States debated the draft resolution on Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council on Thursday, during an informal session chaired by the US ambassador, Eileen Donahoe.
Rejecting the consultation as a "farce", Sri Lankan officials refused to engage in any dialogue on it.
Whilst alliances such as the European Union, represented by Denmark, and states such as France, the UK, Canada, Australia, Sweden, Switzerland, Hungary, Poland, Germany and Norway welcomed the initiative, states including China, Cuba, Zimbabwe, Philippines, Algeria and Egypt on behalf of the states of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) challenged the resolution.
A Geneva based NGO, UN Watch, noted that the heated debate took place with a UN security guard positioned by the entrance.
