Report of the Secretary-generalã¢â‚¬â„¢s Internal Review Panel on United Nations Action in Sri Lanka

The Report of the United Nations' Internal Review Panel1 was released one year after Sri Lanka's cocky-appointed commission of research, the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Committee, submitted its findings to President Mahinda Rajapaksa. The LLRC was established in May 2010 to investigate events between the February 2002 ceasefire with the LTTE and the end of the conflict in May 2009 and make recommendations aimed at indigenous reconciliation. When the LLRC Report was submitted, information technology was assumed that it was but going to clear the regime of any accountability, especially in relation to allegations of violations of International Humanitarian Law during the concluding war machine offensive confronting the LTTE in 2009. The outcome was, however, an unsuccessful try to bury questions of war crimes, with the LLRC Study stating that even though the war machine gave highest priority to protecting civilians, many had been killed, admitting accidentally. This was a footstep forward as it conspicuously contradicted the Authorities of Sri Lanka's (GoSL) previous opinion insisting that at that place were no civilian casualties.two Given the lie on the part of the GoSL with regard to the implementations of the recommendations put forth past the LLRC, the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) passed a resolution in March 2012 titled "Promoting Reconciliation and Accountability in Sri Lanka". Although one of the results of the UNHRC resolution was the conception of the "National Action Plan", information technology did zero to change the state'due south civilization of impunity and the fact that the government continues to resist any independent investigation into alleged state of war crimes or other human rights violations. This situation and the recently ended Universal Periodic Review (UPR) session on Sri Lanka of the Un Part of the High Commissioner for Human being Rights have raised many difficult questions for those interested in genuine peace and reconciliation in the country. The GoSL has consistently rejected suggestions that it permit an international office in human rights monitoring and accountability efforts, both in the context of the first UPR in 2008 and afterward equally well when calls for an contained international investigation into alleged war crimes intensified. Three and a half years since the concluding boxing was fought and won, the GoSL continues to be evasive. Confronting this backdrop, the release of the Petrie Report has refocused international attending on the deteriorating human rights situation in Sri Lanka.

The Petrie Study and the UN's failure

During the internal conflict that started in Sri Lanka 3 decades ago, several Un agencies, along with various other Intergovernmental Organisations (IGOS) and international non-governmental organizations (INGOS), were based in the war-torn Due north and East, serving people affected in the disharmonize zone. The situation provided aplenty opportunity for these international organisations to attain an insiders' view and a ameliorate agreement of the difficulties faced by civilians living in these areas, while providing them with much needed aid. It has been widely reported that towards the end of the state of war, on the directive of Sri Lanka's Defence Ministry, the United nations agencies also equally the other local and international organisations were compelled to go out the areas demarcated as the war zone, in spite of the large number of civilian demonstrations pleading with the UN agencies to stay because of the protection their presence would ensure. The Petrie Report asserts that the closure of offices and the subsequent withdrawal of Un agencies from the state of war-affected regions stand for a failure on the function of the UN to "...human action within the scope of institutional mandates to meet protection responsibilities" (pp. 27).

Produced by a panel appointed by the United nations Secretary General and headed by Charles Petrie, the report draws on most 7000 internal documents. Its final decision is the damning fact that UN agencies failed to ensure the safety of innocent civilians. A key revelation of the report is that United nations staff members were in possession of reliable data showing that the GoSL was responsible for the majority of the deaths. The report reveals that two-thirds of the killings were inside condom zones unilaterally declared by the Sri Lankan government, purportedly to protect civilians. It states that "Numerous United nations communications said that civilians were beingness killed in arms shelling, but they failed to mention that reports most oft indicated the shelling in question was from Government forces" (pp. xx), Moreover, "From as early equally 6 Feb 2009, the SLA (Sri Lankan Army) continuously shelled inside areas that became the second NFZ (No Fire Zone), from all directions, including country, sea and air. Information technology is estimated that there were between 300,000 and 330,000 civilians in that small surface area" (pp. xi).

