US circulates tougher revised resolution on Sri Lanka

Mar 16, Geneva: The United States has circulated a tougher revised draft resolution on Sri Lanka among the member states of the United Nations Human Rights Council Friday ahead of the March 26th vote.


The revised resolution currently in circulation among the UNHRC members call for the international independent investigation on Sri Lanka proposed by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay.

The draft recalls the High Commissioner's conclusion that national mechanisms have consistently failed to establish the truth and achieve justice, and her recommendation that the Human Rights Council establish an international inquiry mechanism to further investigate the alleged violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law and monitor any domestic accountability processes.

It clearly requests the Office of the High Commissioner to lead a comprehensive investigation into alleged serious violations and abuses of human rights and related crimes by both parties in Sri Lanka and establish the facts and circumstances of such violations and of the crimes committed with a view to avoiding impunity and ensuring accountability, with assistance from relevant experts.

The draft resolution also calls on the government to investigate the attack on unarmed protesters in Weliweriya on August 1, 2013, and publicly release the Army Court of Inquiry report on the incident.

The High Commissioner is requested to present an oral update to the Human Rights Council at its 27th session, and a comprehensive report followed by a discussion on the implementation of the present resolution at its 28th session.
The resolution calls upon the Sri Lankan government to cooperate with the Office of the High Commissioner concerning the implementation of the resolution.

The Permanent Mission of the US in Geneva has organized another public informal consultation meeting for Tuesday (18) in Geneva to discuss the draft resolution on Sri Lanka.