Preventing testimony before UN panel detrimental for Govt.: UN expert

Wednesday, 2 July 2014 00:59 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Government non-cooperation does not stop international inquiries, says Pakistani lawyer and member of 3-member expert panel advising Sri Lanka probe, Asma Jahangir in BBC interview

Attempts to prevent people from testifying before the UN investigators probing alleged human rights abuses in Sri Lanka during the war will prove detrimental for the Government, an independent expert overseeing the investigation said Monday. Asma Jahangir, a senior human rights lawyer from Pakistan, who is one of three experts tasked with advising and independently verifying the findings of a UN investigation on Sri Lanka, told BBC Sandeshaya in London that the Government would find it difficult to prevent people from providing information to the investigators. Jahangir, who has previously served on other UN investigative panels, said the Sri Lanka Investigation team would meet in August this year, and determine how to proceed if the Government persists in refusing to cooperate with the inquiry. “A government’s non-cooperation doesn’t stop international investigations. If the Government attempts to prevent people from testifying before the investigating team, that will only make its own situation worse,” Jahangir told the BBC. The UN expert expressed confidence that once the investigation got underway, the Government’s focus would shift from the reasons for launching the probe, to the heinous nature of the incidents coming to light. “At that point I believe they will realise that the team is not only soliciting testimonies from those who wish to testify against the Government. If there are those who wish to testify about certain anti-State activity, we are willing to listen,” Jahangir noted. The independence of the report produced by the investigation team, appointed by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, was of paramount importance, the UN expert asserted. Asma Jahangir, a prominent lawyer and rights activist in Pakistan, previously served as the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion and recently as a member of a UN fact-finding mission into Israeli settlements in the Middle East. (DB)

EU urges Govt. to cooperate with UN probe

The European Union on Tuesday urged the Government of Sri Lanka to fully cooperate with the UN investigation to address accountability issues as an important step for fostering genuine reconciliation and said it should also allow all stakeholders to engage without fear of reprisals. A statement issued by the Spokesperson of the EU High Representative on the appointment of the UN investigation team on Sri Lanka said they welcome the appointment by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay of three renowned experts – Martti Ahtisaari, Silvia Cartwright and Asma Jahangir – to assist the investigation team for Sri Lanka led by her office. The statement also said that Sri Lanka has come a long way in rebuilding the country since the end of the conflict five years ago but efforts should not stop here. “Notably, the full implementation of the recommendations of Sri Lanka’s own Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission and advancing a sustainable political solution are essential for peaceful growth and stability in Sri Lanka. The EU is willing to continue assisting Sri Lanka in its efforts to make further progress on these issues,” the statement said. (CK)