Summing up the United nations'southward failures, the Written report points out how the United nations'due south acts of omission and commission unwittingly served the GoSL's agenda, and thus exacerbating the humanitarian catastrophe. It states:

Seen together, the failure of the UN to adequately counter the authorities's underestimation of population numbers in the Wanni [warzone], the failure to adequately confront the government on its obstructions to humanitarian assistance, the unwillingness of the United nations in UNHQ and Colombo to address regime responsibility for attacks that were killing civilians, and the tone and content of United nations communications with the government on these issues, collectively amounted to a failure by the Un to deed within the scope of institutional mandates to meet protection responsibilities (pp. 27).

In other words, the UN stood past and largely kept silent while a massacre of civilians was underway. In doing so, however, the UN was simply fulfilling its role equally an instrument of the major powers. The The states and European powers, forth with Communist china, backed President Rajapaksa when he unilaterally broke the ceasefire understanding with the LTTE in 2006 and subsequently turned a blind heart to mounting prove of the atrocities and gross abuse of noncombatant rights. Equally the Petrie Report points out, there were no meetings of the Un Security Quango, the Homo Rights Council or the General Assembly on the appalling state of affairs in Sri Lanka. The notion of Responsibility to Protect, the Study claims, was raised but "...to no useful result" (pp. 32). Speaking of the relationship betwixt top UN officials and the major powers, the written report states: "The tone, content and objectives of the UNHQ'southward appointment with fellow member states regarding Sri Lanka were heavily influenced past what it perceived member states wanted to hear, rather than by what member states needed to know if they were to respond" (pp. 27).

With regard to the Rajapaksa government's "nil civilian casualty" claims and specially the GoSL's assertion that it had rescued the trapped Tamils "without a drib of claret", the report reveals this to be utterly false.3 The Panel thus reported on the GoSL's denial of casualty figures and the way in which it pitted Un officials against one another to create doubts as to the veracity of the UN's casualty figures:

The Authorities responded robustly to any UN suggestion that there were civilian casualties at all. Aware of disagreements among UN principals, the Government used correspondence and public statements by senior UN officials to abnegate the OHCHR public statement. Diplomats who had attended the UNCT's 9 March briefing and wanted the Un to take a public stand up on casualties leaked the briefing materials to the media. On 24 March, the RC [Resident Coordinator] was summoned to encounter with Minister of Strange Diplomacy and on 25 March, the Government released a statement saying "[the RC] has stated that he is unable to ostend the veracity of the figures of civilian casualties..." and describing the numbers as having "not been attributed to whatsoever reliable or independent source " and the assertion that two-thirds of casualties had occurred in the NFZ [No Fire Zones] as "patently imitation" and "unsubstantiated". (pp. 12)

In the light of these incriminatory findings, the Petrie Report concludes that the United nations did not have a vision or proper plan to bargain with the catastrophic events that unfolded during the final phase of the war and immediately after information technology concluded. The United Nations and its diverse bodies, which were gear up upwards to forestall precisely such atrocities, failed in their mandate to protect these civilians past letting politics and vested interests come in the fashion of prioritizing the lives of children, women and men who were caught in the NFZs. The report concludes by stating:

"The Un'southward failure to adequately answer to events like those that occurred in Sri Lanka should not happen again. When confronted by like situations, the Un must be able to come across a much higher standard in fulfilling its protection and humanitarian responsibilities" (pp. 35).

The Secretarial assistant General in response to the Console'south findings about the United nations'southward failure alleged that "transparency and accountability are critical to the legitimacy of the Un [...]" and has announced that he will appoint a senior level Un team to give considerations to the report and advice him of a way forrard and has promised that "other actions volition follow in brusk order".4

Bug with the Written report and Colombo'due south Denial

The findings of the Petrie Study are an indictment non only of the Rajapaksa government, but besides of the Un. Previous reports such as the Darusman Written report indicated that state of war crimes and crimes against humanity were committed by both the Sri Lankan war machine and the LTTE, but did not refer to the United nations's failings.

