UN doubts its figures
The UN system has been exposed for using figures that cannot verified
as accurate about the recent civilian casualties in Sri Lanka, in
official statements to the media and communications to donor countries
in relation to Sri Lanka.
The figures of 2800 civilians killed and more than 7,000 injured from
January 20, in the No Fire Zone at Mullaitivu, as claimed by the UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights Navanethem Pillay, are not supported by
the United Nations as verifiable figures.
This has been admitted by Sir John Holmes, the UN
Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and UN Emergency Relief
Coordinator, in answering a media person in New York, March 24.
This situation has also been accepted by Neil Buhne, the UN Resident
Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Sri Lanka.
Responding to a question about a document from the Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stating there were 2,683
deaths between Jan. 20 and 7 March, 2009, which was a very specific
number, also used by Human Rights Watch, Sir John said, "the reason we
have not come out with this as our figure is because, as I have said
before, we cannot verify it in a way that you want to be able to verify,
if you put it as your public figure."
He added: "So you have seen an internal document, you have seen what
the High Commissioner for Human Rights said. She gave a figure as well.
Those figures are roughly comparable."
What the Under-Secretary-General was referring to were the figures
given by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Press
Statement of March 13, and the figure in the internal document of the
OCHR, which he said were roughly comparable, but cannot be verified to
be accepted or issued as an official figure by the United Nations.
About allegations of repeated shelling at the No Fire Zone by Sri
Lankan troops too, Sir John Holmes admitted that it was not possible to
apportion blame to any party, as there was no proper verification.
This is what he said: ?On the heavy shelling point, the Government
has said and constantly said that they are not using heavy weapons in
that area but as I have said before, the evidence suggest the opposite,
that there is some shelling too going on, although it is very difficult
without being there, that is the problem, we are not actually there on
the ground.
No one is there on the ground to verify it in any meaningful sense.
It is hard to know who shells and falling where so it is very hard to
apportion the blame.?
In Colombo the UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator
in Sri Lanka, Neil Buhne has also stated he is unable to confirm the
veracity of the figures of civilian casualties since 20th January 2009
in the conflict area of Mullaitivu District, contained in an official
report issued by his Office recently.
He made this disclosure at a meeting yesterday (24th) with the
Foreign Affairs Minister Rohitha Bogollagama held at the Foreign
Ministry, in response to a query from the Minister. The Foreign Minister
informed Mr. Buhne that the figures of 2,683 civilian deaths and 7,241
injuries cited in the report titled, "Sri Lanka: Civilian casualties
Vanni Overview - March 2009" emanating from his Office, have not been
attributed to any reliable or independent source.
The assertion in the report that two thirds of the documented
casualties had occurred in the NFZ (no-fire zone) is patently false,
since the security forces take extra-ordinary precautions to avoid
causing civilian casualties, including exercising maximum restraint in
not resorting to retaliatory fire at the LTTE, which has brazenly
violated International Humanitarian Law by directing fire at the
Government troops from artillery guns and heavy weapons that it had
deliberately positioned among the civilians within the NFZ.
Moreover, the Government with the assistance of the ICRC has up to
18th March evacuated by sea, 4,120 sick and injured persons, as well as
1,485 accompanying carers. This has been corroborated by the ICRC in a
report issued on March 17, 2009.
It is self-evident that only after all sick and injured persons have
been accommodated from the conflict area, that accompanying carers would
have been taken on board. Thus, the figure of 7,241 injuries also cannot
be credibly established.
Therefore, the Government of Sri Lanka categorically rejects the
report, which has unfortunately received wide circulation within the
international community.
Mr. Buhne acknowledged that the report had been prepared by his
office, and was meant only for circulation among the donor community,
but could not independently verify the authenticity of the figures of
civilian casualties mentioned in the report.
Minister Bogollagama expressed his deep displeasure at such
unsubstantiated information being incorporated in an official report of
the UN, which would ipso facto lend it credence.
He urged the UN Resident Coordinator to issue a formal clarification
on this matter, in order to rectify the negative and damaging inferences
that may be drawn from the said report. Foreign Secretary, Dr Palitha
Kohona and senior officials of the Foreign Ministry were present at the
meeting.
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