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அவுஸ்திரெலியா தொலைக்காட்சிகள், வானொலிகள், பத்திரிகைகளில் வந்த சிறிலங்கா அரசின் போர்க்குற்ற நடவடிக்கைகள்

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  • கருத்துக்கள உறவுகள்

Tamils call on Australia to back Sri Lanka war crimes inquiry

to download -

http://mpegmedia.abc.net.au/news/audio/pm/201104/20110426-pm6-srilankareax.mp3

ASHLEY HALL: Tamils in Australia and human rights groups say they've been vindicated by a United Nations report into the Sri Lankan government's final assault on the Tamil Tigers in 2009.

They've long been calling for an international war crimes investigation into the conflict and now the UN is also. The UN report found that indiscriminate shelling by the Sri Lankan government killed most of the tens of thousands of civilians who died in the last months of the 25-year civil war. It also accused the Tamil Tigers of using civilians as human shields.

Sarah Drury reports.

SARAH DRURY: The much-awaited release of the report contains the first UN's estimate of the death toll. It says that 40,000 civilians were killed as they were trapped between the two sides and it blames government troops for most of those deaths.

Sri Lanka has not yet responded to the release of the report, but just last week the country's foreign minister, GL Peiris urged the UN chief Ban-Ki-moon not to publish it.

GL PEIRIS: We are asking the United Nations system to consider whether this report will be useful. Is it going to contribute to the building up of national unity? Or will it do the opposite, really to accentuate differences, bitterness, acrimony? Which are the many things that we want to get away from.

SARAH DRURY: He claimed the report would be based on biased material. The report states that Sri Lankan government forces deliberately shelled hospitals, UN centres and Red Cross aid ships, and that Tamil prisoners were shot in the head and women were raped.

It also accused the Tamil separatists of using civilians as human shields. James Ross from Human Rights Watch says it's now up to UN chief Ban Ki-moon to act on the report.

JAMES ROSS: This was a report to the secretary-general, most of the recommendations are to him and we hope that he will promptly act on them. That means setting up an independent international inquiry and investigatory mechanism that would really be an on the ground investigation to look at specific abuses and what happened.

SARAH DRURY: Australian Tamils say the Federal Government should not remain silent. Dr Sam Pari is from the Australian Tamil Congress.

SAM PARI: The war crimes and the human rights violations taking place in Sri Lanka is having a direct consequence on Australia. We're seeing thousands of Tamil refugees coming here, seeking asylum.

So it's about time that the Australian Prime Minister shows some leadership and speaks out and calls on the Sri Lankan government to allow an international independent investigation into war crimes. And if they fail to do so then Australia should take a strong stand and impose trade sanctions or travel bans on Sri Lankan government officials.

SARAH DRURY: Dr Pari says the UN has been slow to release the report but she hopes it will prompt the Australian Government to re-think its approach to Sri Lanka.

SAM PARI: Well Australia has always maintained soft diplomacy with Sri Lanka. During the war Australia did not call for a ceasefire. Since the war, Australia is yet to call for an international independent investigation. So now that we have this panel's report, independent experts calling for an international independent investigation, we hope Australia will finally follow suit.

SARAH DRURY: The Foreign Minister, Kevin Rudd is in France and was not available for comment. Since the final assault against the Tamil Tigers ended two years ago, the Sri Lankan government has been celebrating what it calls its victory against terrorism.

ASHLEY HALL: Sarah Drury with that report.

In the last few minutes a spokeswomen for Kevin Rudd has issued a statement saying he'll respond to the UN report after carefully considering it.

Tamils call on Australia to back Sri Lanka war crimes inquiry

full story with transcript -

http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2011/s3200708.htm

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UN calls for war crimes inquiry in Sri Lanka

The United Nations is calling for an investigation into whether war crimes charges should be laid in relation to the civil war in Sri Lanka.

The UN released a damning report yesterday into the deaths of tens of thousands of civilians during the final months of the war.

The report finds fault with both the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil Tigers, but suggests the government was responsible for most of the deaths.

An estimated 330,000 people were trapped between the two sides as they fought fiercely in the last months of the long war in 2009.

