Army denies war crimes allegations against Sri Lankan Ambassador in Brazil

The military yesterday denied war crime allegations levelled against former General of the Sri Lanka Army Jagath Jayasuriya, who is currently posted as the Sri Lanka Ambassador to Brazil. 

Military Spokesperson Brigadier Roshan Seneviratne told journalists at the weekly Cabinet press briefing that the accusations against the Army General turned diplomat were false. 

“We maintain that these allegations are false. Although the LTTE was defeated by the military, their ideology is still alive and that is what we see in these allegations,” he said. 

Former General Jagath Jayasuriya, who was a commander in the final stages of the civil war with the LTTE in 2009, is now serving as Sri Lanka’s ambassador in Latin America. 

Cabinet Co-Spokesperson Minister Rajitha Senaratne said that while the Sri Lankan Government will take action to investigate specific allegations of disappearances, torture and human rights violations, it will not probe allegations against military officers which are not supported by any evidence.

“However, if there are specific allegations on disappearances, torture and human rights abuses we will investigate. Some believe that all deaths that happen in a war are murders. We cannot accept such allegations, the war was fought against a terrorist outfit which was defeated,” he said. 

Earlier this week a collective of South American human rights activists led by the International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP) filed war crimes lawsuits in Brazil and Colombia against the former Sri Lankan Army General. (CD)