CORE welcomes UN Human Rights Council resolution on Sri Lanka
urges India to adopt an equally impartial stance within its own territories

Imphal, 22 March 2013

The Centre for Organisation Research and Education welcomes the resolution ‘Promoting reconciliation and accountability in Sri Lanka’ adopted at the United Nations Human Rights Council on 21 March 2013 at Geneva.

The resolution, the second adopted by the Council on Sri Lanka in recent years, continues to uphold the correct stand of the international community in terms of international human rights and humanitarian standards expected as an obligation from the governments of member states of the United Nations Organisation. However, the resolution falls short of instituting an appropriate independent and impartial international investigation.

In view of the continuing high level of severe human rights violations in Sri Lanka, threats to the independence of its judiciary, threats to the media, the state of extreme denial its government is in and purposeful disregard of its national minority issues, the government of Sri Lanka should extend its full cooperation to requests from UN independent experts and special mandate holders of the Council to visit the country. Reconciliation and accountable institutions and actions can restore faith in the state of democracy in Sri Lanka.

We further urge members of the Council, especially those who sponsored and supported the resolution, to exhibit exemplary and impartial conduct in their own human rights and humanitarian law situations within their territories in affirming their role and responsibility in the international community regarding the need for human rights accountability wherever human rights violations occur.

India’s vote in favour of the US sponsored resolution text is welcome not only because of its recognition of such a role and responsibility in the South Asia region, but also because human rights and humanitarian law violations within its own territories have been reported consistently by reliable sources.

The continuing human rights violations in Jammu & Kashmir and the North East region, the studied disregard to international calls to repeal the draconian and racist Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act of 1958 that violates every central principle of human rights, its failure to recognise its own indigenous peoples and accord them due protection of their collective rights, the unacceptable trend of legislations without the political will to ensure that its executive and law enforcement apparatus carry them out with due diligence in the face of rapidly rising violence against its women, children and national and ethnic minorities are matters of grave concern.

Independence and credibility being the pillars of every inquiry of alleged or reported rights violation, India’s dismal record of strict adherance to impartial criminal investigations procedures as established by law and its trivialization of the Commissions of Inquiry Act 1952 are concerns that need serious and urgent attention.

(Dr Debabrata Roy Laifungbam)
President
Elders' Council
Centre for Organisation Research & Education
(Indigenous Peoples' Organisation in Special Consultative Relationship with ECOSOC of United Nations)
1st Floor, Ibotombi Building, Babupara
Imphal 795001, MANIPUR
India
Tel/Fax: +91 385 244 13 19
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