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Verena Graf, Secr�taire g�n�rale, International League for
the Rights & Liberation of Peoples writes to Ms. Louise
ARBOUR, High Commissioner of Human Rights, Geneva, 19 May 2006
[also in Word]
"...we are under no illusion that the international
institutions have largely remained a forum for governments for
whom political considerations typically count more than those
of justice and morality. We, therefore, appeal to you to
lend your voice to the suffering people in the North and East of
Sri Lanka, Tamils and Muslims alike, who have no voice. The then
government of Sri Lanka could prevent Mr. Kofi Annan from
visiting the tsunami affected areas in the Northeast of the
country back in January 2005; there is no govenment today that
can hinder you, High Commissioner, to express your concern about
the
killings, the involuntary disappearances, the
bombardment
of civilians. .."
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T�l.+ Fax: 41-22-320 22 43 [email protected]
E-mail:
[email protected]
To: Ms. Louise ARBOUR
The High Commissioner of Human Rights
15 Palais Wilson
Geneva19 May 2006
Re: The worsening situation in Sri Lanka
Dear High Commissioner,
As an NGO accredited to the UN Human Rights Commission for many
years, we follow with great concern the developments in Sri Lanka.
The cease-fire of February 2002 is valid only in name, while the
situation on the ground is worsening day by day. Not surprisingly,
it is the civilians who suffer the most of the renewed warfare.
Thus, according to the Nordic truce monitors 191 people were killed
in April alone, the vast majority of them civilians. It was the
bloodiest month since the cease-fire was signed over four years ago.
On May 12th, the International Herald Tribune wrote about the
situation in Trincomalee under the headline �Savagery replaces Sri
Lanka�s eroded cease-fire� about the spectre of a repeat of the
anti-Tamil pogrom of 1983 that started the civil war which cost more
than 65.000 lives, lead to 800.000 internally displaced persons most
of them still languishing in camps and more than half a million of
expatriates. The government of Sri Lanka talks of peace but going by
the increase of the military budget this year of 23 per cent
prepares for war.
Against this background we are particularly concerned about the role
of the international community, including the UN, because we belive
that it has not utilized its influence in order to reign in the
violence and back the process for a negotiated just peace.
(1) All the indicators of 1983 are there: the mob violence,
the massive exodus of civilians, the ethnic division, the
indifference, if not the involvement of the security forces.
Therefore, the hopes for peace and a negotiated settlement along
the Oslo guidelines on internal self-determination have largely
disappeared. The Sinhalese majority and the governments
dominated by it have not been able to arrive at a common
position vital for the necessary concessions. Unfortunately, the
international community has not thrown its weight into the
balance in the inherently systemic asymmetry between the LTTE as
non-state actor and the government. On the contrary, ever ready
to blame the LTTE, little has been done to put pressure on the
government. The consecutive listing of the LTTE as a terrorist
organization by a number of important UN members has certainly
not advanced the cause of peace. Ignoring their grievances it
has criminalized the insurgents, while it has strenghtened the
hardliners in Colombo.
(2) Since the elections at the end of 2005 the cease-fire has
become ever more fragile. The assassination of the
Tamil MP Pararajasingam in church at Christmas mass,
the recent killings of
the eight young Tamils guarding a temple, the silent war
being waged by the paramilitaries against the Tamils, not least
by the brake-away Karuna faction, supported as it were by the
army, the refusal to disarm them,
the recent air-strikes, all are measures that violate the
CFA. While there may be arguments to attribute blame to both
parties, it is the government and the security forces of the
country who are primarily responsible to guarantee the physical
safety of its citizens, to met out justice, to regain legitimacy
by presenting itself as guardian of the welfare of all the
peoples on the island.
(3) Dear High Commissioner, it is the UN that has recognized the
importance of civil society and given it a voice in
international fora. While we certainly appreciate this
development, we are under no illusion that the international
institutions have largely remained a forum for governments for
whom political considerations typically count more than those of
justice and morality. We, therefore, appeal to you to lend your
voice to the suffering people in the North and East of Sri
Lanka, Tamils and Muslims alike, who have no voice. The then
government of Sri Lanka could prevent Mr. Kofi Annan from
visiting the tsunami affected areas in the Northeast of the
country back in January 2005; there is no govenment today that
can hinder you, High Commissioner, to express your concern about
the
killings, the unvoluntary disappearances, the
bombardment
of civilians.
The outbreak of full-scale war can still be prevented. But it
requires action � Now! Please make the long suffering Tamil people
your public concern. You will lend moral support to them while
hopefully encourage the government to pursue the path of peace even
at this late hour.
Thanking you for your consideration and your efforts, I remain,
yours sincerely,
Verena Graf
Secretary General
cc: - Mr. Philip Alston, Special Raporteur on Extra-judicial,
summary or arbitrary executions
- Ms. Aida Nejad, Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights
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