Road map for implementing LLRC recommendation
by Manjula FERNANDO
The Government said it was engaged in designing a roadmap to
implement the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation
Commission (LLRC) report.
Minister in Charge of Human Rights Mahinda Samarasinghe told the
Sunday Observer yesterday that the Government was committed to implement
the report, denying allegations to the contrary.He said if the
Government wished to disregard the recommendations, it would never have
presented the report in Parliament.
"We could have easily said this report has areas which endanger
national security and therefore we can't release the report and we could
have kept everyone guessing on what we plan on doing."
The Minister who will head the Sri Lankan delegation to the Human
Rights Sessions in Geneva next month said, "It is correct that we are
not going to present the LLRC report to the Council. It was a domestic
process and it has no relevance in terms of an official document to be
placed before the Human Rights Council."
However, he said his team was ready to answer clarifications on the
LLRC by delegates at the HRC.
"We are prepared to answer any questions concerning as to what the
Government plans on doing with the LLRC report. We have acted very
sincerely, in a committed manner and we continue to do that."
"Some delegations will refer to the LLRC report in the course of
their interventions, because it has been made a public document. There
will be others who want to seek clarifications on the report, especially
in the context of what the government plans on doing with the report. At
that point our delegation will exercise our rights of reply."
He called allegations that the Government was unprepared to face
UNHRC challenges as mere wishful thinking on the part of those who want
to create trouble for Sri Lanka.
"When the 'Darusman Report' was sent by the UN Secretary General to
the President of UNHRC as an information document, an attempt was made
by certain countries to bring it before the Council as an official
document. We intervened at that point and Sri Lanka was supported by a
few countries. They said if this Darusman Report got access as an
official document, that would create a very bad precedent."
"The Darusman Report was not mandated by the Human Rights Council nor
any other inter-governmental body. Therefore, we said this report cannot
come from the back door of the HRC. Finally, that position had to be
accepted. The same principle goes to the LLRC report as it was not
mandated by the HRC," the Minister said.
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