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ACF petitions for UN probe into killing of its 17 Aid workers
Action Contre le Faim (ACF) or ‘Action Against Hunger’ which had 17 of its aid workers killed in Mutur in August 2006, has launched a petition requesting an independent United Nations (UN) investigation into the killing, ahead of the Sri Lanka Universal Periodical Review (UPR) UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) scheduled for November 1.
“ The campaign is anchored in a signature video and petition that requests an independent UN investigation to shed light on the circumstances of the murders and hold those responsible, accountable for the massacre,” said ACF Communications Officer Elisabeth Anderson Rapport.
The campaigning is targeting Sri Lanka’s UPR which has been scheduled for November 1 at the UNHRC in Geneva.
“The UNHRC is scheduled to discuss Sri Lanka’s human rights record on November 1 in Geneva. We need to seize this opportunity, perhaps our last, to ensure these crimes don’t go unsolved and unpunished,” ACF said. Government spokesman Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said the Government is willing to fully cooperate with any investigation into the incident.
“There was a brutal war on at the time, and several allegations were levelled against us, but we are ready to face any challenge,” the Minister said.
The humanitarian organization has compiled a video through a graphic account of the massacre by a witness, and requested its supporters to watch it and sign the petition. The video comes with a warning that it consists of graphic images not suitable for all audiences.
“Our colleagues were taking shelter in ACF’s offices in Mutur on August 4, 2006, as fighting between Government and rebel forces engulfed the town. In one of the most heinous crimes ever committed against humanitarian workers, our 17 colleagues were lined up, forced to their knees and shot in their heads. None of the three national investigations undertaken in Sri Lanka have resulted in substantive answers; worse, evidence has been deliberately concealed, with local authorities obstructing justice,” ACF said.
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