Justice still remains elusive to the Tamil people 12 years on!
This year marks 12 years since the genocidal massacre of over 70,000 Tamils in Mullivaikkaal, Sri Lanka. Many resolutions have been passed by the UNHRC that have not resulted in any convictions. The situation on the ground is dismal for the surviving Tamil population under heavy military occupation by 13 of the 16 Divisions of the armed forces of Sri Lanka. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has released many damning reports outlining the many crimes committed by Sri Lanka and the dismal progress in providing justice and accountability. Against this backdrop, the incongruence of the Draft Resolutions by the Core Group with that of the High Commissioners report is very disappointing to the Tamil victims awaiting justice. This incongruence has triggered protest rallies by Tamils globally. Many country councils of Tamil diaspora organizations, collectively forming the International Council of Eelam Tamils (ICET), have been holding rallies worldwide to support Tamil demands for an independent international investigation of Tamil genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes committed by successive Governments of Sri Lanka.
University of Jaffna students have organized a hunger strike. In addition, the Mothers and Relatives of those taken into custody by the army and then disappeared are also holding rotational hunger strikes in the north and east of Sri Lanka. They have been on continuous street-side rallies for over four years without any answers! Tamil diaspora organizations have organized countless rallies to highlight the ongoing genocide and the urgent need for justice for the Tamil victims. Numerous rallies, including by bicycle, cars, and hunger strikes, have also been held across Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, and the UK drawing attention to the urgent need for justice. We wish to acknowledge the hunger strike by Ms Ambikai Selvakumar in the UK and by others in Canada in support of her demands. The ICET supports all the requests made by these protests and thanks everyone for their support.
The Tamil victims in Sri Lanka, along with over 1.5 million Tamil diaspora spread across the globe, are appalled by the continual betrayal and denial of justice by member countries of the UNHRC despite the strong recommendations by the High Commissioner of the UNHRC. Sri Lanka uses its “sovereignty” as a “shield” to continue its Tamil genocide unabated. Where is the “right to life and liberty” of the Tamil people? What about justice for the victims. What happened to the tens of thousands of Tamil men, women, and children taken into custody by the Sri Lanka army over the years?
The UNHRC’s function is to ensure countries uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights created in the wake of the Holocaust during the Second World War, proclaiming “never again.” Yet, the “never again” motto is not preventing the ongoing genocide of Tamils. We plead with all nations with a conscience to deliver justice to the Tamil victims by calling for an international independent investigation. Sri Lanka is a failed state and has proven that it is incapable and unwilling to deliver justice. It is futile to expect the Tamil victims to get justice from Sri Lanka, the perpetrators themselves who continue to deny their crimes. Justice delayed is justice denied.
