'Success depends on accountability and reconciliation' in

Sri Lanka says US official

Tom Malinowski

@Malinowski

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Just met w/ #SriLanka FM @MangalaLK; Agreed that success depends on

accountability & reconciliation
3:53 AM - 2 Apr 2015

02 April 2015
The United States Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and
Labor met with Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister today, emphasising the
importance of accountability and reconciliation.
Tom Malinowski met with Sri Lanka's Mangala Samaraweera in Colombo
where the issue of accountability was discussed.
Mr Malinowski also addressed a forum on 'Women's Role in Post-War
Reconciliation', telling the audience, thanks to your dedication, Sri Lanka
has a chance now to achieve reconciliation, justice and true peace.
That will require, in part, looking backward, to acknowledge the suffering

of the innocent and account for the wrongdoing of the guilty, on every
side, he continued You can finally close the gap between competing
narratives so that all Sri Lankans can read their history from the same
text.
The United States will continue to encourage that process, because
experience has taught us that no society can move forward by burying the
past. But our greatest hope is that you will keep moving forward, added Mr
Malinowski.
See his full address below.

Thank you all for having me here today. Thanks particularly to Ms. Visaka
Dharmadasa, the Association of War Affected Women, and the Cross Party
Senior Women Politicians Coalition for coordinating this discussionand to
the many ministers and officials who have agreed to share their wisdom
and insights.

This is my first time to Sri Lanka. But Ive followed events here for years.
And Ive always imagined that Sri Lanka is not unlike other multiethnic
societies that have experienced conflict.
Most ordinary people in such societies want nothing more than to live, work
and raise their children together. When they look at each other, they see
neighbors. When they look up at their pagodas, temples, churches and
mosques, they see different manifestations of the same idea.
The last thing they want is to disturb the peace that makes possible

everything that is good in life.

But in every society there are grievances, and it is not hard for
irresponsible people to exploit those grievances to set people against each
other based on ethnicity and religion.
For 30 years, Sri Lanka endured such a conflict. You experienced here some
of the evils that now bedevil other deeply troubled parts of the world
including terrorism, driven by a fanatical ideology, employing suicide
bombing, hurting most of all the people it falsely claimed to defend.
Cruelty on one side hardened hearts on the other; abuses and grievances
mounted on both.
Victory by one side on the battlefield brought an end to the fighting, but did
not heal the division. I would suggest that Sri Lanka experienced what
America learned 150 years ago and many other countries have since, that
you cannot really win a civil war.
A civil war is like a fistfight with a mirror. You can land powerful blows,
crack the glass, and bloody your hands. But in the end, you still have to
deal with your own reflection.
The opportunities that existed in 2009 to bring the country together were
not seized.
So after 30 years of war, Sri Lanka struggled for five more years to achieve
reconciliation, and to hold on to the traditions of democracy, tolerance and

civil society for which it had long been known, but which civil war always
weakens. For five years, there were tensions between Sri Lanka and the
international community over these issues.
Now by your efforts, you have come to a pivotal moment in Sri Lankas
history.
Thanks to your dedication, Sri Lanka has a chance now to achieve
reconciliation, justice and true peace. That will require, in part, looking
backward, to acknowledge the suffering of the innocent and account for the
wrongdoing of the guilty, on every side. You can finally close the gap
between competing narratives so that all Sri Lankans can read their history
from the same text.
The United States will continue to encourage that process, because
experience has taught us that no society can move forward by burying the
past. But our greatest hope is that you will keep moving forward.
The Sri Lankan people and their new government have taken a great leap
already to reclaim their traditions of democracy, tolerance and civil society.
We hope you will stay on that course, and not let anyone divert you, so
your children can live in their tomorrows, not your yesterdays.
Now, many institutions will have to do their part, including the government
and the military and Ill have a chance to discuss these issues with them
during my visit.
But the women of Sri Lanka are critical to this reconciliation process as

well. You cannot build peace with only half a nations voices at the table.
Women of all backgrounds have suffered alongside their husbands and
brothers and sons, so they have an equal stake in seeking justice. But Sri
Lanka also needs themtheir perspectives, their talents, their skills.
Supporting women to play a role in peacebuilding is not a new concept. Its
an idea that the United States has emphasized for over a decade now at
the United Nations, and its an idea that women and men around the world
have embraced as a cornerstone of peace and prosperity.
Womens perspectives enlarge the scope of conversations about peace and
reconciliation; they draw attention to critical priorities that might otherwise
be overlooked.
We support the work of vital organizations like the Association for War
Affected Widows and many other organizations gathered here today to
reach across religious and ethnic lines and promote reconciliation.
We are encouraged by efforts by the National Peace Council to bring
together religious and other local leaders from across Sri Lanka for districtlevel, grassroots monitoring and dialogue, reducing tensions and promoting
understanding.
Consider the roles women are already playing in addressing development
needs across the country.
They help the needy and displaced, encouraging people to build secure and
prosperous communities. Theyre supporting ex-combatants and survivors

of sexual and gender-based violence, among other human rights abuses,

providing counseling and psycho-social services.
But in Sri Lanka, as in the United States and other countries around the
world, women still are not allowed to stand on equal ground with men.
Many households across the country lost husbands and fathers to conflict,
and the number of female-headed households has increased tremendously.
But too often, when job opportunities are created in conflict-affected areas,
theyre offered only to men. Women lose out on the chance to lift up their
families and to improve their communities. And the community loses out
too.
Experience has shown that a country becomes truly strong not by spending
on its military but by investing inand empoweringits women. Weve also
learned they are a lot harder to intimidate.
The U.S. government has long supported programs in Sri Lanka to increase
womens political participation at the local, regional, and national levels.
One project in Batticaloa strengthens the capacity and skills of womens
rural development societies to ensure that women play a greater role in the
local governance. Another project focuses on raising awareness of the
economic, political, and cultural rights of women and on gender based
violence and gives women access to support mechanisms and legal
remedies for violations.
So, today we celebrate the women here who are advocating not just for the
rights of women from their own class, ethnic or religious group, but for the
rights of all Sri Lankan women.

I also want to recognize representatives of the Womens Parliamentary

Caucus here today. You have overcome significant barriers to womens
participation in politics, and the United States commends your commitment
to engaging with women from all backgrounds to determine the next steps
forward for your country.
Now, were all aware that after so much suffering and conflict, the road
ahead will not be easy, especially when not everyone is pulling in the same
direction.
In every society, there are those who want their people to be angry, divided
and afraid, because they know that the people will only support them if
they are angry, divided and afraid.
But we know now, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the vast majority of
Sri Lankans want to live a united and democratic country, not divided
between victors and vanquished or Tamil and Sinhalese.
You know that those divisions are a diversion. In the end, everyone
benefits when there is democracy, transparency and trust, and everyone,
not just one party, suffers from impunity.
And I hope you know that the international community will be your partner
as you keep moving forward.
We welcome actions taken by the Sri Lankan government to rebuild trust
with the Sri Lankan people; and we stand ready to support your efforts in
establishing just and lasting peace.

All around the world, there are countries that are going through, in their
own ways, what you went through here.
Read the headlines from Yemen to Iraq to Afghanistan to Burma, and you
will see why we want Sri Lanka to succeed. Not just for your sake, but for
all our sakes: the world needs Sri Lanka to keep showing that a society
divided by ethnicity and faith can find peace through democracy and
dialogue.
And while only you can make the hard choices needed to keep moving
forward, we will do everything in our power to help you if you do.
Posted by Thavam