Genocidal double talk by India, US - Prof. Boyle

[TamilNet, Friday, 22 March 2013, 01:46 GMT]
Professor Francis A. Boyle, an expert in international law, called the statements made by the U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, and by India's ambassador to the U.N., Dilip Sinha, after the adoption of the US resolution on Sri Lanka in the Geneva sessions of the UNHCR, as "genocidal double-talk," pointing out the "blatant hypocrisy" in praising a resolution that looked at Colombo to implement the recommendation of its local "truth" commission. While rights groups and Tamils demanded an "international" investigation into the killings in Mu'l'l'vaaykkaal, leaked U.S. State Department memos had earlier revealed US officials acknowledging the futility of local investigations when culpability for the war-crimes pointed at Sri Lanka's President Rajapakse and his siblings.

""The end of the conflict in Sri Lanka provided a unique opportunity to pursue a lasting political settlement, acceptable to all communities in Sri Lanka, including the Tamils," said India's ambassador, Dilip Sinha. "We urge Sri Lanka to take forward measures to ensure accountability. We expect these measures to be to the satisfaction of the international community," Sinha was quoted as saying.

A press statement released by Kerry said:

Today’s vote in the UN Human Rights Council encourages the Government of Sri Lanka to continue on the path toward lasting peace and prosperity following decades of civil war and instability. This resolution, which builds on a similar 2012 resolution, reaffirmed that Sri Lanka must take meaningful action on reconciliation and accountability in order to move forward. The United States, together with international partners, calls upon the Government of Sri Lanka to fulfill its public commitments to its own people on these longstanding issues.

While some important progress has been made, there is much work still to be done. We look to the Government of Sri Lanka to implement the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) and to reverse recent negative developments on rule of law and human rights. The United States stands ready to assist with this vital work. I look forward to continuing our engagement with the Government of Sri Lanka and strengthening our friendship with the Sri Lankan people.

Meanwhile, reports from New York said that the U.N. has established a commission to investigate human rights violations in North Korea, saying some of them may amount to "crimes against humanity." The U.N. Human Rights Council unanimously passed a resolution Thursday to create the commission, which will probe "systematic, widespread and grave" rights violations in North Korea. The resolution also condemns alleged torture and labor camps for political prisoners in North Korea.

"The North Koreans get a Commission and the Tamils get a scrap of paper," Boyle said.

Also, noting the "double-standards" in the announcement by United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon regarding an investigation into the possible use of chemical weapons in Syria, and the US statement supporting this investigation, Boyle said, "an immediate UN Investigation for the Syrians. Next to nothing for the Tamils."

Chronology: