Expert panel on Sri Lanka:

UNSG creating a precedent

Wijitha Nakkawita and Lakshmi de Silva

Question: What is your view about the reasons that prompted United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to appoint a Panel of Experts to advise him on alleged incidents said to have occurred during the final phase of the humanitarian operations against the terrorists last year?

Answer: The reason for appointing of a panel of experts to advise the Secretary General are not exactly clear. We know that the vast majority of the members of United Nations did not ask for it. We are fully aware that none of the decision-making bodies of UN, the Security Council or the General Assembly had asked

the Secretary General to appoint such a panel of experts. In fact when a resolution was moved in the Human Rights Council it was defeated by substantial majority 29 to 12.

In the circumstances we find it very difficult and even mysterious how the Secretary General appointed a panel to advise him on issues alleged to have taken place towards the end of the conflict in Sri Lanka. The Secretary General seems to have been influenced by certain individuals and parties that are obsessed with exerting pressure on Sri Lanka rather than with finding out how the conflict ended.

We have to remember that terrorism was defeated after nearly three decades of fighting and there was jubilation among the people.

It was a humanitarian operation where a very large number of civilians were rescued. It is an internal problem of our country, a point that seemed to have been missed by the Secretary General. In these circumstances one begins to ask the question what his motivations are? And it is possible that it was a move made in response to certain pressures on him.

Q: It is clear that there have been many attempts by certain NGOs and groups who were supporting LTTE terrorists to tarnish the image of the country. Has Ban Ki- moon taken this step in response to their moves?

A: The United Nations is not an organisation of NGOs. It is an organisation of Sovereign States. The Secretary General’s responsibility is to represent the views of the Sovereign States first and foremost.

And as I said before the vast majority of members of United Nations have either opposed this type of activity or have not expressed their views. We know that the Non Aligned Movement (NAM) objected to this proposal of the Secretary General. The NAM consists of 117 members of United Nations. That’s a significant majority of the total UN membership of 192 nations.

And of course it had been argued that there had been other questions for the appointment of such panels of inquiry. But in every such case either a legislative body of United Nations has requested for such a panel or the country itself has sought assistance of Secretary General for the appointment of such committee.

In the case of Sri Lanka this has not happened.

If the UNSG is establishing this panel of experts using Sri Lanka as a precedent, remains to be seen whether the rest of the membership of the Nations will approve of such an action.

Human rights violations are taking place in certain regions of the world almost daily in large numbers. There are no moves being made to take steps to prevent these. But steps like the one General Secretary has suggested are used essentially against the weak and the meek. This kind of action we do not find being much practised against the powerful and the rich.

Q: What is the view of the Sri Lanka Government on the unprecedented step taken by the UN Secretary General?

A: The President, the Foreign Minister and other members of the Sri Lankan Government clearly disagreed to it. This panel does not have the blessings or the endorsement of the Government of Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka has a judiciary that is independent and mature. And we are capable of addressing any interaction on our path on our own. That is why the President appointed a Commission of Inquiry under the Commissions of Inquiries Act, to investigate among other things, the factors that related to the ending of the conflict. The Commission of Inquiry has been given quite a wide mandate and it is a quasi-judicial body. We are confident that the commission will address this mandate to the satisfaction of all parties and the International community.

In fact as many members of the International community had pointed out in the first instance it is a country’s responsibility to investigate and address such issues like preservation of standards of human rights to which it is committed.

I have noted in the media some references being made to demands of the ‘International community’ for investigating Human Rights and Humanitarian standards.

This is a colossal misrepresentation. The international community has not made such a demand. A few Western countries which even during the conflict were clamouring for ceasefire and cessation of hostilities may have made such demands. But the International community as a whole never made such demands. Unfortunately now the world will have to live with this precedent.

Q: The Tamil Diaspora in the past were trying to influence certain Western Governments. Are they behind the move of the UNSG?

A : There is no doubt that Tamil Diaspora is exerting enormous pressure on the Leaders of certain Western countries and on the United Nations. During conversations with members of the Secretariat it had slipped out on occasion that they were coming under pressure from elements of the Diaspora.

They are constantly approaching leaders or governments, members of Opposition and NGOs in order to advance their message. It is also a fact in some Western Countries the Tamil Diaspora has become an important element of the electorate.

But it is also important to remember it is the same Diaspora that lobbied on behalf of the LTTE to collect funds to purchase weapons including explosives that killed thousands of civilians and helped the LTTE to recruit children by the thousands according to UNICEF reports. For any one to heed too much to the LTTE lobbying at this stage sounds cynical.

Q: Does the decision to appoint the panel of experts arise out of any other valid reasons?

A: It is important to remember that the Diaspora should not be given so much credence. Of course there are reports by the International Crisis Group Human Rights Watch etc, which have been referred to but these reports are a litany of suggestions, innuendo and allegations. To take these things as the main basis for a panel to be appointed by the Secretary General in my view is extremely foolish.

The question also arises who will fund the panel of experts. As far as I know there is no funding for this purpose at the secretariat. Sri Lanka will raise this matter with the UN member states.