Monday, 3 March 2014 00:59
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As Sri Lanka’s Government begins its third battle at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), there are significant steps being taken at home that bring renewed hope for reconciliation and closure, at least partly. Sri Lanka’s Commission on Disappearances is finally attempting to unravel the numbers of people who went missing the last two decades of the war as well as finally providing a way forward to thousands of family members.
President Secretary Lalith Weeratunga meeting with foreign media on Friday noted that what the relatives of the missing want most is to find closure and move beyond the crippling grief that has made their lives stagnate for so long. While admitting the Commission is not empowered to take legal action against anyone, he nonetheless did assure possible recommendations included in the report to be handed over to the President later this year could be acted upon by the Government.
While the specifics will be argued over, in its day it nonetheless is an immensely positive sign that issues long swept under the carpet are finally being directly addressed. Such constructive responses are essential for a sensitive assessment of the horrific carnage caused by a three decade war. In fact the push in this direction has also resulted in other favourable steps.
One such is the Government drafting legislation to grant a ‘certificate of absence’ to relatives of the missing who do not want to accept certificates of death for their loved ones. The certificate of absence — which has never before been issued in Sri Lanka but is used in several other countries with large numbers of missing people — will entitle the holder to the same rights enjoyed by the holder of a certificate of death.
The committee overseeing implementation of the LLRC recommendations has given a proposal to the Ministry of Public Administration which will seek Cabinet approval. It will go through the draft stage and will be presented as a bill to Parliament.
The format would be much the same as the certificate of death. However, a certificate of absence could not be used in criminal proceedings. The proposal first came from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) whose database puts the figure of missing at 16,000 from 1990. This includes about 4,500 police and military personnel. Between 1 January 2008 and May 2009, the ICRC collected more than 3,000 cases.
The new certificate will bridge the gap between relatives who do not wish to betray their loved ones by accepting a death certificate but need the benefits including pension granted only by submitting a death certificate. Sensitivity finally enters the space where dismissal reigned before.
The full measure of the Presidential commission can only be evaluated once its report is released and its implementation mechanism revealed. This commission should not run into the same criticism as the LLRC, namely that its implementation is far too time-consuming.
One must also keep in mind that Presidential commissions are often lacking in transparency, with reports being handed over without being released for public scrutiny. Moreover, the timeframe for the investigations, how charges are framed and whether cases will be filed and fast-tracked through Sri Lanka’s mired legal system is yet to be seen.
The road to justice and reconciliation is long, and in this instance, there are some hefty mountains to climb. The first step in the journey has been taken.
