- Last Update 2024-09-11 19:18:00
PM says Govt. to appoint Compassionate Council as way forward to national reconciliation
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe announced today that his government would appoint a Compassionate Council comprising the country's religious dignitaries as a way forward towards national reconciliation.
Speaking to newspaper editors and publishers at his office today Wickremesinghe said that religious leaders had a big role to play in bringing about amity among the races in Sri Lanka following a three decade long separatist insurgency that ended in 2009 with the defeat of the LTTE organization that launched a military campaign for a separate Tamil state in Sri Lanka.
The PM was explaining the Sri Lankan Government's position on the eve of a resolution that was to be placed before the UNHRC in Geneva on Sept 30 calling for a thorough investigation into the conduct of the Armed Forces during the war against the LTTE when thousands died in the cross-fire.
Wickremesinghe said that South Africa had a Truth Commission headed by Rev Desmond Tutu and Sri Lanka would have a similar Commission with appointees nominated by the country's Buddhist, Hindu. Islam and Christian religious heads.
He said that had former President Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed such a Commission a UNHRC resolution would not have been necessary.
The premier said that there was no indictment against the Sri Lankan Armed Forces and pointed out that they were involved in active peace keeping roles for the UN around the world but that there were individual cases that needed to be investigated.
On the other hand, he said, the judiciary had a serious credibility issue as an institution and that had to be remedied institutionally.
Referring to the upcoming UNHRC resolution that suggests the involvement of foreign judges and lawyers in the investigations to purported war crimes, Wickremesinghe said it is up to the local Bar Association and Supreme Court to decide whether to allow foreign lawyers and judges to practice within the Sri Lankan judicial process.
He also said that a Special Court will be appointed to hear cases involving war crimes charges and that accused persons will be entitled to only one appeal. In Sri Lanka most criminal cases permit two appeals.
The PM said that the LTTE decimated the Tamil political leadership and they should be brought back into mainstream politics. He said that they supported the resolution in Geneva which has the Government's backing as well.
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