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War Crimes: Lanka Govt gives itself more time to reply
The Sri Lankan government has given itself more time to respond to the United Nation's (UN) call for an explanation on war crimes allegedly committed in the last phase of the war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Sutirtho Patranobis reports...
The Sri Lankan government has given itself more time to respond to the United Nation's (UN) call for an explanation on war crimes allegedly committed in the last phase of the war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
It was the first time since the end of the war in May that the UN had referred to the issue of war crimes in Sri Lanka.
The defence ministry has said the letter by Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on Extra- judicial, Summary and Arbitrary Executions, has been referred ``for advice on the cause of action to be taken on the issues'' to a special committee.
The six-member committee, chaired by DS Wijesinghe PC, was earlier appointed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa to study a report by the US Department of State in October on incidents during the final days of the war in Sri Lanka.
The committee's mandate, which was to be over on December 31, has also been extended up to April 2009, by Rajapaksa, the defence ministry said.
The letter from Alston followed an interview to the Sunday Leader newspaper by former army commander and Opposition's Presidential candidate, Sarath Fonseka, where he alleged three top LTTE leaders were shot dead by the army while surrendering with white flags.
Sri Lanka has time till March when the UN human rights council meets to reply to Alston's letter.
Fonseka, later denied the allegations and has sought LKR 500 million as compensation from the newspaper.
However, Sunday Leader Editor Frederica Jansz has told BBC Sandeshaya that she stood by the story and is in possession of the voice recording of the interview.
Meanwhile, former navy commander and current National Security Advisor Wasantha Karannagoda has sent a letter of demand to Fonseka claiming Rs 500 million as damages for defamation in an interview given by the latter to a television channel where he had made ``false statements against him (Karannagoda) to bring him into ridicule, disrepute and contempt in the eyes of the public.''
The defence ministry, quoting Karannagoda's lawyer said Fonseka's comments were ``vicious, diabolical, and a vengeful attempt to tarnish the public image of his client and to portray him as a weakling prone to emotion.''
