{"id":63008,"date":"2019-02-20T14:33:45","date_gmt":"2019-02-20T19:33:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=63008"},"modified":"2019-02-20T14:33:45","modified_gmt":"2019-02-20T19:33:45","slug":"opinion-piece-about-sri-lanka-by-british-politician-lord-naseby-is-inundated-with-false-and-misleading-claims-and-provides-an-incorrect-portrayal-of-the-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=63008","title":{"rendered":"Opinion Piece About Sri Lanka by British Politician Lord Naseby is Inundated With False and Misleading Claims and Provides an Incorrect Portrayal of the War."},"content":{"rendered":"

By Taylor Dibbert<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sri Lanka\u2019s civil war ended tragically in May 2009. Ten years on, the wounds of war remain unhealed. That has significant implications for the country\u2019s future trajectory and ensures that, absent some big changes, a return to violence at some later date cannot be ruled out. Besides, victims and their family members deserve justice. <\/p>\n

Unfortunately, a recent opinion piece by Lord Naseby, a British politician, is inundated with false and misleading claims. Naseby incorrectly describes how the war ended. He also paints a misleading portrayal of the current state of play. Moreover, his suggestion that the country no longer warrants international scrutiny is just plain wrong. I won\u2019t rebut all the misinformation in Naseby\u2019s piece, but let\u2019s look at some key issues.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Regarding previously passed UN Human Rights Council (HRC) resolutions on Sri Lanka, Naseby writes: \u201cThe motivation for the alleged need for the resolutions at all was the very heavy lobbying by that section of the diaspora in the USA, UK and Canada who in their heart of hearts still wanted an independent state \u2018Eelam\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s nonsense. The initial reason for those resolutions on Sri Lanka at the HRC \u2013 the first was passed in 2012 \u2013 is that the US in particular (along with other likeminded countries) came to the conclusion that, after giving Colombo time to show some commitment to post-war reconciliation, the regime was utterly unserious about doing so. <\/p>\n

The tragic way the war ended \u2013 with the massive slaughter of Tamil civilians \u2013 meant that accountability for wartime atrocities was urgently needed. Yet the increasingly authoritarian, nepotistic and corrupt administration of Mahinda Rajapaksa was never sincere about dealing with the past. Instead, Rajapaksa promoted an anti-Tamil agenda and a culture of brazen impunity. Indeed, the absence of accountability for wartime abuses only encouraged further violations after the conclusion of war. And, even with Rajapaksa out of power, that hasn\u2019t changed. <\/p>\n

Sri Lanka Government forces are accused of a host of appalling (and widely documented) violations including: the deliberate shelling of hospitals; extrajudicial killings; enforced disappearances; rape and sexual violence; and depriving Tamil civilians of medicine and aid. Naseby states that: \u201cIn reality, Sri Lanka has taken positive steps on the four pillars of transitional justice.\u201d That assertion is, at best, extremely misleading<\/p>\n

Naseby\u2019s claims about there being 6,000 end-of-war casualties and the way the war ended have already been refuted convincingly, though he continues to promote a highly dubious version of events. A credible UN investigation concluded that up to 40,000 people may have died during that time. But the reality is that many people believe that that figure could be much higher.<\/p>\n

Naseby, a longstanding Rajapaksa apologist, alleges that the \u201cSri Lanka armed forces took real trouble to look after the fleeing Tamil civilians\u201d. That\u2019s preposterous. <\/p>\n

Sri Lanka Government forces are accused of a host of appalling (and widely documented) violations including: the deliberate shelling of hospitals; extrajudicial killings; enforced disappearances; rape and sexual violence; and depriving Tamil civilians of medicine and aid.<\/p>\n

Naseby states that: \u201cIn reality, Sri Lanka has taken positive steps on the four pillars of transitional justice.\u201d That assertion is, at best, extremely misleading. <\/p>\n

Sri Lanka\u2019s transitional justice program has been in deep trouble for some time. The government has created an Office on Missing Persons (OMP), but we don\u2019t yet know if the OMP will be an effective entity. The three other transitional justice mechanisms haven\u2019t even been created. And President Maithripala Sirisena has repeatedly stated that Sri Lankan soldiers won\u2019t be held accountable for wartime violations. <\/p>\n

More immediately, the northern and eastern parts of the country \u2013 historically Tamil areas where most of the fighting took place \u2013 remain heavily militarised locations where a sense of normalcy has largely been illusory. <\/p>\n

Besides, Sirisena has been promoting Sri Lankan military personnel who are alleged war criminals. Over the past four years, the president has repeatedly sent signals which suggest that a credible transitional justice plan won\u2019t be implemented on his watch. More generally, the recent political crisis has done damage to the country\u2019s democracy; further backsliding shouldn\u2019t be discounted.<\/p>\n

Frankly, we don\u2019t know if another resolution on Sri Lanka at the HRC would be useful or not. I suspect it would not, but that doesn\u2019t mean that international actors shouldn\u2019t remain engaged in some fashion \u2013 perhaps by applying pressure on human rights and transitional justice bilaterally.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also worth mentioning that Naseby has been involved with the Sri Lankan Government for many years. Since 2002, he has travelled to the country on numerous occasions \u2013 including visits in 2015 and 2017. During those trips, the Government covered a lot of his costs. It\u2019s disappointing that this pertinent information wasn\u2019t acknowledged as a disclaimer in his piece.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Glossing over the truth is irresponsible and dangerous.<\/p>\n

Courtesy:Daily FT<\/em><\/p>\n

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By Taylor Dibbert Sri Lanka\u2019s civil war ended tragically in May 2009. Ten years on, the wounds of war remain unhealed. That has significant implications for the country\u2019s future trajectory and ensures that, absent some big changes, a return to violence at some later date cannot be ruled out. Besides, victims and their family members …<\/p>\n

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