Marga/CHA to Sandra Beidas: Remove war

crime charges, revisit IHL

Sunday, September 14, 2014
:
An NGO submission to the OHCHR
investigation on Sri Lanka (OISL) presented in Geneva on onda!
has demanded that "ar #rimes #harges re$ating to indis#riminate
arti$$er! %ire& driving #ivi$ians into No 'ire (ones and #ausing a $arge
number o% #asua$ties tantamount to geno#ide be removed %rom the s$ate o% a$$egations
against the Sri Lanka Arm! (SLA))
It a$so asked %or a revisiting o% Internationa$ Humanitarian La" (IHL)& "hi#h in its
present %orm does not ade*uate$! take into a##ount the #onte+t o% e+traordinar!
#ir#umstan#es su#h as those that prevai$ed in the $ast stages o% the "ar in Sri Lanka)
In a t"o and a ha$% hour dis#ussion "ith Sandra ,eidas "ho heads the OISL& a team
#omprising -r) God%re! Gunati$$eke . Chairman /meritus o% the arga Institute&
0eevan 1hiagara2ah . /+e#utive -ire#tor o% the Consortium o% Humanitarian Agen#ies
(CHA) and Asoka Guna"ardena . Chairman o% the arga Institute& presented their
%indings on the "a! the "ar "as %ought& based on their 2oint pub$i#ation tit$ed 3Issues o%
1ruth and Re#on#i$iation: Narrative III . the Last Stages o% the 4ar in Sri Lanka)5 -r
Gunati$$eke in an e+#$usive intervie" "ith the Sunda! 1imes des#ribed the arga6CHA
intera#tions "ith the OISL #hie%& the dip$omati# #ommunit! and at a side event in
Geneva) /+#erpts are given be$o")
1o "hom did !ou make !our presentation in Geneva& based on the 31hird Narrative75
Godfrey Gunatilleke
Our main intention "as to make a
presentation to the #hie% #oordinator o% the investigative team Sandra ,eidas) 4e met
her on the 8
th
morning "hi#h "as the da! the 9N sessions "ere beginning: 4e met
a number o% missions; "e thought "e "ou$d tr! to make our presentation to a #ross
se#tion o% #ountries& some supportive o% us& some "ho supported the reso$ution) 4e
met the Canadian mission and had a $ong session : 4e met the Russian <R
(<ermanent Representative)& the Indian <R and the South A%ri#an <R on the =
th
) On
the >
th
and ?
th
"hi#h "ere non@"orking da!s "e met our <R and our ambassador in
4ashington "ho "as in Geneva (these "ere $ike "orking dinners "here "e dis#ussed
the te+t)) On the 8
th
%rom A@B p)m)& "e had a side event) 4e "ere "arned that o%ten
the Sri Lankan side events "ere poor$! attended un$ess the! "ere organised b!
"estern nations& %or e+amp$e on Channe$ C) ,ut "e had a good audien#e) Ha$$ DB had
about AEE seats %or a##ommodation and there must have been at $east ?E@?=
attendees) 'rom the *uestions& "e %ound Amnest! Internationa$& representatives o% the
1ami$ diaspora (3Firuma$5 i% I am not mistaken G an important L11/ spokesman))
1here "as -avid 4a$e!& a ,ritisher (seen as an anti@Sri Lanka))
4hat did !ou te$$ Sandra ,eidas and ho" did she respond7
She said she had a *ui#k $ook at 1hird Narrative) 4e gave a brie% statement o%
Chapter A : 1he main thrust "as to te$$ her that "e e+amined the issues o%
a##ountabi$it! in the #onte+t o% ho" the "ar "as %ought) 4e %i$$ed a #ru#ia$ gap in the
in%ormation avai$ab$e in the other reports) 4e "ent on to sa! G e+a#t$! ho" !ou put it
in !our arti#$e G "e $ooked at the "ar in three stages G the /astern <rovin#e "ar and
ho" it "as %ought "ith minimum #asua$ties& then the %irst stage o% Fi$ino#h#hi& "h! the
"ar #hanged and the "a! in "hi#h a##ountabi$it! G the prin#ip$es o% distin#tion and
proportiona$it! have to be app$ied in the #onte+t o% the N'( and the %ighting) I must sa!
