UNITED

NATIONS A
General Assembly Distr.
GENERAL

A/HRC/S-11/NGO/4
26 May 2009

Original: ENGLISH

HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

Eleventh special session
26-27 May 2009

HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATIONS THAT REQUIRE THE COUNCIL’S ATTENTION

Written statement submitted by the PASUMAI THAAYAGAM

FOUNDATION, a non-governmental organization in special
consultative status

The Secretary-General has received the following written statement which is circulated in
accordance with Economic and Social Council resolution 1996/31.

[13 February 2009]

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SECTION I:

Contact details of (main) NGO:

NGO Name: PASUMAI THAAYAGAM FOUNDATION

Name of main contact person: RATHINAM ARUL

Street Address: PASUMAI THAAYAGAM FOUNDATION

NO. 9, (OLD NO: 5), LYN WOOD LANE
MAHALINGAPURAM, CHENNAI - 600 034
TAMIL NADU
INDIA.

E-mail: arulgreen@gmail.com

SECTION II:

Language(s): ENGLISH ONLY

SECTION III:

HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

Eleventh Special Session

SECTION IV:

Written statement submitted by the PASUMAI THAAYAGAM FOUNDATION, a non-

governmental organization in special consultative status

SECTION V:

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Title:

Sri Lanka: International inquiry into War Crimes – an urgent need1.

SECTION VI:
Text:
Pasumai Thaayagam Foundation appreciates the decision of UNHRC to hold a special session on
‘Human Rights situation in Sri Lanka’. At this Juncture, We would like to draw the attention of
HRC to the following State instrumented Human Rights violations including war crimes that
have been committed by Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL).

We are deeply concerned about the conditions and the treatment of Tamil civilians in Sri Lanka.
The government is still barring independent monitoring bodies and press members from entering
the territory, making it impossible to verify reports of war crimes and human rights violations on
a large scale.

1. State terror

The Sri Lankan State has transformed existing institutional structures to become state sponsored
purveyors of terror. Serious human rights violations, including genocide, enforced
disappearance, extra-judicial executions, torture and arbitrary detention, target the Tamil civilian
population.

Four UN Human Rights Council experts on right to health, food, water, and sanitation, in a
statement said "[t]here is good reason to believe that thousands of civilians have been killed in
the past three months alone, and yet the Sri Lankan Government has yet to account for the
casualties, or to provide access to the war zone for journalists and humanitarian monitors of any
type," and that "shipments of food and medicine to the "no fire zone" have been grossly
insufficient over the past month and the Government has reportedly delayed or denied timely
shipment of life saving medicines as well as to chlorine tablets," and urged the U.N. to establish
a commission to address the critical human rights situation, and demand full respect to human
rights2.

2. Recent Carnage and War Crimes

1
People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL)-Tamil Nadu & Pondicherry (India) also shares the views expressed in
this statement
2
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/EGUA-7RULKC?OpenDocument

3
It has been widely reported in the media that more than 10,000 civilians and 3000 rebels who
were all wounded badly have been killed brutally in the last few days3 and the dead bodies were
left rotting. A recent report by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)
confirmed the heavy use of artillery and aerial bombing of civilian safety zone (CSZ). This act of
aggression against unarmed civilians undoubtedly constitutes `war crimes’ by the Sri Lankan
armed forces.

An analysis conducted with a time series of very high resolution satellite imagery from 5
February to 19 April 2009 showed that there are new indications of building destruction and
damages resulting from shelling and possible air strikes in the northern and southern sections of
the CSZ4. An additional 5 permanent buildings within the CSZ have been destroyed between 29
March & 19 April bringing the total estimate within the CSZ to approximately 60 main buildings
destroyed. Potential damages or destruction of IDP tent shelters not included. The Sri Lanka
government has admitted these attacks5.

The Science and Human Rights Program of the American Association for the Advancement of
Science (AAAS) has acquired and analyzed commercial high-resolution satellite imagery of the
Conflict Zone (CZ) in northeastern Sri Lanka.6 This imagery is intended to provide information
regarding the status of internally displaced persons (IDPs) within the CZ, especially as they were
affected by reported violence occurring May 9–10, 2009. This violence was reported by
international news sources,7 including the BBC, and was referred to by the United Nations (UN)
as a “bloodbath”.8

The Sri Lankan Presidential Secretariat conceded on 27 April 2009, 'Our security forces have
been instructed to end the use of heavy caliber guns, combat aircraft and aerial weapons which
could cause civilian casualties.' Sri Lanka's admission that it has used heavy weapons in areas

3
Sri Lankan minister admits army killed civilians, Telegraph 21 May 2009,
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/srilanka/5362832/Sri-Lankan-minister-admits-army-killed-
civilians.html

4
Satellite photographs of damage to the conflict zone in Sri Lanka, Inner city press April 29’
http://www.innercitypress.com/UNOSAT19April09.pdf
5
Sri Lanka admits bombing 'safe zone' Al Jazeera, May 01, 2009,
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2009/05/20095141557222873.html
6
Satellite photographs of damage to the conflict zone in Sri Lanka, Inner city press April 29’
http://www.innercitypress.com/UNOSAT19April09.pdf
7
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8045135.stm;
http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/05/12/sri.lanka.fighting/index.html
8
Gordon Weiss, Spokesman for the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Sri Lanka
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crowded with displaced civilians underscores the need for an international inquiry into violations
of the laws of war by government forces, states Human Rights Watch9.

