{"id":15639,"date":"2013-01-31T17:43:03","date_gmt":"2013-01-31T22:43:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=15639"},"modified":"2013-01-31T20:49:13","modified_gmt":"2013-02-01T01:49:13","slug":"if-washington-is-really-concerned-obama-should-prove-it-by-diplomatically-isolating-sri-lanka-regime","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=15639","title":{"rendered":"If Washington is Really Concerned Obama Should Prove it by Diplomatically Isolating Sri Lanka Regime"},"content":{"rendered":"

By
\nGibson Bateman<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

So it looks like the US will bring another resolution on Sri Lanka at the next session of the UN\u2019s Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva this March. Quite frankly \u2013 I am shocked.<\/p>\n

US foreign policy as it relates to Sri Lanka has been confusing and is replete with complications and contradictions.<\/p>\n

One can\u2019t help but wonder: Where is all of this heading? Is this a road to nowhere?
\n
\nI really wish I knew. But at this point, I\u2019m not sure that anybody does.<\/p>\n

If the US goes ahead with another (weak) resolution, what would be the point? It would accomplish nothing. And what does that mean for US foreign policy in Sri Lanka, or \u2013 more broadly \u2013 what might that mean for American foreign policy in the region?<\/p>\n

The US didn\u2019t seem to be that concerned about human rights here when people were being slaughtered in 2009. Make no mistake about it: Washington knew what was happening. As a friend of mine (who is well-versed on what actually transpired) told me, \u201cNothing that occurred in 2009 happened suddenly. People had to have seen it coming.\u201d<\/p>\n

I suppose another resolution on Sri Lanka at the HRC would be better than nothing. At least we would know that diplomatic pressure won\u2019t fade away entirely. Nonetheless, I\u2019m still left wondering if any of it matters. If the time for tougher, stronger action has not yet come, when would it ever? Is the US really going to aim for another light resolution and pretend that it will change the regime\u2019s behavior?<\/p>\n

It won\u2019t. Another weak resolution won\u2019t mean anything to anyone\u2014except the regime in power. It will simply mean they\u2019re still winning.<\/p>\n

Which leads to another question: Would the US really be pushing for another resolution if the Chief Justice had not been impeached?<\/p>\n

It\u2019s an interesting counterfactual to consider. Counterfactuals can be particularly thought-provoking because nobody knows what would have happened. Maybe the impeachment saga crossed a line that made inaction or policy inertia (at least as it relates to human rights) impossible. I suspect that it did.<\/p>\n

As far as I can tell, President Obama has no Syria policy and well over 60,000 people have been killed there. And make no mistake: the rebels, a variegated group \u2013 to say the least \u2013 are not saints. And then in Mali, the French are leading the way. The US is providing intelligence. That\u2019s it. No boots on the ground. It\u2019s one thing for the US to \u201clead from behind\u201d in Libya; France\u2019s establishment of a more muscular foreign policy in North Africa is another issue altogether.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not suggesting that the US should be intervening in either place, but the conflicts in Syria and Mali are arguably of much greater strategic interest to the US than Sri Lanka. And yet it looks like Washington is prepared to spend diplomatic resources again on a small island nation, albeit only in the form of another watered-down resolution which will provide no impetus for change.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, a meaningful resolution will require a lot more work. Is it possible to get a meaningful resolution through the HRC this time around? More importantly, is that something the US really wants?<\/p>\n

The Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) is blatantly lying to people about its implementation of the LLRC recommendations. Deception with this regime isn\u2019t sporadic; it\u2019s systematic because the GoSL can\u2019t afford to be candid about the current state of affairs.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s very clear that Barack Obama wants his legacy to lie in sweeping domestic changes. He wants to get out of protracted wars and avoid diving into another conflict like Syria or Mali. And it looks like he\u2019s going to do that. His nominees for State and Defense are both men who will be reluctant to use military force abroad. Obama likes his drones \u2013 in spite of the \u201ccollateral damage\u201d to civilians and his Nobel Peace Prize \u2013 but he fundamentally believes in using American power in a more limited way. Barack Obama is not yet a champion of human rights overseas; he probably never will be.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m really tired of reading about how the United States government is concerned about developments in Sri Lanka. If Washington really is concerned, Obama should prove it by making diplomatic isolation a reality for the regime in Colombo. To put it more bluntly, when it comes to human rights in Sri Lanka, Washington should \u201cgo big or go home.\u201d Things are bad here and getting worse. Sri Lankans who are not happy with recent governance trends have a right to know who their friends really are.<\/p>\n

Tweet<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Gibson Bateman So it looks like the US will bring another resolution on Sri Lanka at the next session of the UN\u2019s Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva this March. Quite frankly \u2013 I am shocked. US foreign policy as it relates to Sri Lanka has been confusing and is replete with complications and …<\/p>\n

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