[United Nations Human Rights – Office of the High
Commissioner fir human Rights]
Minister urges rejection of narrow considerations in viewing Sri
Lanka
Plantation Industries Minister and President’s Special Envoy on Human
Rights Mahinda Samarasinghe urged the United Nations Human Rights
Council to take a holistic view of the Sri Lankan situation and eschew
narrow domestic political compulsions and other parochial imperatives.
He said so addressing the United Nations Human Rights Council in
Geneva yesterday.
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Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe |
“All we requested was evenhanded assessment and the opportunity to
prove our bona fides,” the minister said.
Following is the full text of the speech: It is my privilege
to once again address this august body as head of the Sri Lanka
delegation. We come here as always, Madam President, to share with the
members of this Council and the other representatives of the community
of nations, our experiences in overcoming the several challenges we face
in the present era - an era that offers a fresh hope of a new Sri Lanka.
The dawn of this new era coincided with the end of the armed conflict in
2009 just over 2 years ago. In that time, Sri Lanka, has made
considerable - some may call it astounding - progress in addressing the
many challenges that nearly 30 years of conflict poses to a nation, her
Government and people.
We also come here Madam President to engage in a dialogue with our
friends; to hear what their views and concerns are and to respond to
them fully with facts and clarifications. We have done so consistently
for the past few Sessions of this body and are grateful for the level of
understanding demonstrated and the level of support extended to us in
what have been, on occasion, difficult times. Our approach is predicated
upon the principle of constructive engagement and has never been
timorous or diffident. We have been forthright and candid in our
exchanges and have never adopted an evasive or equivocal approach. We
have been strengthened by the courage of our convictions, secure as we
are in our belief that we have always sought to do the best by all Sri
Lankan people. Any Government that has this as its guiding principle has
no reason to be unduly defensive. It is also our hope that reflection
upon the Sri Lankan experience will enable others to deal more
effectively with terrorism, separatism and extremism which sadly
bedevils many regions of the modern world.
Countering baseless propaganda
Our constant engagement, Madam President, over the past few years has
also been aimed at countering baseless and damaging propaganda which,
unfortunately, global events with high visibility invariably seem to
attract. None more so than at these Sessions - the preeminent forum for
the discussion of and deliberation on human rights issues of global
import. We have been vigorous in our defence of the truth as it pertains
to Sri Lanka. We have been willing to accept justified criticism and
helpful comment where and if it has been tendered in a constructive
spirit. However, unjustified repetition of some blatant propaganda by
persons or groups with an agenda inimical to that of the new Sri Lanka
we are engaged in creating, we will assail with all the energy at our
disposal. Any fair minded person will acknowledge that we reported
incremental improvements over time and demonstrated our willingness to
engage with all our friends in a spirit of openness and mutual
self-respect. All we requested in return was evenhanded assessment and
the opportunity to prove our bona fides.
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Well before the end of the armed conflict in May 2009, we had warned
our international friends and partners that the remnants of the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam’s (LTTE’s) international network and
other elements are working tirelessly to subject Sri Lanka to
unrelenting pressure. The so-called anti-Sri Lanka diaspora is well
organized and is using every resource at its command to maintain and
magnify this pressure. This is a tangible threat to Sri Lanka finally
winning the peace and securing the better future for all her people - a
benefit that they richly deserve. There are many motivating factors
behind the attacks from various quarters targeting Sri Lanka. We, as a
Government, have consistently warned against this trend and have urged
our friends to treat these emanations with a level of caution and
objectivity. We earnestly asked them to take a holistic view of the Sri
Lankan situation and eschew narrow domestic political compulsions and
other parochial imperatives. Those who make these statements have,
perhaps, lost sight of the very real opportunities for a new Sri Lanka
that the defeat of terrorism has brought into being. Through our ongoing
efforts to engage, we will seek to convince them of the new reality and,
if possible, co-opt them into rebuilding a new nation in which each Sri
Lankan, irrespective of language, religion, ethnicity or cultural
background, is welcomed and accommodated and given space to develop
his/her full potential.
The above is not some idle political platitude but forms the pith and
substance of the vision of our President Mahinda Rajapaka and his
Government. Only the other day, President Rajapaksa stated -
“Sri Lanka is now in the process of Reconciliation and
Reconstruction. We are diverting all our energies to put the tragic
years of terror well behind us. We are building a new society, learning
from the lessons of the past, and moving towards the promise of future
success. We have already shown the world that terrorism can be defeated.
