UN late to demand Sirisena to honour Geneva commitments: ICP

[TamilNet, Saturday, 03 November 2018, 23:02 GMT]
The United Nations was late to demand SL President Maithiripala Sirisena, whom the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has previously praised, to respect its commitments made in the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, reported Inner City Press (ICP), which covers the U.N. activities in New York, on Friday. To a question posed by the ICP on 29 October, the UN system was responding that its Resident Coordinator met with the SL Speaker of Parliament and the reply only mentioned the UN representative as stressing respect to constitutional provisions. There was no mention on upholding commitments made by the SL State in Geneva. Only on 01 November the UN Secretary-General spoke with SL President and encouraged Sirisena's Government to uphold its “earlier commitments to human rights, justice and reconciliation, in line with Human Rights Council resolutions,” the ICP observed.

Farhan Haq past 1 pm on November 2 sent this canned readout to Inner City Press: "On your question October 29-1, we have the following: The Secretary-General spoke by telephone with H.E. Mr Maithripala Sirisena, President of Sri Lanka, on 1 November. The Secretary-General informed the President that he was following the latest developments in Sri Lanka with concern and offered assistance in facilitating dialogue with all the parties to resolve the situation. He emphasized the Government’s responsibility to ensure peace, security and respect for the rule of law. The Secretary-General urged the President to revert to Parliamentary procedures and allow the Parliament to vote as soon as possible. He encouraged the Government to uphold its earlier commitments to human rights, justice and reconciliation, in line with Human Rights Council resolutions."

Previous response as cited by the ICP: "On question 29-1, the Resident Coordinator met with the Speaker of Parliament and conveyed the importance of respecting democratic values and constitutional provisions and the process, upholding the rule of law and ensuring the safety and security of all Sri Lankans."

Matthew Russell Lee of the ICP, covering UN's failure on the SL State since 2008, noted that the ICP has been “roughed up and banned”, despite a dubious claim by Guterres' Under Secretary General Alison Smale to UNSR David Kaye that e-mailed questions to Spokesman Stephane Dujarric, would be answered.

External Links:

ICP:

UN Guterres Belatedly Mentioned Geneva Commitments After Hanaa Singer Sung Praise of Sirisena

Chronology: