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CWVHR welcomes UN Appointed Panel on Sri Lankan Human Rights Abuses - June 23,2010

Wednesday, 23 June 2010 19:33

Press Release

June 23, 2010

CWVHR welcomes UN Appointed Panel on Sri Lankan Human Rights Abuses

The Centre for War Victims and Human Rights(CWVHR) welcomes the formation of the three-member panel, appointed by the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon of UN to advise him on how he should be proceeding with the investigation on violation of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law during the last stages of war on Tamils in 2009.

CWVHR congratulates the three panelists who have been working on human rights and humanitarian laws issues in various countries. They have contributed significantly on the subject.

The three members of the panel are Marzuki Darusman, former Attorney General of Indonesia and a member of the Indonesian National Commission on Human Rights and, most recently, served as one of the three commissioners of the U.N. commission of inquiry into the assassination of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and he will be the chair-person, along with Yasmin Sooka of South Africa who is the executive director of the Foundation for Human Rights in South Africa and served as a commissioner on the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. She also served on the international commissioner on the Sierra Leone Truth and Reconciliation Commission. And Steven Ratner of the United States, who is a professor at the University of Michigan Law School, was a former member of the U.N. Group of Experts for Cambodia, whose work laid the basis for the Khmer Rouge trials.

Appointing this panel has taken over a year and still there are concerns raised with regard to responsibility of the panel as well as it’s authority. The committee members would not able to travel to Sri Lanka and would not able to interview the perpetrators of the crime.

Many International and local Human Rights groups including CWVHR have in their possession Video and Photographic proofs, Personally Affected victims and relatives with details and sworn affidavits in the thousands to proof the crimes committed by the Sri Lankan state and other para- military groups.

The Sri Lankan state is very unhappy on the appointment of UN Panel and challenging the authority of U.N. Secretary General to investigate their human rights abuses, war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide of the Tamils. Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Gamini Lakshman Peiris said the appointment of the panel would be "unprecedented" - "This is politically unacceptable to Sri Lanka and at this stage would be premature”

Sri Lankan Government is confident that, with the help of China and Russia, the Security Council of UN would never approve such investigation formally and would be same with Human Rights Council as it has the support of representatives from the Asian and African Countries

CWVHR believes and hopes that the panel would face all the possible challenges and provide a space for the values of International law and human rights and pave the way to prosecute the perpetrators of the crimes in Sri Lanka.

Last Updated on Wednesday, 23 June 2010 19:35

Sri Lanka: New Evidence of Wartime Abuses - Human Right Watch

Friday, 21 May 2010 08:30

Government Inquiry Inadequate; UN Should Establish International Investigation

May 20, 2010

Other Material:

Five photos taken on the front lines in early 2009

Yet another feckless commission is a grossly inadequate response to the numerous credible allegations of war crimes. Damning new evidence of abuses shows why the UN should not let Sri Lanka sweep these abuses under the carpet.

Elaine Pearson, acting Asia director at Human Rights Watch

(New York) - New evidence of wartime abuses by Sri Lankan government forces and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during the armed conflict that ended one year ago demonstrates the need for an independent international investigation into violations of the laws of war, Human Rights Watch said today. Recently Human Rights Watch research gathered photographic evidence and accounts by witnesses of atrocities by both sides during the final months of fighting.

On May 23, 2009, President Mahinda Rajapaksa promised United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon that the government would investigate allegations of laws-of-war violations. One year later, the government has still not undertaken any meaningful investigatory steps, Human Rights Watch said.

Last week, the government created a Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission with a mandate to examine the failure of the 2002 ceasefire and the "sequence of events" thereafter. It is not empowered to investigate allegations of violations of the laws of war such as those documented by Human Rights Watch.

"Yet another feckless commission is a grossly inadequate response to the numerous credible allegations of war crimes," said Elaine Pearson, acting Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "Damning new evidence of abuses shows why the UN should not let Sri Lanka sweep these abuses under the carpet."

Human Rights Watch called on Secretary-General Ban to promptly establish an international investigation to examine allegations of wartime abuse by both sides to the conflict.