that "e had a #ordia$ re#eption) She said this "i$$ be taken into a##ount)
She asked H"hat do !ou e+pe#t to #ome out o% this7I 4e said it "as #$ear to us that
the %irst set o% #harges doesn5t stand serious s#rutin! in the $ight o% "hat "e have
des#ribed G #harges o% indis#riminate arti$$er! %ire& driving #ivi$ians into the N'(&
targeting #ivi$ians& o% a $arge number o% #asua$ties tantamount to geno#ide) 4e said
these have to be removed %rom the s$ate) Individua$ "ar #rimes are another matter :
4e think the position taken in the LLRC "here there are a$$egations o% individua$ "ar
#rimes G that these have to be investigated) 1he genera$ set o% #harges that it "as a
"ar %ought against #ivi$ians is untenab$e)
On revisiting Internationa$ Humanitarian La" (IHL)
I to$d her ver! #$ear$!& "here "e sa! !ou need to revisit IHL; "e are not sa!ing IHL
shou$d not be app$ied G that "e shou$d #ondone "hat has happened) 4e are sa!ing
IHL does not take into a##ount ade*uate$! the #onte+t) IHL needs to be revisited in
order to better prote#t #ivi$ians in e+traordinar! #ir#umstan#es) : It %ai$ed to prote#t
#ivi$ians in this #onte+t& e)g) dea$ing "ith hostages& human shie$ds& the ming$ing o%
#ombatants "ith #ivi$ians)
On the #redibi$it! o% "itnesses in the -arusman report
I asked Sandra ,eidas ho" to estab$ish the #redibi$it! o% "itnesses) 4e are going on
Sk!pe "ith them to dis#uss this) She said the! #an5t remove the #on%identia$it! o%
"itnesses in the <o/ report but "i$$ tr! to estab$ish #redibi$it!) 1he! need #orroborative
eviden#e) 1he -arusman report admits the! #ou$dn5t do it G the! "ere not ab$e to
veri%! "itness testimon!)
-oes !our team p$an to have an ongoing dia$ogue "ith the OISL7
Jes) : 4e said "e are making another %orma$ submission on the $ega$ aspe#ts o%
distin#tion and proportiona$it! : as the! app$! to the a$$egations) An IHL $a"!er is
a$read! engaged in preparing it) 4e are doing a #$ose stud! o% the issue o% #ivi$ian
#asua$ties) 4e to$d her the estimates o% #ivi$ian #asua$ties "ere so high$! spe#u$ative&
to the e+tent that the! be#ame irresponsib$e)
4ho %unded the arga6CHA e+er#ise7
A#tua$$! : the "ho$e o% the "ork ti$$ the "riting o% the report "as born b! CHA and
arga Institute "ith the resour#es it had) arga pu$$ed out about Rs) AEE&EEE %rom its
#apita$) : 1hen "hen it #ame to the te+t G "e presented it to various groups G "e
"ere to$d this must go into print) At that point o% time 0eevan raised some %unds "hi#h
#ame entire$! %rom the private se#tor& %rom various groups) It is that (%unding) that is
being used G to go to Geneva& to trave$& the #ost o% the book $aun#h& the printing o%
the book) )) ,oth CHA and "e (arga) "ere keen there shou$d be no dire#t
government %unding o% this G though i% "e had approa#hed the Government "e might
have had some support %rom it)
-id the L11/ representatives at the side event #ha$$enge "hat !ou "ere sa!ing7
1he! asked t"o *uestions: 4h! do !ou a$"a!s re%er to this as the 3-arusman report&5 it
is a 9N report) 1he se#ond *uestion "as 3"h! have !ou not to$d "hat the Government
did and "hat the arm! did)5 I said& I shou$d have #a$$ed it the 39N Se#retar! Genera$5s
<ane$ o% /+perts report)5 ,ut it is not a 9N report) 1hat distin#tion must be made *uite
#$ear) Se#ond& I said !ou have to rea$ise the Government "aged a $egitimate "ar) 1hat
"as a##epted b! the "estern #ountries : I have des#ribed ho" the "ar "as %ought) I
