State backed media and government politicians have rallied together to condemn a resolution passed at the UN Human Rights Council on Thursday, vowing to remain defiant.
Labelling the resolution “misconceived, unwarranted and ill-timed”, Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe, who led the Sri Lankan delegation in Geneva, slammed the resolution, and called out the United States, declaring,
His comments were echoed by Foreign Minister GL Peiris also stated that they would refuse to let the resolution influence government policy, stating,
Parliamentarians from Rajapaksa’s ruling UPFA coalition spoke at the protests, including Minister Wimal Weerawansa, who last week said,
The US Embassy in Colombo has warned citizens of a protest scheduled to take place outside the Embassy today, with more protests possible throughout the week.
Labelling the resolution “misconceived, unwarranted and ill-timed”, Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe, who led the Sri Lankan delegation in Geneva, slammed the resolution, and called out the United States, declaring,
“Those who live in glass houses are best advised to exercise caution before throwing stones”.The President's brother and Minister Basil Rajapakse stated earlier that the country was unfazed by the resolution and was ready to face the international community, comparing themselves to Iran.
His comments were echoed by Foreign Minister GL Peiris also stated that they would refuse to let the resolution influence government policy, stating,
"As far as Sri Lanka is concerned, our policy in respect of all matters will continue to be guided by the vital interests and wellbeing of the people of our country. It hardly requires emphasis that this cannot yield place to any other consideration”.Peiris went on to thank the nations that supported Sri Lanka at the UN, commenting,
"It is a matter of great satisfaction to us that 15 countries voted with Sri Lanka, despite the intensity of pressure, in a variety of forms, exerted on them all."The state backed media participated in the condemnation, with the state-run Daily News deriding the move as,
"a desperate attempt to disempower and undermine Sri Lanka and they are trying every trick in the bag to further this dark design."The privately-owned, The Island newspaper also blasted Thursday’s vote and praised Sri Lanka’s defiant stance, commenting,
"The cornered badger bravely fought the mastiffs of neo-imperialism, savage in the fray, and went down fighting yesterday… It certainly was a defeat as good as victory."Less than 24 hours before the vote was set to take place, President Mahinda Rajapaksa addressed a public meeting pledging that Sri Lanka would not allow any foreign intervention, as protests against the US-sponsored resolution continued to take place in Colombo.
Parliamentarians from Rajapaksa’s ruling UPFA coalition spoke at the protests, including Minister Wimal Weerawansa, who last week said,
"This is the second battle we are facing, after the war.”Last week the Minister commented that Americans in Sri Lanka were trying to assassinate him after he called for a boycott of American products.
The US Embassy in Colombo has warned citizens of a protest scheduled to take place outside the Embassy today, with more protests possible throughout the week.
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