The battles between the government and the Tamil Tiger separatists lasted almost three decades, but it was in the final five months that the UN says some of the worst atrocities against civilians occurred.

The report accuses the Tamil Tigers of using civilians as human shields and says thousands of others were killed by indiscriminate artillery shelling by the government.

James Ross, the legal and policy director at Human Rights Watch, said the report looked at the government's response both during and after the conflict.

"It also looked at the government's response to the fighting, and looked at specifically the government's promise that it would investigate what has happened, and really reached the conclusion that the government did not take real steps to address these atrocities at the end of the war," he said.

"For example, the panel said its findings 'stand in sharp contrast to the position of the government' which 'continues to hold that it conducted a humanitarian rescue operation with a policy of zero civilian casualties'.

"And the panel found that in fact, 'most civilian casualties in the final phases of the war were caused by government shelling'."

Sri Lanka has asked the UN not to publish these findings, but the UN went ahead anyway, even though the report criticised the UN itself for not doing more to protect civilians.

"This really shows... how little interest there is in accountability in that you have a very serious report published; it does shed a lot of light on what happened in the fighting," Mr Ross said.

"It's something that Sri Lankans will want to read and the government's response is, 'Oh, let's keep this quiet'."

The report made to UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon recommends setting up an independent international inquiry and investigatory mechanism to look at specific abuses and what happened.

Mr Ross says it is hoped the report will go some way towards ensuring those responsible for committing atrocities are held to account.

"That's the ultimate goal, obviously," he said.

"This report was not intended to actually point the finger at individuals, and we really feel the next step is the kind of investigation that would allow one to name names of who was responsible on both sides for the atrocities that took place, and then to be able to take the next step which would be to carry out appropriate prosecution."

But Mr Ban says he will need the support of the Sri Lankan government to launch an international investigation or have to rely on pressure from other countries if charges are to be laid.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/04/26/3200625.htm

Gillard urged to back Sri Lanka war crimes probe

An Australian Tamil community group has urged the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister to join calls for an international inquiry into alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka.

A United Nations report has accused the Sri Lankan government and Tamil separatists of killing tens of thousands of civilians in the final months of the war in 2009.

The UN has recommended a probe into whether war crimes charges should be laid in relation to the civil war.

Sam Pari from the Australian Tamil Congress says Britain and the United States have called for months for an independent investigation.

She says the group has previously asked former prime minister Kevin Rudd to take stronger diplomatic action against Sri Lanka.

"Show some leadership and to speak out; to put pressure on Sri Lanka to stop shelling and killing Tamil civilians, and yet Australia remains very quiet," she said.

"Now Mr Rudd is our foreign minister and it gives him an opportunity to finally speak up and show some leadership when it comes to human rights abuses in the Asia-Pacific region."

The Australian Tamil Congress says there should be sanctions on Sri Lanka if it refuses to allow an international inquiry into its final assault on Tamil separatists.

Ms Pari hopes Ms Gillard will raise the issue with Sri Lanka's president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, before the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth later this year.

"We hope that Australia will put stronger pressure on Sri Lanka and say 'If you do not allow independent international investigators into the island, then we will impose trade sanctions and travel bans on your officials', and hopefully this way the president of Sri Lanka will be stopped from coming to Australia in the first place," she said.

The UN report finds fault with both the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil Tigers, but suggests the government was responsible for most of the deaths.

Sri Lanka's government however has angrily rejected the UN report, saying it is "biased and fraudulent".

Lakshman Hulugalle from Sri Lanka's ministry of defence told the ABC's Asia Pacific the UN report lacks credibility.

"This is a panel appointed by the secretary-general of the UN in his personal capacity, and this is not a UN-appointed panel, first of all," he said.

"And the panel's recommendations and details - the government of Sri Lanka totally rejects. There was no shelling of civilians."

An estimated 330,000 people were trapped between the two sides as they fought fiercely in the last months of the long war in 2009.

The battles between the government and the Tamil Tiger separatists lasted almost three decades, but it was in the final five months that the UN says some of the worst atrocities against civilians occurred.

The report accuses the Tamil Tigers of using civilians as human shields and says thousands of others were killed by indiscriminate artillery shelling by the government.