New Evidence of Wartime Violations

Human Rights Watch has examined more than 200 photos taken on the front lines in early 2009 by a soldier from the Sri Lankan Air Mobile Brigade. Among these are a series of five photos showing a man who appears to have been captured by the Sri Lankan army. An independent source identified the man by name and told Human Rights Watch that he was a long-term member of the LTTE's political wing from Jaffna.

More : http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/05/20/sri-lanka-new-evidence-wartime-abuses

Last Updated on Friday, 21 May 2010 08:31

War Crimes in Sri Lanka - INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP - NEW REPORT

Monday, 17 May 2010 09:21

Brussels, 17 May 2010: Newly revealed evidence of war crimes in Sri Lanka last year makes an international inquiry essential.

War Crimes in Sri Lanka ,* the latest report from the International Crisis Group, exposes repeated violations of international law by both the Sri Lankan security forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during the last five months of their 30-year civil war. That evidence suggests that the period of January to May 2009 saw tens of thousands of Tamil civilian men, women, children and the elderly killed, countless more wounded, and hundreds of thousands deprived of adequate food and medical care, resulting in more deaths.

Released on the eve of the first anniversary of the end of the fighting, the report calls for an international inquiry into alleged crimes. The government has conclusively demonstrated its unwillingness to undertake genuine investigations of security force abuses and continues to deny any responsibility for civilian casualties. A true accounting is needed to address the grievances that drive conflict in Sri Lanka, so the international community must take the lead.

More : http://www.crisisgroup.be/flash/sl/sl.html

Last Updated on Monday, 17 May 2010 09:23

Media release : Calling for Documentation on Human Rights Violations and War Crimes

Wednesday, 10 February 2010 22:54

The Centre for War Victims and Human Rights (CWVHR) is established in Toronto Canada, to protect the rights of War Victims and promote Human Rights. The Centre uses an internationally (Human Rights Information Documentation System –HURIDOCS) approved data gathering system to document and analyse evidence as reported by individuals about their kith or kin that may have been victims in the recent war in Sri Lanka, as well as war crimes committed since 1948. This internationally approved system enables (CWVHR) to collect evidence on a uniform and consistent basis, which assists us to do quality cross referencing.

History has taught us of numerous instances of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. For example, against the Jews and the Romas in Europe, against the Muslims in former Yugoslavia, the Kosovo Albanians, Croats etc and Armenians in the Near East, against the Tutsis and Hutus in Rwanda and Burundi, against Darfur tribes, against the Cambodians and East Timorese in South Asia, against the Palestinians in the Middle East and more recently, against the Tamils in Sri Lanka.

Monitoring, documenting, and being vigilant against human rights violations is an important mechanism to prevent such violations. It is the gathering of facts, documentation of the information, collection of evidence and analysis of the gathered data which has enabled the successful charging and prosecution of the perpetrators in the International Criminal Court and State Tribunals.

The Centre for War Victims and Human Rights implores/ invites people who are aware of such incidences in Sri Lanka to come forward and provide the Centre with the information that will enable it to document war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. We will focus on the Rights of Women, Children, Seniors, IDPs, Freedom of Expression, Media Freedom, Respect of Law, Lost Generation etc and bring awareness among our people.

The Centre in Toronto and their coordinating institution in Australia, New Zealand, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, declare the period from 15th February 2009 to April 15, 2009 as days of documentation of War victims and Human rights violations in Sri Lanka.

We would like to recall that there have been several calls for investigation of War Crimes from National, International levels by UN institutions as well as respected Human Rights Organizations.

We call upon all those who have information with regards to their relatives who have been killed, disappeared, unlawfully detained, kept in secretive places, maimed, seriously wounded and otherwise, or whose rights have been violated in any form or manner, to come forward and document your case story with us.

We assure you full confidentiality and all information submitted would be produced only in a court of law with your consent.

Calling for investigation of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide will be successful only when we all commit ourselves in gathering all the information on incidents that have taken place during the last months of the terrible war in Sri Lanka.

For more information, please call 416 628 1408 or email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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