UNCHR: SINHALA ARMY IS DOING CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY!!!

UN HR Chief charges military, LTTE of crimes against humanity



Govt. says claim lacks credibility

GENEVA : The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay expressed her growing alarm on Friday at the increasing number of civilians reported killed and injured in the conflict in northern Sri Lanka and the apparent ruthless disregard for their safety. “Certain actions being undertaken by the Sri Lankan military and by the

LTTE may constitute violations of international human rights and humanitarian law.” Pillay said. “We need to know more about what is going on, but we know enough to be sure that the situation is absolutely desperate. The world today is sensitive about such acts that could amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

Ms. Pillay said according to information made available to OHCHR despite the Government’s designation of safe or --"no-fire"-- zones for civilians, repeated shelling had continued inside those zones. Other areas holding civilians had also been shelled she claimed. OHCHR said a range of credible sources had indicated more than 2,800 civilians may have been killed and more than 7,000 injured since 20 January, many of them inside the no-fire zones. The casualties are believed to include hundreds of children killed and more than a thousand injured.

Even after the Government's announcement on 24 February that heavy weapons would not be fired into the no-fire zones, close to 500 people were reportedly killed and more than a thousand injured in these zones. Of these deaths, the great majority were attributed to the use of heavy weapons. Overall, since 20 January, more than two-thirds of the reported deaths and injuries have occurred in the no-fire zones.

According to UN estimates, 150,000 to 180,000 civilians remain trapped in an ever-shrinking area of territory in the Wanni region.

“The current level of civilian casualties is truly shocking, and there are legitimate fears that the loss of life may reach catastrophic levels, if the fighting continues in this way and very little attention is being focused on this bitter conflict” the High Commissioner said.

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) are reported to be continuing to hold civilians as human shields, and to have shot at civilians trying to leave the area they control. They are accused of forcibly recruiting civilians, including children as soldiers.

“The brutal and inhuman treatment of civilians by the LTTE is utterly reprehensible, and should be examined to see if it constitutes war crimes,” said Pillay.

There are very limited quantities of food, reports of severe malnutrition and key medical supplies for treatment of sutures, painkillers and antibiotics for treating victims, are virtually unavailable, even in the one makeshift medical facility still functioning Ms. Pillay said.

The High Commissioner called on both the Sri Lankan Government and the LTTE to suspend hostilities immediately in order to allow for the evacuation of the civilian population by land or sea. She also urged the Sri Lankan Government to grant full access to UN and other independent agencies to allow an accurate assessment of the human rights and humanitarian conditions in the conflict zone.

The Ministry of Disaster Management and Human Rights wishes to express its strong sense of surprise and dismay at the tone and content of the press release issued today (Friday 13) by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. Especially in the context that when High Commissioner Navanetham Pillai met Minister for Disaster

Management and Human Rights on 04 March in Geneva during the High Level Segment of the UN Human Rights Council, the detailed figures relied upon in the statement were never raised. Neither did the Office of the High Commissioner discuss with, nor did it seek the views of, the Sri Lankan Permanent Representative to the UN at Geneva on the highly questionable, unverified and unsubstantiated figures used in the statement.

The Ministry also notes with regret that despite repeated assurances from the Government that the security forces were instructed to respect the no-fire zone and that they do not use long range weapons, the Office of the High Commissioner still continues to repeat unfounded claims of civilian casualties due to shelling. The Government of Sri Lanka will place all these facts before the High Commissioner at the earliest possible opportunity and seek an immediate clarification from her Office.

dailymirror.lk