Sri Lanka had asked the UN not to publish these findings, but the UN went ahead anyway, even though the report criticised the UN itself for not doing more to protect civilians.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/04/26/3200786.htm?section=justin

SBS தொலைக்காட்சியில் வந்த செய்தி

http://player.sbs.com.au/naca/#/naca/wna/Latest/playlist/Sri-Lankan-war-crimes-probe/

SBS TV News - Sri Lankan war crimes probe

UN report on the offensive between the Sri Lankan government and Tamil separatists calls for an investigation

Watch video from source

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ABC தொலைக்காட்சியில்

ABC TV Lateline - UN report details war crimes in Sri Lanka

PART 1 - A United Nations report on Sri Lanka's recent civil war found credible evidence of war crimes by both government and Tamil Tiger forces.

Watch PART I video from source

Read transcript of PART 1

PART 2 -Gordon Weiss was spokesman for the United Nation's humanitarian mission in Sri Lanka during the civil war.

Watch PART 2 video from source

Read transcript of PART 2

http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2011/s3200829.htm

http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2011/s3200835.htm

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UN tells of Sri Lankan carnage

THE UN has painted an apocalyptic picture of the last weeks and months of the Sri Lankan civil war.

A UN report, released yesterday, lays the blame for the deaths of as many as 40,000 civilians largely with the government and the military.

A panel commissioned by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called for an independent war crimes investigation into the actions of the government and the Tamil Tiger rebels, after finding evidence of war crimes on both sides.

Mr Ban released the report after a week of leaks about the contents believed to have come from the Sri Lankan government.

But he ruled out launching an inquiry without Sri Lankan government co-operation -- which it almost certainly will not give -- or a demand from UN member states or a body such as the UN Human Rights Council.

Sri Lanka has denied claims that tens of thousands of civilians were killed in the months leading up to the government's victory over the Tamil separatist forces in May 2009.

"The Sri Lankan army is not responsible and the Sri Lankan government is not responsible," government spokesman Lakshman Hulugalle said in Colombo yesterday. "We never shelled and we never bombed. We never targeted innocent civilians."

Mr Ban has agreed to a review of the UN's failures during the conflict, after the panel found the world body's failure to speak publicly about civilian casualties cost lives.

The US-based Human Rights Watch organisation disputed Mr Ban's claim that he had no authority toinitiate a war crimes inquiry.

Australia's Tamil Congress has called for Julia Gillard to demand an independent international investigation into alleged war crimes.

The group has accused the Prime Minister and the government of failing to speak out against human rights abuses in Sri Lanka, a decision some critics have attributed to the government's need for Sri Lankan government co-operation to stem the tide of Tamil asylum-seekers.

"Australia has spoken out against governments that have committed human rights violations in Burma, Zimbabwe, Fiji and most recently Libya, so I can't see why it should hold its tongue when it comes to Sri Lanka," said Tamil spokeswoman Sam Pari.

Sri Lanka's Tamil National Alliance party, which has been negotiating with the Colombo government for a political settlement, took a hard stand on the UN report yesterday, saying it "confirms the truth of what happened to unarmed Tamil civilians".

This has prompted analysts to warn of a worrying polarisation in the positions of the majority Sinhalese government and the Tamil opposition.

Among the UN panel's most serious allegations are that during the final months of the war the Sri Lankan army advanced into the Tamil Tiger-held Vanni region "using large-scale and widespread shelling, causing large numbers of civilian deaths".

"Around 330,000 people were trapped in an ever-decreasing area, fleeing the shelling but kept hostage" by the forces of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, the report says.

It describes prisoners being shot in the head and women being raped, hospitals and UN centres being shelled by government forces, and the LTTE fighters shooting civilians trying to flee the conflict zone.

The report says the "government sought to intimidate and silence the media and other critics of the war" through abductions and disappearances, denied humanitarian assistance to civilians in the conflict zone, and subjected civilian survivors to human-rights violations in overcrowded camps for internally displaced persons.

It calls for the LTTE to answer for the use of civilians as human shields, the killing of those trying to flee the conflict, forced recruitment of children and civilian deaths in suicide attacks.

In one horrifying passage, the report describes the aftermath of a January 2009 Sri Lankan military attack on the government's declared no-fire zone, which housed a UN bunker and thousands of civilians.

