Lasantha’s indictment: Ball in Sri Lanka’s court

Before Sri Lanka could take a breather after the United Nations Human RightsCouncil’s (UNHRC) September session highlighted the Government’s shortcomings on the human rights front, it was reported that the People’s Tribunal on the Murder of Journalists at The Hague, the Netherlands, on Monday (19), found the Sri Lankan Government guilty of violating the human rights of murdered senior journalist, editor, and lawyer Lasantha Wickrematunge, and issued an indictment against the country.

Sri Lanka’s human rights record with regard to journalists and media workers, however, is a much wider issue that is not confined to Wickrematunge’s case, which was also highlighted at the Tribunal. This indictment came after the Tribunal examined testimony and documentation pertaining to the extrajudicial killings of 27 journalists and 27 media workers between 2004 and 2010 – i.e., during the regime of then-President and incumbent MP Mahinda Rajapaksa. The Tribunal noted that these killings have not been effectively investigated, and that the perpetrators have not been convicted, while most journalists are believed to have been killed because of their criticism of the Government and the civil war, or because they supported Tamil citizens. Conversely, military personnel who were named and charged in some of these cases have been pardoned and reinstated.

While Sri Lankans may consider the Tribunal’s concerns to be nothing new, as they are very familiar with these realities, this indictment could even be the beginning of many issues at the international level, because although the domestic Judiciary and law enforcement systems have not achieved considerable results as far as these cases are concerned – and do not even seem remotely interested in paying genuine attention to investigating these – the existing international laws and mechanisms are less likely to ignore or forget about these crimes. 

On the one hand, this indictment is going to further tarnish the country’s blighted human rights record, and on the other hand, this will most likely hinder the country’s efforts to obtain international assistance to deal with the prevailing economic issues. However, proving that the country is genuinely dealing with this indictment, and also other crimes against journalists highlighted at the Tribunal, is going to be even harder than before, because Sri Lanka has damaged its own reputation and credibility many times during the past few years.

Sri Lanka’s approach to dealing with many allegations of human rights violations, notably during the past decade, had a lot to do with promising prompt, domestic action and thereby buying time. That was evident during the several occasions on which successive governments that came to power after the war dealt with the UNHRC. After more than a decade, many promises are yet to be fulfilled, while governments have gone back on their word many times.

In this context, it would not be wrong to say that the time is approaching for Sri Lanka to take this situation seriously, and make genuine efforts to resolve the country’s internationally known human rights crisis.

At least now, the Government should conduct a proper domestic investigation, perhaps with international assistance, and base it on the findings of the Tribunal. While the current Government – which is not very different from the former, ousted Government – cannot be implicitly trusted to conduct an impartial investigation, international assistance and pressure should perhaps play some kind of role in compelling the Government to launch proper investigations. Local human rights activists, journalists, and the general public seeking change have a role in pushing the Government to fulfil its duties.