Call for an investigation into human rights abuses in

Sri Lanka    
From: The Honorable Janice D. Schakowsky   
Sent By: nina.besser@mail.house.gov    
Date: 7/21/2010    

 Dear Colleague,

We invite you to join us in sending a letter to Secretary Clinton urging her to call for an
independent international investigation into alleged war crimes during Sri Lanka’s civil
war.

There is significant evidence that both sides may have committed serious abuses during
Sri Lanka’s 25-year-long civil war, which ended last May.  We strongly believe that
those allegations must be fully investigated and that only full accountability for past
crimes will allow Sri Lanka to move forward toward a future of peace and stability.

Although the government of Sri Lanka has appointed a Lessons Learnt and
Reconciliation Commission, questions about the transparency, impartiality, and
insufficient mandate of this body are cause for serious concern.  The Commission
appears to be the latest in a series of ad hoc commissions established more to deflect
criticism than to investigate human rights abuses.

An international investigation would help to ensure that the people of Sri Lanka get real
answers about any abuses that occurred during the war.  Major international human
rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, International Crisis Group, and
Amnesty International have all called for an independent investigation, and U.N.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon has appointed a three-member Panel of Experts to
advise him on the way forward for accountability in Sri Lanka.

We urge you to join us in asking Secretary Clinton to take a strong stand in support of
full accountability for any human rights violations in Sri Lanka.

Please contact Nina Besser (nina.besser@mail.house.gov or x66896) with Rep.

Schakowsky for more information.  Thank you for your consideration.

 Sincerely,
________________________                                    ___________________________

Jan Schakowsky                                                           James P. McGovern

Member of Congress                                                    Member of Congress

  
Dear Secretary Clinton:

We are writing to express our concern about the post-conflict situation in Sri Lanka, and to urge the
U.S. government to call an independent international investigation into the alleged war crimes that
occurred during Sri Lanka’s twenty-five year civil war.  We believe that Sri Lanka’s past efforts to
investigate severe human rights abuses through Commissions of Inquiry – even when supplemented
by an international element such as the International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) –
have not been successful and do not inspire confidence that the current national mechanism would be
any more successful, transparent, or credible. As Amnesty International has noted, the Government of
Sri Lanka has formed nine other ad-hoc commissions of inquiry since 1991 to investigate
disappearances and human rights-related issues.  These commissions have lacked the needed
credibility, have delayed criminal investigations, and in several instances members of these
commissions have resigned in protest at the Government’s interference.   

As Members of Congress, we fully share the concerns of the international community that Sri Lanka’s
Reconciliation Commission has much too narrow a scope and no mandate to hold those investigated
accountable for their actions.  Whatever conclusions this Commission will come to, we strongly believe
that only a parallel international mechanism conducting an independent investigation with the formal
backing and the authority of the specialized United Nations mechanism, such as the office of the U.N.
High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Human Rights Council, can verify any conclusions of Sri
Lanka’s Reconciliation Commission.  Without such verification, neither accountability nor trust can be
achieved, which are crucially important for any successful reconciliation.   

As you know, May 19, 2010, marked the one-year anniversary of the end of the war in Sri Lanka. 
There is mounting evidence that suggests both parties in the conflict committed severe human rights
violations during the conflict.  The State Department’s own October 21, 2009 “Report to Congress on
Incidents During the Recent Conflict in Sri Lanka” lists numerous crimes that require further
investigation.  These alleged crimes include the intentional bombings of civilians and humanitarian
organizations; extrajudicial abuse and detention of unarmed civilians and former combatants; the use
of child soldiers; harm to civilians and civilian objects; the killing of captives or combatants seeking to
surrender; and individual disappearances.

We believe it is in the best interest of the United States and the people of Sri Lanka to ensure a lasting
peace in Sri Lanka following a quarter century of ethnic conflict, and that such a peace can only be
reached once the full truth about the past is understood. 

In light of these concerns, we urge you to call for a robust and independent international investigation
that would finally clarify the events that occurred during the conflict and provide the foundation for a
sustainable peace in Sri Lanka.

Thank you for your attention to this important issue.

Sincerely,