Sixty-two eminent persons around the world called on the UN Human Rights Council to establish an international independent judicial process under the auspices of the UN to investigate the mass atrocities committed at the final stages of the armed conflict in Sri Lanka in 2009, in an open letter to the UNHRC released on Monday.
Stating that “the factors which led the HRC to conclude that an international inquiry was necessary have not changed”, the group of academics, researchers and public figures added that “even with the best intentions in the world the Sri Lankan government is not capable of running a credible domestic inquiry into alleged crimes of its own forces.”
“It is certainly not capable of mounting a judicial process which would have that essential quality: the trust of the victims.”
Reiterating the call for an international judicial process, the letter further stressed that “Sri Lanka must incorporate international crimes under its domestic law and also sign on to the Rome Statute to demonstrate its genuine commitment to non-recurrence.
Original Caption: 62 eminent persons worldwide call for international judicial process for Sri Lanka(Tamil Guardian)
See full letter here as pdf: Sri Lanka Open Letter