"When UN staff emerged from the bunker in first morning light," it says, "mangled bodies and body parts were strewn all around them, including those of many women and children." "

The government insists it pursued a "humanitarian rescue operation", but the panel was unable to accept the government's version of events.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/un-tells-of-sri-lankan-carnage/story-e6frg6so-1226045228695

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Emerging truth about UN failure in Sri Lanka

Two years ago, a war without witness was executed by the state against the Tamil people in the island of Sri Lanka.

In September 2008, after ordering all United Nations personnel, non-government organisations and media out of the Vanni region, the Sri Lankan government embarked on a vicious military campaign. While it informed the world it was fighting the Tamil Tiger rebels and was following a ''zero civilian casualty'' policy, photographs, video footage and phone conversations with our relatives in the war zone told us a different story.

We watched in horror as images of injured babies, maimed pregnant women and rows of dead civilians leaked out. Hospitals were bombed. Refugee camps were shelled. Surrendering civilians were executed. Even the International Committee of the Red Cross was blocked from saving the injured.

Advertisement: Story continues below

As members of the Tamil diaspora took to the streets, campaigning for the international community to act to stop the bloodshed, the world did nothing. More than 100,000 Tamils rallied around the world, yet our cries fell on the bureaucrats' deaf ears. Kevin Rudd, then the prime minister, preferred ''soft diplomacy'' with Sri Lanka, in contrast to his stand on Burma, Zimbabwe and Libya.

We slowly realised the UN was well aware of the high civilian casualties. Leaked satellite images revealed the UN knew of the Sri Lankan Air Force's targeted bombing and shelling of civilian locations.

Following his resignation, the former UN spokesman in Sri Lanka Gordon Weiss revealed the civilian death toll could be up to 40,000, while "significant others have said that the figure may well be far higher". Why would the world allow civilians to be killed in such a gruesome manner?

During the war, China and Russia prevented the war in Sri Lanka being discussed at the UN Security Council. Both countries are allies of Sri Lanka, China having invested heavily in it.

UN officials are said to have told Vijay Nambiar - whom the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, appointed as his chief of staff - that the final death toll could exceed 20,000, but Nambiar urged his staff not to "rock the boat" by criticising the Sri Lankan government.

Witness reports later revealed senior UN officials, including Nambiar, and senior Sri Lankan officials, including the Defence Secretary (and brother of the President), Gotabaya Rajapaksa, were involved in the surrendering of Tamil Tiger combatants, who were later executed. After waiting two years for an independent inquiry into this incident, Tamil rights groups have submitted their own complaint to the International Criminal Court.

When the war came to a bloody end on May 18, 2009, Sri Lankan government puppets were quick to continue the propaganda, claiming all was well in Sri Lanka, encouraging Australian tourists while discouraging Australia from accepting Tamil refugees.

The reality was very different. Hundreds of thousands were held in military-run internment camps, disappearances were rife and rape and torture occurred. There was a reason the number of Tamil refugees arriving by boats in Australia had suddenly sky-rocketed.

The unrelenting campaigning by the Tamil diaspora and human rights groups finally forced Ban to establish a panel of experts last year to assess the mounting allegations of war crimes. Sri Lanka was quick to condemn this decision and banned the panel from visiting the island.

The panel's final report, submitted to Ban almost a fortnight ago, has finally been published. The panel has found allegations of war crimes to be credible and has admitted the UN failed to act to protect civilians, despite knowing about the high civilian casualty rate. The panel has also recommended an international independent inquiry into war crimes in Sri Lanka.

Today tens of thousands of Tamils are missing. Up to 14,000 Tamils, including 500 children, have been held for the past two years in secret prisons; no one knows if they are alive. The Tamil homeland in the north is under military occupation and forced resettlement of Sinhalese families is taking place, changing the demography of the region.

After Rwanda the world said "never again", but in early 2009, what happened to the Tamils was far worse. Not only did the UN fail to act to stop the persecution of Tamil civilians - it was complicit.

Dr Sam Pari is a spokeswoman for the Australian Tamil Congress.

http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/emerging-truth-about-un-failure-in-sri-lanka-20110427-1dwmz.html

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