Sri Lankan war crimes: Govt to take clear stand today

KS

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New Delhi: The government on Wednesday is expected to clear its stand on the alleged war crimes against ethnic Tamils by the Sri Lankan army. This after a video allegedly showing LTTE chief Prabhakaran's 12-year-old son's bullet-riddled body created a storm in Parliament on Tuesday.

Tamil political parties have been putting pressure on New Delhi to vote against Colombo at the UN, but the government is unlikely to give in.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wrote to DMK Chief M Karunanidhi to cool tempers but in a clear hint of India playing it safe the Prime Minister also indicated that Delhi may not back the UNHRC resolution against Colombo.

This has come despite strong protests from Tamil Nadu political parties, including UPA ally the DMK.

"What is the Centre's stand on the issue," said DMK MP Kanimozhi.

Whether it's a UPA ally or a rival, the demand from Tamil Nadu's political forces is united – New Delhi must vote against Colombo at the UNHRC. However, in the midst of the domestic political ruckus, New Delhi still seems indecisive and concerned about the diplomatic fall out.

To calm the Tamil temper, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wrote a letter to Karunanidhi in which he said, "With regard to resolution in UN human rights council, we are engaged with all parties in an effort to achieve an outcome that is forward looking and ensures that rather than deepening confrontation and mistrust a way forward is found."

However, the political fire in Tamil Nadu is fuelled further by the pictures showing the bullet ridden body of 12-year-old Balachandran, the son of slain LTTE Chief Velupillai Prabhakaran, allegedly killed by Sri Lankan forces.

It's part of several alleged war crime videos from the last days of the war against the LTTE. While Colombo has denied the allegations, the focus back home is on the stand New Delhi will take.
Let's see, if for once, our sentiments are given the consideration its deserves and the Central Govt stands by us..Unlikely, but still I have not lost hope.
 

Mad Indian

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Nice but i dont see anything big happening here. It was India which shielded Srilanka against the UN action or any other initiative against the war. Many here in TN believe that Maimo took revenge on LTTE for killing her hubby. anyway here is the article which makes me suspect that there wont be any action against the Lankans for their Tamil genocide

India non-committal on UN resolution


Notwithstanding an uproar in Parliament over allegations of brutality by the Sri Lankan Army during its 2009 offensive against Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, New Delhi on Tuesday remained non-committal on supporting a proposed resolution in United Nations Human Rights Council censuring Colombo for alleged war-crimes against ethnic Tamils in the island nation.

Parliamentarians of the All India Anna Dravida Munnethra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and the Dravida Munnethra Kazhagam (DMK) created ruckus in both the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha, demanding India's support to the UNHRC resolution condemning Sri Lanka for human rights violations by its armed forces during the conflict with the LTTE.

The government, however, maintained that it had never supported any resolution targeting a particular country in the UNHRC in the past, but would take a decision on Sri Lanka in due course of time, taking into account all aspects of the issue.

New Delhi is weighing options and assessing possible implications of succumbing to pressure from Tamil Nadu political parties and changing the traditional stand of not supporting country-specific resolution in the UNHRC.

External Affairs Minister S M Krishna is likely to make a statement on the issue in both the Houses on Wednesday.

"First of all, the date (for debate and voting on the resolution in the UNHRC) has not yet been fixed and the traditional position of India has all along been — not only in respect of this case — that we normally do not support any country-specific resolution," Finance Minister and Leader of House Pranab Mukherjee told the Lok Sabha, as the DMK and AIADMK MPs rushed to the well of the House soon after it assembled on Tuesday.

"But what view, on this issue, will be taken, will be determined, as and when the time is finalised in respect of the meeting of the UN Human Rights Council," he said, as the agitating MPs raised slogans demanding India should take a firm stand to condemn human right violations by the Sri Lankan Army.

The Rajya Sabha was adjourned without transacting any significant business, with some MPs of the Communist Party of India and even the ruling Congress from Tamil Nadu too joined the DMK and AIADMK members to decry violation of human rights by the Sri Lankan Army.

In letters to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and AIADMK supremo J Jayalalitha and DMK leader M Karunanidhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wrote that New Delhi was making efforts to achieve a "forward-looking" outcome that would avoid "deepening confrontation and mistrust" in Sri Lanka.

The US, France and Norway are likely to move a resolution at the UNHRC meet in Geneva seeking to censure Sri Lanka for gross violation of human rights by its armed forces during the 2009 war against the LTTE. The resolution may be debated at the UNHRC on March 21 and 22 and put to vote on March 23 next.

Just ahead of the debate and voting on the proposed resolution against Sri Lanka, a video-footage of the LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran's son Balachandran's body with five bullet marks triggered global outcry, as it indicated that the 12-year-old boy had been executed in cold blood. The video footage is part of a documentary to be aired by Channel 4 – a satellite TV channel of UK – on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan government has dismissed the footage as concocted and is preparing to lobby hard to block the passage of the resolution. But the issue caused uproar in India, with political parties in Tamil Nadu disrupting the proceedings in Parliament, demanding that New Delhi should take a strong stand to condemn brutality by the Sri Lankan Army.

India is understood to be in touch with Sri Lanka on the issue and also had consultations with US, Norway and France on the issue. Government sources on Tuesday said that New Delhi would take a call after going through the final draft of the proposed resolution.

Sources said that it was a bit premature to tell now what stand New Delhi would eventually take, as there were still several days to go before the UNHRC would take up the resolution for debate.

Going by its stand of not supporting any country-specific resolution, India had recently abstained from voting on a resolution at the UNHRC against Syria. New Delhi is now assessing future implications if it goes against its traditional stand on voting on such resolutions.
 

nitesh

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Unfortunately, I don't think GoI is going to take a stand against Sri Lanka
 

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