Sri Lanka: new video evidence of grotesque violations. Not because of the scale of the deaths it depicts – five deaths is a small incident in a war which saw upwards of 40,000 civilians massacred in the last few months alone, mostly by government shelling. This footage is awful because of the behaviour of the soldiers towards the bodies of the female Tiger fighters, and because of the underlying culture of systematic brutality and sexual violence which it seems to illustrate. We don't know exactly when it was filmed – but it was at some point in the last two or three years of the war.
It was filmed by a soldier on a mobile phone and its shows Sinhala-speaking soldiers – their uniforms suggest they may be special forces – who are laughing and cheering, as they celebrate the deaths of the Tiger fighters and perform acts of grotesque sexual violation on the bodies. We also don't know exactly what happened or how these people - who appear to be fighters, though they are not wearing combat fatigues - came to die. 'No evidence of fabrication'' SRI LANKA: The problem it faces before the Human Rights Council — Asian Human Rights Commission | Rights & Liberties.
SRI LANKA: There is no prosecution of the police officers who tortured hundreds of workers in the Free Trade Zone. Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-201-2011 11 October 2011 ------------------------------------------------------ SRI LANKA: There is no prosecution of the police officers who tortured hundreds of workers in the Free Trade Zone ISSUES: Illegal arrest; arbitrary detention; torture; denial of justice; labour rights: impunity; rule of law ------------------------------------------------------ Dear friends, Mr. M H A Sameera Sandaruwa (28) of 'Sameera Sevana', Dumkola Watte, Daragala, Waimada in the Badulla District is single and is also a worker at Noratel Lanka Ltd in the Free Trade Zone (FTZ) in Katunaya.
On 30 May 2011 Sameera participated in a trade union action organized by the factory workers. According to the information that the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) received Mr. On 30 May 2011 Sameera reported to his factory in the FTZ at 6 am as usual. Within a few minutes hundreds of police officers, mainly attached to the Katunayaka Police Station, surrounded the protesting workers. SRI LANKA: Serious deficit of the rule of law due to actions of men most learned in the law. Keynote address delivered at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Citizens Movement for Good Governance (CIMOGG) -- June 29 2011 by Kishali Pinto-Jayawardena, Attorney at Law, Media Columnist and Author. Introductory Comments Mr Chair, members of CIMOGG and friends, when Dr A.C. Visvalingam initially spoke to me in regard to delivering the keynote address on this occasion, my first reaction was to decline.
This was based purely on the perception that speaking of the Rule of Law in Sri Lanka today would be immeasurably futile. But I was compelled to change my mind not only as a result of the considerably effective persuasion of Dr Visvalingam but when considering not only the primary objectives of CIMOGG but also its undoubted achievements during a relatively short term of existence. In my mind, the two most important elements of this Primary Objective No 1 are first, its emphasis on the Rule of Law and second, its reminder that all public office is held in trust for the People. The leaked UN war crimes report: Key points and context. The Island. April 15, 2011, 6:24 pm Allegations found credible by the Panel The Panel’s determination of credible allegations reveals a very different version of the final stages of the war than that maintained to this day by the Government of Sri Lanka. The Government says it pursued a "humanitarian rescue operation" with a policy of "zero civilian casualties".
In stark contrast, the Panel found credible allegations, which if proven, indicate that a wide range of serious violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law were committed both by the Government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE, some of which would amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. Specially the Panel found credible allegations associated with the final stages of the war. The Government shelled on a large scale in three consecutive No Fire Zones, where it had encouraged the civilian population to concentrate, even after indicating that it would cease the use of heavy weapons.
Accountability A. B.