Editorial
Rajapakse's rejection of UN demands
International probe into war crimes can help heal wounds
SRI Lanka's leader has come down hard on demands for a probe into war crimes allegedly committed towards the end of the conflict between the government and the LTTE. President Mahinda Rajapakse does not think that the Sri Lankan army committed any crimes or excesses, but he does believe that the criminality the United Nations wants to be inquired into came from the defeated Tigers. It is a position that will not sit well with the global community. Nor does it help that the president has described such demands as a demonstration of sympathy towards terrorism. The record does not show that the international community and global bodies have at any time been supportive of terrorism anywhere and have on the contrary been vocal against any individuals or organizations engaging in violent means of changing politics anywhere.
The Sri Lankan president's comments come a year after his government finally laid the LTTE low in a conflict that in its entire course claimed the lives of no fewer than 70,000 people. It was particularly in the final phases of the war that the ferocity of the conflict was demonstrated through the battering Tamils in the LTTE-held north and east came under. With the government refusing to allow the media into rebel territory it recovered, it became difficult to assess the reality on the ground. But, again, reports did begin to emerge of both the retreating Tigers and the advancing army killing unarmed civilians, with even footage of some soldiers shooting Tamils coming to light. Now, the point here is that when an organization like the United Nations notes that war crimes may have taken place and therefore should be investigated, the allegation cannot be discounted altogether. The Colombo authorities would, of course, like to have their own people inquire into the alleged crimes. That would be pointless. And just why it would be pointless is something which comes from Rajapakse himself. He has categorically stated that the army committed no crimes in the Tamil region. He has thus already taken a position, which is all the more reason why the UN should be going ahead with the formation of the secretary general's advisory panel on Sri Lanka in the next few days.
The Sri Lankan government will be doing itself a favour if it cooperates with the UN in an investigation of war crimes. With tens of thousands of displaced Tamil civilians yet forced to live in camps set up by the army, and in squalid conditions, it is extremely important that the international community as well as Sri Lanka inquire into what actually happened in the final days of the war and thereby make it possible for all Sri Lankans, Sinhala and Tamil, to begin a new era in national life together. The government's denial mode does not help. It is in the interest of Sri Lanka itself that the UN should be permitted to draw its conclusions on the end of the conflict. President Rajapakse and his government must have the magnanimity to place everything out in the open if the old wounds are to heal.
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