International Crisis Group: Report on Sri Lanka
Posted on May 18th, 2010
Asoka Weerasinghe Kings Grove Crescent . Gloucester . Ontario . K1J 6G1 Canada
18 May 2010
The EditorƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
THE EMBASSY
Ottawa
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Sir:
The International Crisis GroupƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s (ICG) report entitled ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”War Crimes in Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ calling for an independent international investigation into alleged war crimes by the Sri Lankan Government Armed Forces against civilians during the last phase of the Eelam War in April/May 2009 is troubling.
To hound the government of that puny island who had every right to defend its sovereignty against the most ruthless terrorists in the world, the Tamil Tigers, who had haemorrhaged that island nation for 30 years with the support of foreign countries in the west, and wanting to give back the right-to-life to its subjects is not right.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Especially when the international world should have been showering kudos on Sri Lanka for eliminating the scourge of the kings of terrorism in the civilized world which gave the international terrorists like the al-Qaeda, Taliban and Maoists the art of human bombs and unidentified objects for human road kills which have taken down over 100 of our Canadian soldiers in Kandahar. This is troubling.
Further more, the International Crisis Group which describes itself as an ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”independent non-governmental non profit organizationƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ has ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ as its key officials, Louise Arbour (CEO/President), Gareth Evans (President Emeritus) and Lord Chris Patten (Co-chair) who have been harsh critics of Sri Lanka for years in its conduct of the war against terrorism, and not of the Tamil Tigers who were warring for their separate state Eelam, killing thousands of innocent civilians and maiming thousands of others for life. Thus this trio were prejudiced and jaundiced toward Sri Lanka to start with to expect them to produce an impartial and objective report.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ And that is troubling.
When ICG boasts that it is a ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”non-governmentalƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ organization and yet receive funds from governments of Norway, UK, US, Canada, France, Germany, Sweden and Denmark, who all called for a ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-CeasefireƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ at the latter stages of the Eelam war to save the Tamil Tiger leader Velupillai Prabhakaran and his senior military commanders, and was refused by the Sri Lankan government, thus it is a good reason for ICG to sing to its piperƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s tune.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ And that is troubling.
ICG targeting in its report the present Army Commander Jagath Jayasuriya and not the ex-army Commander Sarath Fonseka, chief of the Army at the time of the Eelam war who was responsible for all events on the battle field of the 30-month Eelam War IV which they won on 18 May 2009, by eliminating the Tamil Tigers for good militarily, is a strange charge in this report.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ And that is troubling.
The report not to acknowledge that the Sri Lankan Armed Forces began thisƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Eelam IV humanitarian war in July 2006 to give back the water supply to drink and farmƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ to 30,000 Sinhalese farmers and families when the Tamil Tigers shut the Mavil Aru anicut and saved them from sure death as water is life, is troubling.
The report not to acknowledge that the Sri Lankan Armed Forces were conducting an humanitarian war to save 300,000 Tamils who were herded by the Tamil Tigers from the west coast to the east coast for two and one-half years as a human shield, and give them back their lives, resettling them in their original homes, and rehabilitating the child soldiers and handing them to their parents and sending them back to school and university is disappointing. And this is troubling.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ICG, which I believe is an agent of the western powers that tried to save the Tamil Tigers to fight another day and having failed ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ is now on an assignment to discredit Sri Lanka and fault Sri Lanka for winning the war single handed and with no help from the western powers. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ I question the honesty and validity of this report and I smell a nasty rat here.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ And that is troubling.
Sincerely,
Asoka WeerasingheƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
May 19th, 2010 at 3:33 am
Asoka, it is the LTTE business empire that is paying these non-government agencies to blow the trumpet. So, we need to track the channels of flowing funds to Louis Arbour and the Channel 4. On the other hand we also can stage a counter drama. Unfortunately I can’t write how we stage it on this open forum. Let’s wait and see. We must settle Sinhalese families in North and East as soon as all mines are cleared. We must change the ethnic composition as soon as we can. We must also, keep the Army along the coast for a long time to come.
May 19th, 2010 at 4:13 am
Human Rights violations should not be assesed after the mayham has been created. Who created and armed the insurrection? India Who supported and financed the violence ? The west did. Who allowed their land to be used to organise and kill Sri Lankans? UK and the west did. Therefore who violated the Human Rights of Sri Lankans? The Indians and the west. Who moralses and demand investigation for war crimes? The west. Who should be charged for war crimes? India and the west . This whole thing is pure Hipocrisy. For once the west should be honest. This of course not taking into account the killings they have instigated in the whole world.