said i% !ou have an!thing to add p$ease do G "e are tr!ing to get an a##ount "e #an
agree on)
4hat did the! sa! to that7
1he! didn5t ans"er) A$$ the *uestions "ere put in a ver! aggressive "a!) ,ut the
ans"ers didn5t e$i#it an! retort) 1he! asked (*uestions) but then "ent *uiet)
Jour #riti*ue o% the internationa$ #ommunit! and the 9N seems to be on the basis o%
RD< (Responsibi$it! to <rote#t)) It seems that !ou are a##epting the #on#ept o% RD<&
"hi#h is the ver! #on#ept that under$ies the reso$ution) RD< has itse$% been #riti*ued as
a 3too$ o% "estern imperia$ism5 et#) -o !ou see this as prob$emati#7
Sri Lanka "as signator! to the "or$d summit de#$aration in AKK= "hi#h made a strong
#ommitment to RD< : that the internationa$ #ommunit! has a responsibi$it! prote#t
#itiLens against #rimes against humanit!& torture and so on) It "as enun#iated "ith a
vie" to prote#ting #ivi$ians against abuses o% the state) It does not ta$k about the non@
state a#tor:) 4e are not #ha$$enging the prin#ip$e o% RD<) 4e think that in R"anda&
Cambodia& in a$$ these p$a#es the internationa$ #ommunit! has an ob$igation to prote#t
#itiLens against #rimes that ma! be #ommitted) In Sri Lanka it is to prote#t #ivi$ians not
against the state but against the L11/:) I think the Government and the internationa$
#ommunit! #ou$d have got together more strong$! and prevented this traged!) 1hat
"ou$d mean that it5s an intervention& but an intervention a$ong "ith the state& not
against the state)
1here have been some #riti*ues o% 31hird Narrative5 . 0ean <ierre <age& %ormer $eader
o% the 'ren#h trade union #on%ederation 3Con%ederation Genera$ de 1ravai$ (CG1) %or
e+amp$e "rote that it is naMve) 1hat the ob2e#tive o% the reso$utions %or the 9S and its
a$$ies goes be!ond regime #hange& and that the 9S has geostrategi# ob2e#tives) Jour
#omments7
In a %rame"ork o% "or$d po$iti#a$ pro#esses . one o% 9S strugg$ing to maintain
hegemon!& !ou "ou$d have to sa! the u$timate de#ision "ith regard to Sri Lanka "i$$ be
made on po$iti#a$ grounds) A$$ e%%orts "ou$d go on$! to in%$uen#e that de#ision) 4e "ere
to$d this b! the Russian ambassador "hen "e met him in Geneva) 1he "a! in "hi#h
that #an be #ountered is to bui$d #oa$itions) In that setup our te+t the 1hird Narrative is
on$! providing the ammunition %or a #oa$ition to "ork e%%e#tive$!) :4e get the
impression there is a #oa$ition "orking to"ards regime #hange) 1he #oa$ition stret#hes
%rom "estern states "anting a more %riend$! government& the pro@L11/ diaspora
"anting: destabi$iLation o% #onditions here& and #amps in Sri Lanka "anting regime
#hange) 1hat5s a po"er%u$ #oa$ition . that #onvergen#e is there)
1here5s another thing that #ame a#ross ver! #$ear$!) <eop$e $ike the Indians and South
A%ri#ans think that O<@D (Operative <ara D) in the reso$ution G "hi#h #a$$s %or a
domesti# pro#ess G that "e have gone %ar in satis%!ing that b! e+panding the
mandate o% the -isappearan#es Commission& and having an internationa$ advisor!
group) I% !ou do !our "ork "ithin O<@D& then it makes it eas! %or #ountries "hi#h are
%riend$! to #hampion !our #ause) I% the government goes ahead demonstrating the!
are rea$$! imp$ementing O<D& it makes their task easier) One #an then make O<@AE
("hi#h #a$$s %or an internationa$ investigation) redundant) 1he dip$omats "ho opposed
O<@AE "ere sa!ing that)
Posted by Thavam