By IANS,
New Delhi : The new UNHRC resolution highlights past and ongoing human rights abuses in Sri Lanka but fails to set up a credible investigation into alleged crimes, Amnesty International said Thursday.
The UN Human Rights Council in Geneva passed a resolution Thursday on the need to promote reconciliation and accountability in Sri Lanka following the armed conflict which ended in 2009.
Amnesty India chief G. Ananthapadmanabhan said: “This is a positive development. UN member states have sent a clear signal to the Sri Lankan government that crimes of the past cannot simply be ignored, but need to be investigated and the perpetrators brought to justice.
“The text crucially highlights the still very worrying human rights situation in Sri Lanka and calls for regular UN reporting on the implementation of the resolution, including ongoing rights violations.
“However, it is regrettable that the resolution fails to establish an independent and international investigation into the armed conflict, and alleged crimes under international law by both the government and the Tamil Tigers,” he said in a statement.
“It is clear that the Sri Lankan government is unwilling and unable to investigate these events itself, so an international probe is the only way to obtain the truth and justice necessary for genuine reconciliation.”
The UNHRC will next review the resolution’s implementation in September 2013.