(Srilankamirror) – Canadian foreign affairs minister John Baird has said that Sri Lanka needed to take accountability for serious allegations of war crimes allegedly committed during its 25-year war. He was speaking to MPs at the Commons foreign affairs committee yesterday (Dec. 01), according to Canadian media.
“Other countries have taken 10 years for reconciliation, other countries never reconcile,” minister Baird said.
“But it’s incredibly important.”
He praised the UN for publishing a recent report on Sri Lanka contradicting the government’s position, a report the minister called “deeply disturbing.”
“Two years after the civil war we’ve seen no meaningful attempt at reconciliation with the Tamil minority,” he said.
“We’ve also seen a growing authoritarian trend by the government in Colombo.”
Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper publicly criticized Sri Lanka over its human rights record during the Commonwealth meeting in Australia in October.
Sri Lanka’s government has denied its forces committed war crimes and refused any investigation.
SLM