That it can be done with a commitment to the humanitarian traditions
that are part of our region’s culture and heritage.
Our commitment to human rights is second to none, and with such
commitment we seek to transform our society to one of peace, pluralism
and equality.”
This, then, is our overall goal and mission. Our immediate, medium
and long term goals are a sustainable peace with equality, equity and
the guarantee of human dignity.
Post-conflict initiatives
I would like, Madam President, to briefly dwell upon some of the
highlights of our post-armed conflict initiatives and experience. For
convenience, I will structure this brief analysis into four
interconnected and inherently intertwined aspects.
Firstly, with regard to reconstruction, we note that a mere two years
and three months after the end of the armed conflict we have achieved
tremendous successes in connection with the reconstruction effort.
Caring for IDPs in welfare centres alone cost the Government USD 31
million. A further USD 2.1 billion has been mobilized for the Joint Plan
for Assistance to the Northern Province - based on a tripartite
agreement between Government the UN system and civil society. A vast
portion of this funding is debt incurred by the Government. However, the
Government has taken upon itself the responsibility of ensuring that
there are resources sufficient to rebuild conflict affected areas while
it also ensures nationwide economic development. The vast level of
investment in rebuilding infrastructure has been universally recognized.
To enable and sustain this level of expenditure and activity, the first
priority was to ensure security and law and order.
De-mining of conflict affected areas was carried out at a pace that
compares with the best efforts anywhere in the world. Development
partners tell me that they admire and acknowledge the lead role taken by
the Sri Lanka Army in this respect. The Army is responsible for around
75 to 80% of the successful demining operations. Of course, the Army’s
efforts are supplemented and supported by several international agencies
but the role played by the Army in giving leadership is most
commendable. In 2009 alone nearly USD 20 million was committed by the
Government to demining operations.
Roads, bridges, public buildings, schools, health facilities, water
supply and the like have been rebuilt not just to replace what existed
in the past but at a vastly improved level with an eye on the future
needs of people in those areas. It may be noted that almost all these
facilities, the entire railway network in particular, were completely
destroyed by the LTTE.
Secondly, resettlement has been achieved at a pace that is perhaps
unmatched elsewhere. Given the caseload of over 290,000 internally
displaced persons at the end of May 2009, our achievement in bringing
down the numbers to a mere 7,000 in this regard is a potential role
model for other countries and conflict zones. USD 360 million has been
expended by Government on the resettlement programme. Along with
resettlement, restoration of livelihoods has been accorded the highest
priority. It is enabling people to stand on their own and take charge of
their lives that is most important. It is the cornerstone of
guaranteeing human dignity - the ultimate aim of all human rights.
Thirdly, we have repeatedly informed this Council that over 11,600
ex-combatants have been put through varying programmes of rehabilitation
depending on need and level of involvement in terrorism. Many have been
released through the judicial system. The office of the
Commissioner-General of Rehabilitation, has done yeoman service in this
context. A special mention must be made of the child combatants who were
rehabilitated. A proper legal and institutional framework was set in
place and this critical segment of Sri Lankans have been cared for,
trained and rehabilitated at great cost to the State. These persons have
now been given the opportunity to become useful and productive citizens
- a credit to their families, communities and the country. We must
continue to monitor their progress and assist them to build a secure
future for themselves. Approximately 9,000 persons including child
combatants have been reintegrated and just over 2,700 remain within the
rehabilitation process. Every effort is being made to draw down the
numbers still further.
Reconciliation and political solutions
Fourthly, reconciliation and political solutions must be found if Sri
Lanka is truly to win the peace. We have pointed out that reconciliation
and political solutions in other post-conflict societies have taken
years, even decades, to evolve into durable systemic responses within a
democratic framework. Calls from certain quarters to expedite political
reforms must therefore be tempered with an appreciation of the nuances
of the Sri Lankan situation. A near 30 year conflict that is
multifaceted and complex and had its roots in decades of history, cannot
be analyzed and dissected in a space of a few days.
Currently, the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) is
inquiring into the conflict and its causes and is evolving
recommendations to ensure that such a situation never arises again in
Sri Lanka. It is critical to wait for that body to finish its
deliberations and come up with its conclusions in due time. Rushing
these processes unduly may compromise the effectiveness of the
implementation of the eventual recommendations. The persons engaged in
the Commission are highly regarded professionals. They should be given
time and space to come up with their findings and recommendations. We
have briefed our friends in Geneva and elsewhere of the interim
recommendation made by the LLRC and the measures taken by the
Inter-Agency Committee to implement them without delay.
