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| Sunday, 15 December 2002 |
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Human Rights: Still at bay in Jaffna? by Don Asoka Wijewardena The Parliamentary Select Committee for Human Rights in Jaffna has received a number of complaints of human rights violations since the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the LTTE and the government. The complaints include: 300 cases of disappearances and under-aged recruitment, 115 cases of unfair promotions, discrimination against different races, flagrant violation of security pass system, violation of fishing territories demarcated and 15 cases of torture including arrest and detention. Human rights Co-Ordinator Jaffna, Ruwan Chandrasekare told the 'Sunday Observer'. A Website for the Parliamentary Select Committee for Human Rights was opened by the Speaker Joseph Michael Perera at the parliamentary complex recently. The Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee for Human Rights and Minister of Employment and Labour, Mahinda Samarasinghe and the Leader of the Opposition Mahinda Rajapaksa graced the occasion. Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe told the 'Sunday Observer' that the primary objective in opening a Website for Human Rights was to enlighten people on repercussions of violating human rights and to obtain first hand information from international human rights organisations such as Amnesty International and striving towards ensuring comprehensive methods of inquiry to complaints made by individuals in strict confidence. He said that there was a scenario in which human rights were violated on a large scale and innocent civilians were called upon to pay the price as they had been made scapegoat. The Minister noted that Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was sparing no effort in seeking ways and means of reviving the collapsed economy as a result of the war and had appreciated that ensuring the protecting of human rights was a vital part of the peace process. "This Website is of immense benefit to students of information technology all over the world. Speaker Joseph Michael Perera has urged all MPs to send complaints to the human rights committee received from public in their respective districts," said Minister Samarasinghe. |
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