A forum took place on 16 June 2009 at NSW Parliament,
Sydney and 17 June 2009 at Federal Parliament, Canberra.
Details of the forum, the guest speakers and the video
of their speeches follow. We encourage you to view them.
Human Rights in Sri Lanka and Australia�s Role
Guest speakers:
Hon. John Dowd AO QC
Hon. John Dowd AO QC is the President of the
Australian Section of the International Commission
of Jurists (ICJ) and chair of the Executive
Committee of ICJ Geneva. He has been on ICJ missions
to Hong Kong, East Timor and Nepal, and led the
Australian Government Delegation to Palestine to
monitor the Palestinian Legislative Council
Elections. A former NSW Attorney-General and Supreme
Court judge, John Dowd is currently the Chancellor
of the Southern Cross University and recently
elected president of ActionAid Australia (formerly
Austcare).
Dr. John Whitehall
Dr. John Whitehall is a paediatrician and Associate
Professor in Public Health at James Cook University.
He has done voluntary medical work in Sri Lanka in
2004 and 2005, and in 2006 was a finalist for Senior
Australian of the Year for his work raising relief
funds for victims of the Asian tsunami. John
Whitehall is the co-author of the book War and
Medicine, a collection of short stories of the
experiences of medical practioners in NorthEast Sri
Lanka.
Mr. Bruce Haigh
Mr. Bruce Haigh is a political commentator and
author and a former Australian diplomat.Having
joined the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
in 1972, he has extensive experience in South Asia,
the Middle East and South Africa, including as
Deputy High Commissioner to Sri Lanka and Counsellor
in the Australian Embassy in Pakistan. As First
Secretary in the Australian Embassy in South Africa,
Bruce Haigh initiated Embassy contact with members
of the black South African resistance and helped a
number of political activists to escape South
Africa.
Speech by Mr. Bruce Haigh
Part I
Part 2
Speech by Dr. John Whitehall
Part 1
Part 2
Speech by Hon. John Dowd
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Background on the Tamils� struggle for
independence,
the history behind the Sri Lankan conflict.
Part I
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Question and Answer session by the
panel
Part 1
Part 2