To us, Madam President, reconciliation is about building trust and
amity between communities and assuring them that problems and issues can
be addressed and resolved in a democratic manner without resorting to
violence. This consciousness has to evolve from among the people itself.
Government can only ensure that the right conditions exist to facilitate
this transformation. Merely prescribing solutions from above without
efforts at the grassroots and community-level peace-building will be
less than fruitful. We as a people, have great strengths buoyed by our
culture. We are nurtured and enriched by four of the world’s great
religious traditions that have, at their core, peace and coexistence.
Inclusive identity
I look forward to the LLRC coming forward with creative, forward
thinking and workable recommendations that we can implement with a view
to buttressing our common values and ideals and celebrating our rich
socio-ethnic makeup. Building a Sri Lankan identity that is overarching
and inclusive and which nurtures the rich diversity of our people, is at
the centre of all our efforts. All this must be achieved within a
paradigm of democratic governance which is the best guarantee of peace,
prosperity and security for all Sri Lankan people.
This is also why our President has started the process of conducting
democratic elections throughout the North and East, letting people
decide who it is they want to represent them at different levels. Faith
in the process and real results over time will give people the
confidence to work together and rebuild Sri Lanka from the bottom up. To
this end, elections were held in the East and more recently in the
North, unfettered by the malevolent influence of the LTTE.
The national-level discourse focusing on constitutional reforms is
also under way. A Parliamentary Select Committee is to be tasked with
formulating a series of measures that the vast majority (if not the
entirety) of the Sri Lankan people will find acceptable. This is
fundamentally important. All attempts and measures taken in the past 50
to 60 years have, at some point, broken down due to a lack of
across-the-board acceptance and bipartisan buy-in.
What is key is to forge a national consensus that will support and
sustain the solutions proposed. Any putative solution arrived at between
two or three political groupings is not going to be ultimately
successful if a substantial portion of our polity opposes it. Our
experience over the years teaches us this undeniable lesson. It is also
necessary that everyone needs to rise above purely parochial self
interest and commit to genuine national integration with a view to
finally winning the peace.
It is noteworthy that even after nearly three decades of armed
struggle against terrorism, Sri Lanka’s democratic institutions have
survived and endured. Except where the LTTE prevented their functioning,
they thrived and continued to serve the people, even at the height of
the conflict. In Sri Lanka, we have been fortunate and are therefore
able to move forward from a position of relative stability and strength
of our institutions.
Achievements
Next I will touch on two recent developments that we have through our
efforts managed to bring to fruition.
During the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process in May/June 2008,
we took stock of what we had achieved, what our challenges were and how
we were going to address them. It was an accurate snapshot of the human
rights situation in the country at that time. In my then capacity as
Minister for Human Rights, I oversaw the drafting of the National Report
that was submitted to the Council. Our report was commended by a
majority of those who participated in the UPR on Sri Lanka, in
particular, the frank and candid manner in which we presented the
factual situation and the level of detail the report went into.
During the UPR, we pledged to devise a 5-year National Action Plan
for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights. We worked hard on
fulfilling that pledge with the assistance of key Government
institutions and civil society groups. We were greatly supported by the
UN system in that work. The Attorney-General gave leadership to the
process of drafting and refining the final proposed Action Plan which
was placed before the Cabinet of Ministers, and has now received its
approval.
We are now in the process of setting in motion the implementation
phase, including monitoring and evaluation. Once adopted by Government,
we will popularize the Action Plan and secure buy-in by every segment of
society. To us, this is at the core of the National Action Planning
process. Everyone at every level of society must participate in and be a
constructive contributor to the successful implementation of the Plan.
Underlying the Plan is the principle that we have achieved much in the
sphere of human rights but there are improvements that can be made in
keeping with national priorities. The Plan presents a structured
framework which will take us to a higher level in the promotion and
protection of human rights.
