Pre-judgement of LLRC outcome unwarranted- Lankan envoy

"Pre-judgement of the LLRC's outcome is unacceptable and unwarranted," said Tamara Kunanayakam, Ambassador/Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the UN in Geneva, referring to statements by Amnesty International (AI) that the LLRC process is flawed.

Claims they have analysed the work of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) is questionable when the final report of the LLRC is due only on November 15, 2011, Kunanayakam told the media in Geneva."It is evident that the real aim of those questioning the legitimacy of LLRC is to undermine the principle of State sovereignty that constitutes the foundation of the rule that requires domestic remedies to be exhausted. Therefore, pre-judgement of the Commission's outcome is unacceptable and unwarranted, and is to be considered as interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign State," she said. "It is recalled that AI in a demonstration of bad faith, refused an invitation from the LLRC in October 2010, to testify before the Commission.

This would have provided an opportunity to AI to obtain first hand knowledge of the workings of the LLRC," she said, adding that while pretending to be well versed in legal proceedings, in the case of Sri Lanka, AI has acted as a self-appointed judge and has chosen to ignore the fundamental principle of "contradictoriality" established by both national laws and international law. The LLRC was founded upon the principle of restorative justice and focuses on identifying those responsible for past events related to the conflict and identifying the institutional, administrative and legislative measures which need to be implemented in order to prevent recurrence of such events in the future, she noted.