UK urged to pressure Sri Lankan president over UN resolution

28 January 2016

The British government has been urged to ensure Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena meets commitments agreed to under a UN Human Rights Council resolution passed last year, in a question raised in parliament today.

Wes Streeting, Member of Parliament for Ilford North and Vice Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils told parliament:

“It is completely unacceptable that the Sri Lankan President is not accepting international help with the prosecution of human rights abuses, which is vital to ensure that everyone, particularly the Tamil community, can have confidence that justice will be done. This was a vital component of the UN resolution we secured in Geneva."

“We all know the terrible human rights abuses that took place in Sri Lanka,” he stated, adding, “I hope that the British Government will do all it can to pressure President Sirisena to meet his obligations under the UN Human Rights Council resolution and I will continue to press our government to act on this issue”.

In response, Chris Grayling, the Leader of the House of Commons said, “We all want to see a long term solution to the dreadful events that are taking place in Sri Lanka”.

“We want to see a settlement that provides a stable and lasting solution for both communities,” he added. “That's enormously important.”