The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has released her report on assistance for the Sri Lankan governemt on promoting reconciliation and accountability, as mandated by the resolution in Geneva last March.

The report details concern in several areas, including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, militarisation and land grabs.

Areas of possible technical assistance are also identified, including the right to truth, criminal justice and accountability, legal and institutional reforms, and the right to a remedy and reparations.

The High Commissioner also "offered advice on the establishment of a follow-up truth-seeking mechanism that would examine the different accounts of past events and the history of the conflict, including its root causes" in order to "provide an inclusive narrative of why it happened, contribute to the creation of a historical record and bring clarity to the question of casualty figures".

Navi Pillay encouraged the Human Rights Council to continue to increase its engagement on Sri Lanka and called for an international investigation into alleged human rights violations.

“The High Commissioner noted the views expressed by many stakeholders in Sri Lanka, including prominent community leaders, that the attention paid by the Human Rights Council to issues of accountability and reconciliation in Sri Lanka had helped to create space for debate, and catalyzed positive steps forward, however limited at this stage.

"The High Commissioner encourages the Council to continue its engagement and build on this momentum. In this regard, she reaffirms her long-standing call for an independent and credible international investigation into alleged violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, which could also monitor any domestic accountability process.” the report said.

See full report here.

Sri Lanka has dropped plans for another $1 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund following disagreements over how the money should be spent, AFP quoted the central bank as saying.

The IMF usually extends loans to cover countries’ difficulties in meeting foreign exchange obligations, but Sri Lanka wanted to spend the loan at home.

However, “the IMF has indicated [it] may not be in a position to consider any direct or indirect budget support to Sri Lanka,” the central bank said.

The Political risk consultancy Eurasia Group said in a note that though Sri Lanka’s foreign exchange reserves were at a strong position, it was potentially more vulnerable than it appeared (see Reuters’ report here):

“The country's high external debts, weaker-than-expected exports, and lower-than-projected foreign direct investment could strain reserves, and the government is also due to repay the equivalent of nearly US$1bil in rupee-denominated bonds that mature this year.”

See our earlier related posts:

SL seeks new $1bn IMF loan (Jan 2013)

Sri Lanka … looks for further bailout (July 2012)

The Sri Lankan defence secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa told governments in the West to "engage constructively" with the Sri Lankan government.

Speaking at a seminar organised by the Lakshman Kadiragamar Institute for International Relations and Strategic Studeies and the Pakistan High Commission, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said:

“Instead of narrowing the scope of their engagement with Sri Lanka because of many misinterpretations and lobbying by special interest groups in their own countries, the nations should engage constructively with the Government. It is only then that they will see for themselves the good work being carried out here despite significant constraints,”

“During the course of long conflicts, people will leave the country and seek asylum abroad. Over the years, these asylum seekers will end up getting citizenship in these foreign countries and become a powerful political voice there. For example, the large number of Tamils who migrated to Canada, the United States, Britain, Australia and many European nations during the past three decades now comprises a powerful lobby in those countries,”

“In a democratic country, when the security situation and restrictions are relaxed, the allies of the terrorist groups can even work through democratic political parties to propagate the same ideologies that led to militancy in the first place. They may work towards rousing the ideas and feelings of people once again to lead them down the path to armed violence. Any responsible Government needs to be watchful of such developments.”

India’s Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office V Narayanasamy has stated that India will support a resolution against Sri Lanka at the United Nations Human Rights Council, if the country refuses to honour any recommendations put forward by the world body.

Speaking to reporters, Narayanasamy said,

“When United Nations brought forward a resolution against Sri Lanka, India voted for it. If UN's recommendations are not honoured by Sri Lanka, India will support any resolution brought by it against the island nation,"

The Minister went on to say that the Rajiv Gandhi-Jayawardene accord had given India certain powers "but Rajapaksa is not accepting them now”.

He also criticised parties in Tamil Nadu, and defended the Indian government’s actions on the Tamil issue, adding,

"India is taking steps to get powers for Sri Lankan Tamils. That's why India is taking a neutral stand. Not like some Tamil parties and Tamil Nadu government, which take decisions and pass resolution without thinking".

Police in Sri Lanka have arrested a young female tourist from the Netherlands for having a tatto of the Buddha on her back, reported Ceylon Today.

26-year-old Patrina Irene Bronco was dining at a restaurant in Kandy with her fiancé, when members of the public became outraged at a tattoo that was visible on her back. A heated argument then ensued after which a group of youths alerted the police who came and promptly arrested the tourist.

See our earlier posts: Arrests made over 'Buddha Bar' meal (27 January 2013)

A new alliance against the ruling UPFA has been formed in Sri Lanka.

The opposition parties, led by the UNP, have signed an MOU to form a joint movement in Colombo.

