17 May 2006
NESOHR strongly condemns Sri Lanka’s election to the Human Rights Council (HRC). A nation with such a poor human rights record should not be included in the body responsible for investigating and reporting human rights concerns throughout the world. Instead, the Human Rights Council should be aggressively pursuing investigation into Sri Lanka’s own recent and ongoing human rights violations, which could even be classified as genocide, and bringing to attention of the world the grave human rights situation currently forced upon the people of the NorthEast of Sri Lanka.
NESOHR understands that the states elected to the HRC will be among the first to have their human rights records scrutinized. In some ways, NESOHR is pleased Sri Lanka has been appointed because it presents a wonderful opportunity for the world to finally acknowledge Sri Lanka’s extensive and appalling history of human rights violations. NESOHR hopes the HRC will act appropriately and according to its purpose to reveal the actual situation in Sri Lanka and expose Sri Lanka’s long-ago established habit of employing prevarication and doublespeak to obscure and conceal the truth from the world.
Sri Lanka is a failed state, and its own National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) serves as a puppet of the President’s office. The NHRC has repeatedly been left void of leadership, as after one Commissioner leaves office long periods elapse before another is appointed.
Sri Lanka disqualified itself as a decent candidate for the HRC a long time ago. Starting with the 1958 anti-Tamil riots and the 1977 anti-Tamil pogrom, Sri Lanka has repeatedly distinguised itself as an exponent of discrimination, violence, and genocide and an adversary of tolerance, peace, and patience. This pattern continues to this day.© 2005-2008 NESOHR