Tamil party to skip UN rights meet on Sri Lanka

(PTI) Sri Lanka’s main Tamil party TNA has decided not to attend next week’s UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) meet in Geneva, where a resolution is expected to be moved against the Colombo government over its rights record, saying that it does not want to "exacerbate tensions". "The TNA (Tamil National Alliance) considers it imperative that in the present situation calm should be maintained and that nothing should be done which could exacerbate tensions. In these circumstances the TNA has decided not to be present in Geneva," a statement issued by the party said. The 19th session of the UNHRC starting next Monday is expected to take up a US-backed resolution on Sri Lanka over its rights accountability record. The government here has mobilised street protests against the possible US move. Colombo has asserted that it has already started implementing the recommendations of its own accountability probe by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) on the country’s rights record during the LTTE conflict.

The TNA said the government’s predicament vis a vis the international community was due to its own failures. "The Sri Lankan State has a notorious reputation for failure to fulfil commitments it makes, and for not making public reports of processes which could hold it accountable," the statement said.

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