|
|
|
Thursday, August 18, 2011 - 05.00 GMT |
|
SL envoy in Australia rejects intl. probe |
|
|
|
Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner for Australia, Thisara Samarasinghe has rejected a call by the Australian Foreign Minister, Kevin Rudd, for the United Nations to re-examine allegations of war crimes during the final phase of the conflict, stated The Sydney Morning Herald.
Last month a spokeswoman for Mr Rudd called on the UN Human Rights Council to revisit the claims of war crimes and to ''examine whether their original findings on the war can still be regarded as well-founded.'' But the Sri Lankan high commissioner said the allegations upon which Mr Rudd based his call - including video footage from a British documentary which showed unarmed Tamils being shot dead - were ''biased and unsubstantiated''.
''That is a statement made by your honourable Foreign Minister,'' Admiral Samarasinghe said. ''He had his reasons to make that request and it will take its natural course, if anybody is interested,'' quoting High Commissioner, The Sydney Morning Herald said.
It also said that Admiral Samarasinghe, who was in charge of naval operations against the Tamil Tigers in early 2009, made his comments during an address at Parliament to present a Sri Lankan government report, Humanitarian Operation - Factual Analysis, which challenged the claims of war crimes.
Referring to allegations of war crimes during the final phase of the conflict, Admiral Samarasinghe said calls for a formal international probe were inappropriate, the newspaper further stated.
''It was not an international conflict, [it was an] internal conflict and we fought it ourselves and we manage our citizens and I don't see any reason why an international investigation should be carried out,'' he said.
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Contact Information:: Send
mail to