Sri Lanka to conclude high-profiled human right violations cases this year

Oct 29, Colombo: Sri Lanka's Attorney General's Department plans to conclude several high- profiled human rights violations cases by the end of this year.

The Attorney General�s Department plans to conclude the investigation son the assassination of five students in Trincomalee in January 2006 and the execution of 17 French Action against Hunger aid workers in Muttur in August 2006, officials have told the local media.

The two incidents took place during the height of the war in the Eastern Province.

Speaking to local Daily Mirror, Attorney General Palitha Fernando has said that his Department would be able to do something in this regard before the end of this year.

Additional Solicitor General Suhada Gamlath who is in charge of this case, has said that he is analyzing the evidence on the two incidents and will be able to take action against those responsible very soon.

Sri Lanka has been increasingly under pressure from Western government as well as from human right organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch to show progress in the investigations of the several human right violation cases.

The United States has raised the issue in the upcoming Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) that is scheduled for Thursday (November 01).

In addition to the above two case, the U.S., in their submission, has raised concern over the lack of progress on the assassination of Sunday Leader editor Lasantha Wickrematunga in January 2009 and the disappearance of cartoonist Prageeth Eknaligoda in January 2010.