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Who will probe these war crimes?
Tuesday, 27 July 2010 - 10:17 AM SL Time
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UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is apparently having sleepless nights devising ways and means of launching a war crimes probe against Sri Lanka. His advisory panel has started work under rabidly anti-Sri Lankan UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, whose prejudices stink to high heavens.
Those at the forefront of a war crimes campaign against this country such as US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Assistant Secretary of State Robert Blake, Ki-moon, Pillay et al now have an opportunity to prove their credentials, if any, as champions of human rights by acting on prima facie evidence of war crimes.
Acting British Prime Minister Nick Clegg has declared in the House of Commons that the Iraq war was illegal. This is certainly a damning indictment on former PM Tony Blair, his successor Gordon Brown and the British armed forces. Ki-moon, Pillay, Hillary and others must swing into action and call for a war crimes investigation based on Clegg`s statement. In trying to haul the Sri Lankan political leaders and military commanders before a war crimes tribunal, they are going by mere hearsay, speculation and a cockamamie statement former Army Commander Gen. Sarath Fonseka is reported to have made to a newspaper after he fell from grace and entered politics. But, in the case of Britain, they do have solid evidence of war crimes to act on.
It follows from Clegg`s pronouncement at the Dispatch Box that President George W. Bush, President Barack Obama and the US military commanders are also responsible for an illegal war in Iraq and the attendant war crimes. Before Clegg, an investigation conducted by former Dutch Supreme Court judge Willibod Davids into the Netherland`s support for the 2003 war had found that the Iraq war manifestly violated international law. His 551-page report published in January this year said inter alia: `The Dutch government lent its political support to a war whose purpose was not consistent with Dutch government policy. The military action had no sound mandate in international law.`
Meanwhile, many secret American military files on the Afghan war have found their way into the public domain much to the consternation of the US government. These files published in major western newspapers such as The Guardian and The New York Times reveal numerous war crimes the US-led forces have been committing in Afghanistan. According to The Guardian report, the coalition troops have killed hundreds of civilians and in one incident the French troops opened fire on a bus full of children injuring eight. The classified files, The Guardian says, also reveal a secret black-ops outfit tasked with hunting down Taliban leaders for `kill or capture` without trial!
The British press has accused former Prime Minister Tony Blair of having sanctioned the abuse of UK citizens as part of the war. This is what the Daily Mail said on July 16, 2010: `For the first time, the former Prime Minister`s office is implicated in a series of explosive classified files which Labour ministers battled to suppress but which have been released on the orders of the High Court. They cast a new light on Britain`s dirty secret and lay bare the extent to which the Labour government allegedly turned a blind eye to the abduction and torturing of its own citizens. More than 900 documents have been released on the orders of High Court judges who are hearing a lengthy case brought by Binyam Mohamed, a British resident, who claims his genitals were slashed by his torturers and other former Guantanamo Bay inmates who are suing the British government.`
Where have all the human rights organisations gone? Where is Blake? And where is Pascoe? Will they tell us what they intend to do about the clear evidence of war crimes against the UK and the US? It was only the other day that Blake during a brief visit here urged Sri Lanka to co-operate with the UNSG`s advisory panel. Will he call for at least a UN advisory panel on Clegg`s damning indictment and the US military files that reveal war crimes in Afghanistan?
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mimslanka
Joined: Nov 2005
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 27 Jul 2010 08:34:07 GMT Report for Abuse
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| And now comes the wikispy story. Is America culpable of war crimes? Who will probe is a million dollar question. Sri Lanka should have its own mechanism of a multifaceted commission to probe its own misgiving of the war. Did I say 'commission', oh there are so many already. |
saleemtariq
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 27 Jul 2010 08:50:27 GMT Report for Abuse
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In trying to haul the Sri Lankan political leaders and military commanders before a war crimes tribunal, they are going by mere hearsay, speculation and a cockamamie statement former Army Commander Gen. Sarath Fonseka
The UN panel must be given a chance to determine if it's 'mere heresay, speculation and a cockamamie statement former Army Commander Gen Sareth Fonseka'? The General must know more than anyone on earth on the way the war was conducted. It's a word of Sri Lankan govt and its supporters VS all the reputed human rights organisations and the victims of the war. If the govt is absolutely sure of its stance it can defend its position but trying to stop the probe raise genuine doubts about the motive of the alleged offenders.
The Island has a notorious record of supporting extremism in regard to minority rights and their well founded oppression. LTTE did commit many terrorist activities indiscriminately against civilians and they are punished. The successive govts of Sri Lanka also master minded or abetted or encouraged many communal riots and this govt in particular is alleged to have committed or encouraged and given impunity to paramilitaries and military personnel to commit human rights violations, starved civilians and barred ICRC delivering food and medicine to starving children, babies, mothers and wounded in the narrow strip after the security forces forced the civilians to seek refuge and bombed and shelled them.
The invasion and war in Iraq were illegal in by-passing the UN and opposition party, LibDem in UK and the present president of US, have openly said it was 'illegal' but in Sri Lanka the major parties and media mostly run the govt itself supported the alleged war crimes and at best kept quiet on human rights violations in order to win elections by cheap publicity. Sri Lanka war was carried out in secret and therefore there is a need for accountability. Legality of Iraq war is being investigated by UK at the moment. UNSG gave more than one year to SLG to probe the alleged violations of international law of war but it did nothing in that front except denying them with full vigor.
SLG has never been serious in probing any alleged crime/human rights abuses or finding a solution to the major ethic problem. the International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP)and APRC were appointed by the president to placate or fool the international community.
Edited By - saleemtariq - 27 Jul 2010 08:59:17 GMT |
wick
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 28 Jul 2010 02:10:40 GMT Report for Abuse
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Killing terrorist Tamils in any form is not a war crime.
If we did not kill VP and his goons by this time there would be a big commemoration by Ban KEE Moon to release the buggers from custody.
This is high time to check Ban KEE Moon s bank accounts and wealth to see how much bribe he has taken from bloody Tamils.
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27 Jul 2010 04:07:18 GMT