British MPs hail US initiative on Sri Lanka war crimes

Joining international calls for a full independent investigation into alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka, a group of British Parliamentarians welcomed the initiatives taken by the United States in this regard and urged the UK government to support Washington’s efforts.

In a statement released November 3, the All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils (APPG-T) welcomed US authorities questioning of Sri Lankan Army General Sarath Fonseka over the massacre of Tamil civilians in the closing months of the war this year.

“This is an important first step in bringing the perpetrators of alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka to justice and also begin the process of a true reconciliation between ethnic communities in the island,” the APPG-T said.

APPG-T said it will be requesting UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband to support the US Government's efforts to probe into war crimes in Sri Lanka and to also fully endorse the US Department of State’s Report to Congress submitted on 22 October 2009, which detailed alleged violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) by both warring parties during the military offensive this year.

“[The Government of Sri Lanka] must facilitate an international, independent inquiry into alleged violations of IHL in order to establish peace, justice and equality for all citizens in Sri Lanka,” the Parliamentary group said.

Apart from Colombo’s massacres during the war, the APPG-T also protested the treatment of civilians after the Sinhala government declared victory over the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam).

“When the war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) ended, the Government of Sri

Lanka (GSL) gave assurances to the International Community, including Britain, that it will resettle all internally displaced people (IDPs) within 180 days. The Government’s own deadline is only a fortnight away but APPG-T has no evidence that suggests the GSL is committed to implementing its assurances to the International Community,” the group noted.

The parliamentarians called on Britain, NGOs and governments around the world to “urgently appeal” to Sri Lanka “to honour all its commitments and to immediately end the forced detention of over 250,000 Tamils in the camps.”