Sri Lanka scrambles for US support ahead of UN meeting

by admin
Feb 2, 2012
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has stated that he wants to send a delegation to the United States of America in order to gain support before the UN Human Rights Council meeting in March.

The Daily Mirror reported that as the US has already announced it would back a resolution against Sri Lanka at the upcoming session, Rajapaksa insisted that engagement with the Americans was important.

He reportedly told a cabinet meeting,
“It is important for us to brief them about measures we have taken, and plans for the future.”
However, the statement did not go down well with all the ministers, with Wimal Weerawansa noting that he felt a delegation to Washington would not change the US stance.

Sri Lanka is in a rush to rack up support before the March session, as it continues to face growing pressure over allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity

Higher Education Minister S.B. Dissanayake also noted the importance of support from India, stating,
“If India is with us, we can ward off the international pressure.”
See our earlier posts:

HRW urges UNHRC to act on Sri Lanka during March session (02 Feb 2012)

Time to put principles into action at UN Human Rights Council (01 Feb 2012)

Also see:

Never promised 13+ says Rajapaksa (31 Jan 2012)

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