(MENAFN- Colombo Gazette)
By Easwaran Rutnam
The United States has imposed sanctions on two Sri Lankan military officers, banning them and their immediate family members from entering the US.
US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken announced that sanctions have been imposed on Chandana Hettiarachchi, a Sri Lankan naval intelligence officer and Sunil Ratnayake, a former Staff Sergeant in the Sri Lanka Army.
Hettiarachchi has been designated for his alleged involvement in gross violations of human rights, namely, the flagrant denial of the right to liberty of at least eight“Trincomalee 11” victims, from 2008 to 2009.
Ratnayake, has been designated for his alleged involvement in gross violations of human rights, namely the extrajudicial killings of at least eight Tamil villagers in December 2000.
“The designation of these two Sri Lankan individuals is not the only action we are taking in support of accountability for gross violations of human rights in Sri Lanka,” US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said.
The US has already imposed sanctions on Army Commander, General Shavendra Silva.
Blinken said the US is determined to put human rights at the center of US foreign policy, and they reaffirm this commitment by using appropriate tools and authorities to draw attention to and promote accountability for human rights violations and abuses, no matter where they occur.
The Secretary of State said that in recognition of Human Rights Day 2021, the Department was designating 12 officials of foreign governments (including the 2 Sri Lankans) under Section 7031(c) of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriation Act, 2021.
This law provides that in cases where there is credible information that officials of foreign governments have been involved in a gross violation of human rights or significant corruption, those individuals and their immediate family members are to be designated publicly or privately and are ineligible for entry into the United States.
The Department of State is designating under Section 7031(c) the following individuals for their involvement in gross violations of human rights:
· Abel Kandiho , Major General and head of the Chieftancy of Military Intelligence within the Uganda Peoples' Defence Forces, for his involvement in a gross violation of human rights, namely torture. Kandiho was also designated this week by the Department of the Treasury under the Global Magnitsky sanctions program in connection with serious human rights abuse.
· Shohrat Zakir , Erken Tuniyaz , Hu Lianhe , and Chen Mingguo , current and former senior PRC officials in Xinjiang, China for their involvement in gross violations of human rights, namely arbitrary detention of Uyghurs, who are predominantly Muslim, and members of other ethnic and religious minority groups in Xinjiang. Shohrat Zakir and Erken Tuniyaz were also designated today by the Department of the Treasury under the Global Magnitsky sanctions program in connection with serious human rights abuse.
· Ihar Kenyukh and Yauheni Shapetska , heads of the notorious Akrestsina Detention Center in Minsk, Belarus, for their involvement in gross violations of human rights, namely the torture and/or cruel, inhumane, or degrading treatment or punishment of detainees in the aftermath of the fraudulent August 9, 2020 presidential election.
· Benazir Ahmed , current Inspector General of the Bangladesh Police and former Director General of Bangladesh's Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), and Miftah Uddin Ahmed , Lieutenant Colonel and former commanding officer of RAB Unit 7, for their involvement in a gross violation of human rights, namely the May 2018 extrajudicial killing of Teknaf City Municipal Councilor Ekramul Haque in Teknaf, Cox's Bazar District, Bangladesh. The RAB, Benazir Ahmed, and five other officials were also designated today by the Department of the Treasury under the Global Magnitsky sanctions program in connection with serious human rights abuse.
· Chandana Hettiarachchi , a Sri Lankan naval intelligence officer, for his involvement in gross violations of human rights, namely, the flagrant denial of the right to liberty of at least eight“Trincomalee 11” victims, from 2008 to 2009. Sunil Ratnayake , a former Staff Sergeant in the Sri Lanka Army, for his involvement in gross violations of human rights, namely the extrajudicial killings of at least eight Tamil villagers in December 2000. The designation of these two Sri Lankan individuals is not the only action we are taking in support of accountability for gross violations of human rights in Sri Lanka.
· Mario Plutarco Marin Torres , a former governor of Puebla, Mexico, for his involvement in a gross violation of human rights in Mexico, namely, the arbitrary detention of journalist and human rights defender Lydia Cacho in December 2005. We commend Mexican authorities for arresting Marin Torres in February on torture charges.
Additionally, the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control is imposing sanctions on 15 individuals and 10 entities including for roles in serious human rights abuse and repression across several countries. (Colombo Gazette)
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