UNHRC sessions:

Sri Lankan delegation to be named this week

by Manjula Fernando

The Sri Lankan team for the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) sessions will leave for Geneva next weekend.

The spokesperson for the External Affairs Ministry Rodney Perera said, the number of representatives in the Sri Lankan delegation and the team leader will be notified within the course of next week.

The 22nd regular sessions of the UNHRC will be held from February 25 to March 22, 2013. In the backdrop of announcing a US sponsored procedural resolution to be brought against Sri Lanka, the delegation is prepared to showcase impressive progress in many fronts since the end of the war against LTTE terrorism in 2009.

A report outlining the progress of the implementation of LLRC Recommendations, the Army Court of Inquiry report which was released on Friday, and the progress of development activities in the North will be the key areas that Sri Lanka will try to highlight and bring to the notice of the international community represented in the HRC, in fighting their case, the spokesperson said.

Sri Lanka has also submitted its reply to the office of the High Commissioner on her report criticising the country's progress in the areas of justice and reconciliation. Navi Pillai's report titled 'Advice and Technical Assistance for the Government of Sri Lanka on Promoting Accountability and Reconciliation' is to be tabled for consideration on March 20.

Sri Lanka has rejected the allegations in this report as biased and says that it has failed to recognise the efforts already taken by the Government in this front.