SL UPR: Good foundation for March sessions

By Manjula Fernando

The progress Sri Lanka has shown in the Human Rights front after the end of the conflict has been acknowledged by over 80 per cent of the 99 countries that spoke at the Universal Periodic Review on Sri Lanka held at Room XX at the Palais des Nations in Geneva on November 1.

President’s Special Envoy on Human Rights, Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said, a record 99 countries inscribed and all of them took the floor during the three and a half hour time allotted to Sri Lanka’s HR review session.

”The Sri Lankan team was highly taken up by the enthusiasm shown by the world community to get updated on the developments taking place in post conflict Sri Lanka”, speaking on the phone from Geneva on Friday, Minister Samarasinghe said. The 99 countries that spoke included 37 HRC members and 61 observers.

Minister Samarasinghe opened the debate with a speech, presenting one by one, the great strides the country has made following the defeat of terrorism and explaining what it hoped to do in addressing the remaining issues. “On other occasions we have only three to four minutes to put on record our side of the story, but at the UPR we had 70 minutes and we took our time and explained in detail all what we have done at ground level.”

He tabled specific examples of the areas the country has completed in implementing the national action plan of the LLRC. “One of the criticisms levelled against Sri Lanka was the failure to implement the LLRC recommendations. I showed the international community specific examples of what we had done and questioned if they did not see them as progressive. This was very effective.”

The Minister pointed out, one of the key pledges at Sri Lanka’s first peer review in 2008, a National Action Plan for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (NHRAP) have been completed and begun implementing.

Pointing out that Sri Lanka, a small country in the world map, like any post-conflict polity, faced challenges of a magnitudinal scope that were truly daunting, had been able to fulfil most of its obligations in a short span of time. These included a massive 300,000 population being resettled, a challenge even a developed country would have struggled to fulfil.

Among the achievements that the international community hailed at the UPR were: setting up of the Task Force to monitor and implement the LLRC recommendations, launching of the NHRAP, efforts to resettle IDPs and progress made in normalising the situation in the country since 2009, steps taken to rehabilitate and reintegrate child soldiers, efforts to achieve the MDGs, particularly in the area of poverty reduction, primary education and child and maternal mortality and the de-mining program which has cleared over 90% of mined areas.

The Minister said the UPR session was a good ground preparation for the UN Human Rights Council sessions in March 2013. “The countries were clearly informed that we had come a long distance”. The Minister supported by the team replied to the concerns raised by some of the countries including the US, UK, Canada, the Netherlands, Australia, Pakistan and China.

The minister in response to a question by the US on the impeachment motion on the Chief Justice responded that what had been done is strictly in accordance with the Constitution.

Citing the relevant sections in the Constitution he explained how a motion can be prepared by the members in Parliament and be presented to the Speaker and how it will be proceeded by a Select Committee with representation from both sides of the House.The Secretariat of the Human Rights Council is currently compiling the outcome report on Sri Lanka assisted by the Rapporteurs, India, Spain and Benin. Sri Lanka is interacting with the Secretariat and the Troika. On Monday the report that will reflect the countries that spoke and their recommendations will be presented to the Council.

The Minister said Sri Lanka is still considering whether they would want to make voluntary pledges to the 2012 UPR report. Last year there were a number of voluntary pledges replacing some of the recommendations the other States made which Sri Lanka was not ready to accommodate in toto.

The Minister said the report will be presented to the Council for Adoption in March and Sri Lanka had time till then to submit voluntary pledges.

Among the concerns raised included, full implementation of the recommendations of the LLRC; respecting the independence of the judiciary, policies and programs to ensure the protection of women and children and steps to protect the rights of human rights defenders and journalists. Some of the countries offered recommendations to improve the situation on the ground, they included: Implementing fully the recommendations of the LLRC and investigating fully the alleged grave breaches of international humanitarian law during the conflict, establishing a central register for all persons missing or in custody accessible to family members and legal representatives, continuing efforts to combat impunity in relation to the past conflict and Ensuring that those responsible for crimes against children, including recruitment of child soldiers, were brought to justice. According to the Minister these recommendations are to be accommodated in the final report if Sri Lankan is agreeable to take them on board.

It will be presented to the Council for adoption in March. Therefore we have time till March to send amendments on voluntary pledges by the country.”The outcome report on Sri Lanka prepared by the Troika and the Secretariat will be presented to the Council on Monday, the Minister said.

Minister Samarasinghe acknowledged the contribution and commitment made by the Ambassador in Geneva Ravinatha Aryasingha and the delegates who were part of his team. The Sri Lankan team from Colombo comprised six members representing, the Foreign Ministry, Justice Ministry, Attorney General’s Department and the military.