The alliance, called “Vipakshaye Virodhaya” includes the UNP, TNA, Democratic People’s Front, Nawa Sama Samaja Party, Mawbima Janatha Pakshaya, Ruhunu Janatha Party, Eksath Janatha Peramuna, Muslim Tamil National Alliance and Nidahase Wedikawa.

The party stalwarts present included Ranil Wickremesinghe, MA Sumanthiran, Wikramabahu Karunaratne and Mano Ganesan.

However, despite his presence, the TNA representative MA Sumanthiran, did not sign the MOU. There has been no official response as to the reasons behind this.

According to UNP leader Wickremesinghe, the new alliance will be the sole opposition against Rajapakse.

“We will be the center for all the people and parties who fight against the Rajapaksa regime. We may have our own views as different parties but now we are trying to start a new political vision,” Mr.Wickremesinghe said.

"We have joined together despite our political differences. The Rajapaksa regime would not go merely because we ask them to go. We may have to get into streets to force the regime out."

“Last year, the US brought a strong resolution against Sri Lanka. The Indian government voted in favour of the resolution at my continued insistence.”

“You … would be aware that we spared no effort and were successful in introducing an element of balance in the language of the resolution.”

The Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma held talks with the government on Sunday on the rule of law and the separation of powers.

In a statement the Commonwealth said:

"Sharma is expected to discuss, among other issues, options for advancing Commonwealth values and principles, including the independence of the judiciary and the separation of powers,"

According to AFP, the statement also said the Secretary General would be 'discussing arrangements for the November summit which is going ahead despite Canadian objections.'

The Jaffna home of an Indian consulate official was ransacked on Friday reports the Hindu.

It is reported that the Sri Lankan Army keeps close watch on the consulate officials and that issues of intimidation have arisen.

While a video player and some money were taken from the premises, the house was raided thoroughly seemingly with the intention of a specific search.

Officials confirmed that a formal protest has been lodged.

Sri Lanka's Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, Ambassador Ravinatha Aryasinha has said that Sri Lankans living abroad should “contribute towards moderating the negative narratives propagated against Sri Lanka – by clarifying genuine concerns and debunking the falsehoods", reported the Daily Mirror.

The ambassador, speaking at independence day celebrations in Geneva, said that "these continue to be challenging times for Sri Lanka, as some, particularly living abroad, either mis-guided or with vested interests, continue to seek to distort the image of Sri Lanka" and that there is a need to "evolve a consensus and desist from seeking to exploit domestic issues as foreign policy issues".

The Sri Lankan government is hoping for the EU GSP+ trade concessions that were stripped from the island to return, after an estimated US$1.5 billion loss due to the withdrawal, reported the Sunday Leader.

The government is alleged to be preparing an application to handover to the European Union for June 2014, where they will be re-applying for the trade concessions, the loss of which has seen factories leave the island.

President of the Inter Company Employees Union (ICEU), Wasantha Samarasinghe, said,

“The government assured that the country would not face any economic fallout due to the loss of the GSP Plus facility. But now factories are closing. The government needs to provide solutions to the current crisis”.

See our earlier posts:

Sri Lankan garment exports lose market share (06 Feb 2013)

Bicycle company leaves Sri Lanka after GSP+ loss (31 January 2013)

The Japanese government has granted US $860,500 in aid to the demining organisation - HALO Trust, to work towards demining in the North.

The agreement was signed between the Japanese Ambassador Nobuhito Hobo and the HALO Trust Programme Manager on the island, Bartholomew Digby on Friday.

HALO Trust operates in Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Trincomalee and Mullaitivu districts, and has been working along side the Sri Lankan Army and the National Mine Action Centre since 2002.

A Sri Lankan government minister said on Saturday that it hoped India will vote for it in the UN Human Rights Council in March.

Sri Lankan Minister for Public Administration W.D.J. Seneviratne told reporters here that there had been "a remarkable improvement in the human rights situation" in his country.

"We expect India will consider (the issue) differently," he said, adding that the relationship is going from strength to strength.

"Today citizens in (the northern and eastern) provinces can freely approach the civil administration to sort out their issues," he said.

"India is one of the major exporters to Sri Lanka and in the last year trade between the two countries crossed $5 million. Besides, India is helping to build a power plant in our country," he said.

The Sri Lankan president's public rejection of Tamil autonomy or devolution of powers during his Independence Day address this week, should come as no surprise. Despite the international community's periodic calls on Sri Lanka not to squander its military victory, but use it to negotiate a lasting political settlement, the Sri Lankan state has stubbornly continued to do quite the reverse. Although some international observers remain bewildered by Sri Lanka's stance, in truth key political figures of successive Sri Lankan governments have never shied away from making their fundamental rejection of Tamil political power abundantly clear. The writing was always on the wall; t is time that those who truly want to see stability and peace, read it.

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