Ambassador Blake cannot reverse Tamil genocide: Prof. Boyle

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 27 March 2013, 00:43 GMT]
Responding to the statements made during the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia, Robert Blake's, interview with the BBC, where Blake appears to characterize the "GOSL’s mass extermination of over 100,000 Tamils in Vanni in 2009" as nothing more than “some of the negative trends that have occurred with respect to rule of law and human rights in Sri Lanka," that needs to be "reversed," Professor Francis A. Boyle, an expert in international law, said, while Blake cannot reverse the genocide, the "start of “revers{ing}” them is to establish an International Investigative Commission in order to prosecute them." Blake also denies in the interview that he [and the international community] had any knowledge of the magnitude of the casualties during the final months of the war.

Ambassador Blake makes the following statement to the BBC:

Ambassador Blake's BBC interview

My message is what Secretary Kerry said in his statement yesterday which is that while some important progress has been made, much work still needs to be done. We look go the government of Sri Lanka to implement the LLRC recommendations and reverse some of the negative trends that have occurred with respect to rule of law and human rights in Sri Lanka. And the United States stands ready to assist.

Professor Boyle responds: "So notice that Blake is simply parroting the Kerry Statement, which in turn is based upon the Kerry Report that I have already commented upon before for TamilNet and thus will not repeat here.

"But according to Blake/Kerry the GOSL’s mass extermination of over 100,000 Tamils in Vanni in 2009 is nothing more than “ some of the negative trends that have occurred with respect to rule of law and human rights in Sri Lanka.”

"In other words, as far as the United States government is concerned, the GOSL genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes against the Tamils are just “ some of the negative trends that have occurred with respect to the rule of law and human rights in Sri Lanka” that should be “reverse{d}.” But how does the GOSL or the United States “reverse” genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and 100,000 exterminated Tamils? The start of “revers{ing}” them is to establish an International Investigative Commission in order to prosecute them!

"Article I of the 1948 Genocide Convention clearly requires contracting parties such as the United States and Sri Lanka “to prevent and to punish” the GOSL genocide against the Tamils. Obviously the United States maliciously failed and refused “to prevent” the GOSL genocide against 100,000+ Tamils in 2009 in egregious violation of its obligation to do so under Article I of the Genocide Convention.

"Today the very least the United States can now do is “to punish” the GOSL genocide against 100,000+ Tamils in Vanni in 2009 as also required by Genocide Convention Article I.

"Have Blake and Kerry maliciously failed and refused to read the Genocide Convention?" Boyle asked.

Related Articles:
22.02.13   Blake, architect of Tamil tragedy, spectator to genocide
17.09.12   Blake clings to LLRC while Rajapaksa scoffs at regime-change..
11.09.12   Blake to visit Colombo to steer LLRC course of politics
29.01.12   US's dissonant positions boon to Sri Lanka's war-criminals
27.12.11   Tragedy of US policy on Sri Lanka's war crimes


Chronology: