PM sets Sri Lanka war crimes investigation deadline

Prime Minister David Cameron calls on the Sri Lankan government to make faster progress on its human rights issues.

Prime Minister David Cameron who was in Sri Lanka for a Commonwealth summit, told the media on Saturday that if Sri Lanka does not address the international concerns over its human rights record, the UK will push for a UN-led investigation into alleged war crimes and rights abuses during and after a 27-year civil war.

Mr Cameron said that he had “frank” discussions with President Mahinda Rajapaksa after skipping the first day of the summit to travel to Sri Lanka’s war-torn north on Friday.
“Not everything I said was accepted, but I sense that they do want to make progress on these issues,” Mr Cameron said.

“If that investigation is not completed by March then I will use our position on the UN Human Rights Council to work with the UN Human Rights Commissioner and call for a full credible independent international enquiry,” he added.

The Sri Lankan government dismissed Mr Cameron’s comments.

Water minister Nimal Siripala de Silva said the country will resist an international inquiry.
Mr Cameron said his visit to the north of the country was significant because it gave “the Tamils in the north of this country a voice and a voice that the world needs to listen to.”
Source: APTN

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