While acknowledging the findings of the written report and the United nations'south admission of its own failure, questions have been raised as to the nature of the fact finding mission that preceded the report. Noting the United nations Security Council's indecisiveness regarding Sri Lanka and lack of a required mandate, Vidura notes that: "...information technology took more than than ii-and-a-half years since the end of the disharmonize – and only after a forceful recommendation by the PoE [Panel of Experts], and probably a ratcheting upward of pressures from internal and powerful external actors – for Ban Ki-moon to committee a review."five He also draws attention to the appointment of a role-fourth dimension United nations staff member to head the Panel (as opposed to a team comprising of persons not attached to the UN) which brings upwards issues of independence and impartiality: "They had the selection of cartoon adept observers/participants from amidst the donors or other humanitarian agencies or whatever of the regional inter-governmental bodies that are conversant with the humanitarian reform calendar to ensure objectivity."half-dozen The final and pressing issue is the lack of transparency, methodology and process the United nations review team adopted equally there is a significant absence of "...a mechanism for the affected communities and concerned activists to engage with the process and raise issues."7

Frances Harrison, one-time BBC contributor and author of Still Counting the Dead: Survivors of Sri Lanka's Subconscious State of war, adds to this debate past challenge that if the report had not been leaked to the BBC before it was released to the public, it would not have been released at all: "A reluctant United nations in New York had to publish the document but chose to do so without its powerful executive summary that ready the conflict in the context of mail 9/11 global attitudes to terrorism that tragically skewed the reporting of the bloodshed."viii She cites the Executive Summary of the Report, which was first released and and then withdrawn,9 as stating: "Some have argued many deaths could accept been averted had the Security Council and the Secretariat, backed by the United nations State Team, spoken out loudly early, notably by publicising casualty figures."10

In turn, the GoSL, finding itself under fire nonetheless again for its conduct, promptly denied it had forced the UN or acted against it in any style and challenged the contents of the report. The President's Special Envoy for Homo Rights and Government minister of Plantation Industries Mahinda Samarasinghe was quoted as having said: "Nosotros consulted with the UN and at that place was no intimidation of UN official. How tin you lot intimidate the United nations, the U.s.a., Japan or any other country? These are sovereign entities".eleven He also added that he was unaware of whatever agency being asked to exit the conflict zone: "I take not heard anyone say that nosotros asked them to go out."12

Conclusion

Though piddling has changed in the Regime'south position and 'accountability' remains an effect of contention, through the appointment of the LLRC, Military Research Panels and the formulation of a National Action Plan the GoSL has, to engagement, been able to agree off calls for an independent international investigation. The Petrie Report has emerged at a time when the Rajapaksa Regime moves to impeach the Chief Justice, continues to maintain a heavily militarised zone in the Northward and the Eastward of the country, and repeatedly alludes to the abolition of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, the constitutional affiliate that deals with devolution of power.

Given the findings of this Study and the Darusman Report before, the UNHRC must take immediate action in the upcoming 21st session in March 2013 when the progress made by the GoSL is to be discussed. The UNHRC's previous tape with regard to Sri Lanka has revealed that it has done piddling to find the truth – information technology did not convene a special session at the fourth dimension the war was raging, failed to acknowledge the human rights violations taking place and in the 19th session passed a resolution that but succeeded in giving the GoSL time to establish its own domestic investigation.

Finally, the Petrie Report states that: "... in Colombo, many senior staff only did non perceive the prevention of killing of civilians as their responsibility" (pp. 27). With this existence the decision of the UN Internal Review Panel, the United Nations can no longer ignore the elephant in the room; information technology is time to address the effect of accountability and this should be a priority for senior Un officials and all UN bodies. With ii combined Un sponsored reports and other contained investigations now in the public domain, all providing irrefutable bear witness, the UN needs to start moving the wheels of justice with the institution of an contained international war-crimes investigation. This could be a footstep towards restoring the UN's credibility, at least with regard to Sri Lanka.

Views expressed are of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the IDSA or of the Government of India.

ericksonfrect1987.blogspot.com

Source: https://idsa.in/issuebrief/TheUNInternalReviewPanelReportandSriLankasAccountability_tkelegama_090113

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