A group of unknown person ransacked the Jaffna Municipal Council's Medical officer for Health's office this week.

Windows were smashed and oil poured into the office, with the perpetrators yet to be apprehended.

"Now the inquiry has been announced, the APPG for Tamils would like to seek clarification on how it is to be implemented. In particular, the APPG for Tamils asks the Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR) to explain how it plans to conduct the inquiry if Sri Lanka does not cooperate."

India on Friday justified its abstention from voting on the US-sponsored resolution on an international investigation into mass atrocities in Sri Lanka at the UNHRC as driven by the welfare of Tamils in the island, PTI reports.

"We believe that our abstention yesterday is in the best interest of the Tamils in Sri Lanka and will assist us in our efforts to help them," Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh told reporters.

See Tamil reactions to the successful passing of the UNHRC resolution here.

Political parties in Tamil Nadu expressed shock and disbelief while condemning India’s decision to abstain from a US sponsored resolution at the UN Human Right Council mandating an international inquiry into mass atrocities in Sri Lanka.

See various reports by Times of India (here and here), The Hindu (here and here), Hindustan Times (here), Business Standard (here), domain-b.com (here ) and PTI (here).

The below is a summary of key reactions.

In statements released in the wake of a UN Human Rights Council resolution appointing an international investigation into rights abuses in Sri Lanka, US officials, US National Security Council spokesperson Caitlin Hayden and the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Michele J. Sison, drew attention to the deteriorating human rights situation on the island.

This week’s vote at the UN Human Rights Council on Sri Lanka has sent a clear message to the Sri Lankan government over accountability, stated the co-chair of the United States Caucus on Ethnic and Religious Freedom in Sri Lanka.

In a statement released today Congressman Bill Johnson said,

“Yesterday’s vote by the U.N. Human Rights Council illustrates the international community’s commitment to the pursuit of peaceful stability in Sri Lanka, and sends a clear message to the Sri Lankan government that the time has come for accountability and reconciliation”. 

Members of the TNPF have called on the UN Human Rights Council to take action to address the ongoing genocide and called for the establishment of a transitional administration in the North-East of Sri Lanka.

President of the TNPF, Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, General Secretary Kajendran Selvarajah and National Organiser Visvalingam Manivannan all addressed the Council, on behalf of the NGO International Educational Development, during the general debate on the High Commissioner’s report on Sri Lanka.

Human Rights Watch has called upon the UN Human Rights Council to vote in favour of a resolution on Sri Lanka and support an international investigation into allegations of war crimes.

Juliette De Rivero, Geneva director for the organisation, stated,

“The Human Rights Council needs to step in and act for justice because Sri Lanka has failed to do so.”

“Instead of investigating those responsible for atrocities, the Sri Lankan government has cynically absolved its forces of any wrongdoing and lashed out at those seeking accountability. Passing this resolution will send a strong message to all victims of Sri Lanka’s war that they have not been forgotten.”