Interim report already with President:

Govt to follow LLRC brief

*Remarkable progress by IAC

*No dealings with expert panel

Chaminda PERERA

Plantation Industries Minister and Presidential nominee on Human Rights Affairs Mahinda Samarasinghe said yesterday an Inter Agency Committee headed by the Attorney General has already been appointed to facilitate the implementation of the LLRC recommendations without delay and like the LLRC this committee too has made tremendous progress.

“We will ensure that the LLRC recommendations are implemented in the country,” he added.

Minister Samarasinghe

He scoffed at the idea promoted by certain elements that the LLRC set up to ascertain the reasons leading to the conflict and find answers to prevent a recurrence, is not an independent body. He said certain quarters had arrived at a pre-conceived idea without any rational basis that the LLRC is biased and a non-independent body even before the final report is out.

Minister Samarasinghe added that the members of the international community accepted the fact that the Channel 4 video was a technical gimmick to discredit the Government.

He added that no person can claim that the LLRC comprised Government’s representatives since they are eminent persons who excelled in many fields in the country.

“The people of this country who have undergone untold hardships and misery due to 30 years of war are in need of a program to ensure that another conflict would not occur again,” he said.

The Minister added that the reconciliation commission appointed by the President has met the people in the North and East and recorded evidence from them.

He said the LLRC members have also met former LTTE cadres too. Minister Samarasinghe was of the view that the Commission has made tremendous progress in the exercise of their mandate. He said the Commission has already issued an interim report to the President.

“An Inter Agency Committee headed by the Attorney General has already been appointed to facilitate the implementation of the LLRC recommendations without delay and this committee has also achieved remarkable progress,” he added.

Minister Samarasinghe added that he met more than 50 ambassadors representing a number of countries in Geneva and they understood the importance of having an internal mechanism to look into what actually happened during the time of conflict.

Minister Samarasinghe noted that the Government succeeded in eradicating the war and the time has arrived to win the peace.

He said the Government is in the process of educating the Tamil Diaspora over the Post conflict Sri Lanka and the development activities being implemented in North and East regions.

He said that the Government has received information that certain members of the Tamil Diaspora are still involved in extorting money, purchasing arms and drug peddling.

The Minister said that a quite number of LTTE activists who were involved in such activities were arrested by Canada, Switzerland and Norway during the last two weeks.

Minister Samarasinghe added that the members of pro LTTE elements in the countries where the LTTE has been banned are holding the pictures of LTTE leader V. Prabhakaran, LTTE flags and their emblem during demonstrations.

The Government is looking into the possibility of prosecuting such persons according to the law of such countries.

The Minister said the UN appointed an expert panel on Sri Lanka without any resolution being passed by the UN member countries nor by the Security Council. He added that this committee has been appointed by the UN Secretary General to advise him over Sri Lanka and the Minister stressed that the Government has no dealing with the members of this panel.

He added that the Government deals only with the UN Secretary General.

He said the Government is committed to implement the National Human Rights Action Plan to further promote Human Rights in Sri Lanka. This Action Plan would be implemented soon, he added.

He noted that a special committee headed by the Attorney General comprises the representatives of various ministries and civil society organizations and it is in the process of formulating this National Human Rights Action Plan.

The Minister added that this Action Plan would be forwarded to the Cabinet and it would be implemented soon.

Minister Samarasinghe added that he laid down foundation for this before he relinquished his duties as the Human Rights Minister in April.