A Brief Colonial History Of Ceylon(SriLanka)
Sri Lanka: One Island Two Nations
A Brief Colonial History Of Ceylon(SriLanka)
Sri Lanka: One Island Two Nations
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Thiranjala Weerasinghe sj.- One Island Two Nations
?????????????????????????????????????????????????Saturday, June 10, 2017
Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission asks President to allow everyone right to mourn war-dead
June 09, Colombo: The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) has
written to President Maithripala Sirisena asking him to ensure the right
of families to engage in memorialization activities to mourn those who
died in the three-decade long armed conflict regardless of their
beliefs.
The HRCSL in a letter to the President said that the Commission is of
the view that allowing families the space to do so would enable them to
feel they too have, and are able to exercise their rights as citizens of
Sri Lanka, and are part of a common journey towards reconciliation.
"Denial of such an opportunity will only serve to deepen ethnic
divisions and hamper reconciliation efforts," the Commission points out.
The Commission has written to the President in response to a complaint
received from Rev. Fr. Elil Rajendran of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits)
Mullaitivu.
Fr. Elil has been summoned numerous times by the police to be
interrogated in relation to a memorialization activity he had organized
to remember those who lost their lives during the latter stages of the
armed conflict.
The memorialization was to be established by carving the names of those
who had died on stones to be placed at a permanent memorial in
Mullaivaikkal, Mullaitivu.
On several occasions the police had summoned Fr. Elil to appear at
different police stations (Mullaitivu and Vavuniya) for questioning
about the event. The police had also sought and obtained a judicial
injunction to prevent the event from taking place.
Following the court order the police had summoned Fr. Elil and had
requested him to submit all names that were to be carved on stones for
memorialization to ensure there were no names of LTTE cadres.
Fr. Elil has complained to the Commission that repeated questioning by
the police at police stations and at his residence on this ceremony
constituted harassment and placed fetters on his freedom of movement,
expression and association- rights which are enshrined in the
Constitution of Sri Lanka. Further, the questioning of Fr. Rajendran's
elderly parents caused them great distress and anxiety.
"After a thirty year armed conflict Sri Lanka is at present attempting
to rebuild ethnic relations and work towards reconciliation. In this
process it is important that all communities have the space and ability
to mourn the loss of their loved ones and remember them. Hence,
memorialization is an important and integral part of the reconciliation
process," the HRCSL wrote to the President.
"In Sri Lanka we have built many memorials to commemorate the soldiers
who have lost their lives during the armed conflict. Likewise, all
communities should have the right to construct memorials to remember
their family members and loved ones. The fact that the person who died
was a LTTE cadre should not be used as the reason to deny the family to
mourn and remember their loved one. Every family has the right to
remember and memorialize their loved ones irrespective of their status
or political beliefs," it said.
In this spirit, the Commission requests the President, particularly in
his capacity as Minister of National Integration and Reconciliation, to
ensure the right of families to engage in memorialization activities,
and also the security of persons who engage in such activities.