Another significant development is the lapsing of the Emergency
Regulations promulgated under the Public Security Ordinance in 2005
after the assassination of our Foreign Minister. There are certain
points of view now being expressed that we have removed the state of
emergency due to external pressure. This could not be further from the
truth. As early as May 2010, we reduced the scope of the Emergency
Regulations in keeping with the improving ground situation. In March and
in June this year we told the community of nations in Geneva that we
would consider lifting the Emergency at an appropriate time. We pledged
that, as the situation gradually improves, we will make adjustments,
refinements and policy changes to reflect a changing environment. This
has been our consistent message. At present, the situation has improved
to an extent that has permitted the lifting of the Emergency altogether.
This was not done in a vacuum but with careful consideration of the
needs of the country. Certain legal and regulatory arrangements have to
be made to cater for any exigencies that could arise and these
instruments are now in place with the framework of the Prevention of
Terrorism Act, such as the proscription of the LTTE and the TRO a
framework for the continued holding of detainees and remandees and the
rehabilitation of surrendees.
What is important to stress here is that we - the democratically
elected President and Government of a sovereign and independent nation -
decided and acted based on ground reality, not due to the intervention
of some other agency or power. We did so in a manner that was
responsible, careful, considered and consistent with good reason and
common sense. The people of Sri Lanka expect no less of us.
Finally, our efforts are directed towards engagement at the next
cycle of the UPR. Any and all questions pertaining to developments after
2008 may be raised there and will be fully and fairly answered. We have
as I have noted, engaged in Geneva and at other international fora and
briefed the international community about our progress, problems and
solutions that we have devised. At the last UPR in 2008, we participated
wholeheartedly despite the armed conflict which was still ongoing. We
expect to participate in the second cycle of the UPR in 2012 and all our
friends and partners are welcome to engage in that dialogue.
It is my view that it is our openness and willingness to engage that
allowed us to win the support of a great majority of the Human Rights
Council in May 2009 when a Special Session of the HRC was held on Sri
Lanka. We, together with our friends, secured a Resolution that was
supportive of Sri Lanka and her efforts in the battle against terrorism
and reconstruction of our nation in the aftermath of the conflict.
I would be remiss in my duty if I fail to draw the attention of this
body to a potentially worrying concern of a growing trend to depart from
well established principles of procedure in the conduct of the affairs
of this Council.
In a surprising turn of events, Sri Lanka was confronted with some
information in the most peculiar circumstances.
On the 9th of this month at a luncheon briefing, we were given to
understand that the High Commissioner for Human Rights had informed a
group of countries that a decision had been taken by the Office of the
United Nations Secretary-General to transmit the report of his Advisory
Panel on Sri Lanka to your office and to hers.
Previous to this communication, in the course of an interaction with
you, Madam President, there was no direct reference to any such
transmission. It was rather embarrassing that both you and I had to
learn of it from a third party at the luncheon meeting in the presence
of representatives of 29 Member States of the Council.
The failure on the part of the High Commissioner to inform the
concerned state - Sri Lanka - was wholly inappropriate to say the very
least.
This, regrettably, may lead to a loss of confidence in the Office of
the High Commissioner. We believe that she should abide by the same
principles that govern the work of the Human Rights Council, such as
universality, transparency, impartiality, objectivity and
non-selectivity, with a view to enhancing the promotion and protection
of human rights in a fair and equal manner while recognizing the
importance of the elimination of double standards and politicization.
This incident raises serious concerns regarding the impartiality of
the High Commissioner. Madam President, this practice must be
discouraged by this Council. Today it may be Sri Lanka but tomorrow it
could be any other Member State faced with this predicament. Madam
President, what needs to be borne in mind by all Members of this august
Assembly is that this report never had the sanction of any
inter-governmental body. It was purely an exercise of the prerogative of
the Secretary-General to advise himself on issues concerning a Member
State. How then, I ask, could such a report be brought to the attention
of this Council in this unconventional and improper manner?
Madam President, I am simply on a question of principle. If this kind
of circumvention of procedure is allowed, it would eventually make a
mockery of this august body. We strongly urge that such practice be
resisted.
In conclusion Madam President, Sri Lanka, like many post conflict
societies, is going through a process of renewal and rebuilding. Our aim
is a people who are economically empowered by the vast development
initiatives, active in the democratic process and free to articulate
grievances, hopes and dreams without fear of conflict and strife. The
Government has paved the way for this by defeating terrorism and
systematically laying foundations for democracy, peace and prosperity.
It is neither apt nor useful to prematurely speculate on what the final
outcome or resolution can or will consist of. There is a realistic hope
of regaining of democratic space, healing and unity. This perhaps is our
greatest victory. |