3. The Situation of IDPs

The situation for over a quarter million internally displaced persons (IDP) detained in
Government run internment camps is becoming more intolerable everyday. As Human Rights
Watch has reported, these are military-controlled, barbed-wire camps in which those sent there,
including entire families, are denied their liberty and freedom of movement. Once a citizen
enters the camp they are not allowed out; people reportedly disappear identified by secret
informers and former militants.

Children are being abducted, with tacit government approval, from camps housing those
displaced by Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict. The paramilitary groups have been allowed
"unhindered" access to the camps which are tightly guarded by government troops, it said the
Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers10.

4. Denial of humanitarian Work

The GOSL blocked international humanitarian aid from reaching civilians trapped in the conflict
area. In September 2008, the Government ordered all international aid workers to leave Tamil
areas except the ICRC and World Food Programme. With the escalation in violence the ICRC
were prevented from operating in the area. In a news release dated 10 February 2009, the ICRC
stated that “most of the population is now displaced and completely dependent on outside aid,
yet none has reached the area since 29 January.”11

As per May 18, 2009 report, for nine consecutive days ICRC has been pursuing efforts without
success to reach the area of north-eastern Sri Lanka hard hit by fighting in recent weeks12.

On May 20, 2009, the ICRC announced that it will be suspending humanitarian aid to the largest
internment camp housing over 130,000 IDPs because the GOSL has restricted its access into the
camp.

5. Indiscriminate Shelling of Hospitals and Denial of Medical Aid

Article 18 of the Fourth Geneva Convention states that the civilian hospitals organized to give
care to the wounded and sick, the infirm and maternity cases, may in no circumstances be the

9
Sri Lanka: Government Admission Shows Need for UN Inquiry, HRW APRIL 27, 2009
http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/04/27/sri-lanka-government-admission-shows-need-un-inquiry

10
Tamil children 'being abducted', BBC 20 May 2009’ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8060564.stm

11
ICRC, 10 February 2009 < http://www.icrc.org/Web/Eng/siteeng0.nsf/html/sri-lanka-news-100209>
12
ICRC 18-05-2009 News reléase 09/104
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object of attack, but shall at all times be respected and protected by the Parties to the conflict.
However the hospitals have not been spared from bombings by Lankan Security forces.

A detailed Human Rights Watch document on ‘Attacks on Hospitals in the Vanni (December 15,
2008 – May 2, 2009)’ reports there were at least 30 attacks on permanent and makeshift hospitals
since December 2008. One of the deadliest took place on May 2, when artillery shells struck
Mullaivaikal hospital in the government-declared "no-fire zone," killing 68 persons and
wounding 8713.

The three humanitarian doctors are at grave risk for reprisal from the GOSL, two doctors, Dr.
Shanmugarjah and Dr. Sathiyamoorthy are currently detained’ and Dr. Varatharajah is
undergoing treatment for serious injury.

6. Silencing the Media

In the last 2 years, the Sri Lankan Government has steadily coerced the media into silence. There
exists a ban on reporting about the war. Amnesty International reports that “nnewspapers have
been closed down, employees intimidated and attacked, and a website has been blocked.”14

Recommendations

We urge the Human Rights Council to take note of this extremely precariously poised situation
and to intervene more directly and forcefully. In particular we urge the Human Rights Council to
consider the following:

1. International Inquiry into War Crimes in Sri Lanka

The situation in Sri Lanka has been a virtual holocaust of Lankan Tamils resulting in deaths of
thousands of Tamils. The deaths carried with genocidal ferocity constitute crimes against
humanity and the perpetrators should be brought to justice. We urge for an international
commission of inquiry to investigate war crimes and other human rights abuses.

2. Immediate access to Humanitarian aid

We urgently request that international assistance be sent immediately before all the evidences are
destroyed.

We urge for immediate and unfettered access to humanitarian workers, local and international
non-governmental organizations, the ICRC, and United Nations bodies, access the war affected
area.

13
http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/related_material/Sri_Lanka_Hospital_Attacks0508_2009.pdf

14
Amnesty Internacional, 7 February, 2009-03-09 < http://www.amnesty.org/en/appeals-for-action/call-protection-
sri-lankan-media-workers>
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3. Upholding the Human Rights of IDPs

We urge the HRC to safeguard the Human rights of the IDPs so that their free movement is
ensured and are able to return to their traditional villages.

4. Access to Free Press

We urge to ensure the assertion of the right of the media to access the war affected area.

5. UN Human rights monitoring mission

UN Human Rights Monitoring mission is needed immediately to curb atrocious human rights
abuse.

6. Responsibility to Protect (R2P)

Considering the fact that the situation in Sri Lanka is clearly a R2P we urge to invoke the
“Responsibility to Protect.”.

7. Internationally monitored referendum

We urge the UN to facilitate an internationally monitored referendum in the Tamil regions to

determine the political aspirations of the Tamil people and their right to self-determination.