calling for a boycott of CHOGM or a change of venue, the UK's shadow foreign secretary, Douglas Alexander, said that the British government should "keep its attendance at this summit under review as it awaits effective action from the Sri Lankan Government.”
Four years on, Alexander did not outline how much longer the British government should wait for.
Alexander's statement - 'Commonwealth Day should be a day for celebration' - published on Commonwealth Day, has been reproduced in full below:
"And the British Government should keep its attendance at this summit under review as it awaits effective action from the Sri Lankan Government.”“Commonwealth Day should be a day for celebration of the role of the Commonwealth in promoting human rights globally.
“But with the next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting due to take place in Sri Lanka in November, it should also be a day for action by the Sri Lankan government: action that acknowledges the appalling human rights abuses which have taken place there over recent years.
“The Commonwealth must use the prospect of the meeting in Colombo to encourage the Sri Lankan government to now meet its clear international obligations, and begin rapid change to acknowledge the human rights abuses which took place during its bloody armed conflict.
“The British government must urgently raise with the Sri Lankan government the need for a full, independent, international investigation into the allegations of war crimes committed by all parties.