Resolutions to be taken up on March 26

by Manjula Fernando

External Affairs Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris is expected to return to Geneva at the tail end of the Geneva Human Rights Council sessions to be present when the negative US resolution on Sri Lanka is tabled and perhaps taken up for vote.

A spokesperson for the Ministry said earlier the arrangement was for him to lead the delegation during the high level segment and remain in Geneva till March 9.Subsequently, he was to proceed to UK from there for official discussions.

The resolutions will be taken up during the last three days of the sessions from March 26 to 28. Sri Lanka could propose a vote on the resolution through a designated proxy, as was done in 2012 and 2013.

The proxies who spoke on behalf of Sri Lanka at last years' session included Pakistan and Cuba.

The first informal meeting by the co-sponsors of the resolution, US, UK, Macedonia, Mauritius and Montenegro was held last Friday where Sri Lanka was also given a slot to submit its official stance.

There is provision to hold up to three such informal meetings before the resolution is finalised. However, observers say the US tabled the draft resolution in the UN Human rights Council on its opening day.

Thus these informal meetings could be just an eyewash to convince member states that wide consultation has been made before the draft was prepared. Sri Lanka's Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva Ravinatha Aryasinha told the informal meeting that the intention of presenting yet another resolution on Sri Lanka in the Council was made known by the US to the Sri Lankan Government in January this year, long before the High Commissioner's Report was made available.

"This makes it clear that the process and the intent to do so were led by political imperatives, rather than an objective assessment of the situation on the ground."

He also said that the draft resolution "violates the constitutional provisions" of Sri Lanka, it is "highly intrusive" in nature and is in "breach of sovereignty" of the Sri Lankan people and the "territorial integrity" of Sri Lanka.

Meanwhile, President's Special Envoy on Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe and Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva are due to attend the Geneva HR sessions from March 10 to 21.