UN Seeks Further Sanctions On Sri Lankans Accused Of Gross Human Rights Abuses

2025-09-08 02:18:32

(MENAFN- Colombo Gazette) By Easwaran Rutnam

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, called on member states to impose further sanctions on those credibly accused of gross human rights violations in Sri Lanka.

Turk was speaking at the 60th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva after presenting a report on Sri Lanka.

The report on Sri Lanka calls for further targeted sanctions such as asset freezes and travel bans against individuals credibly alleged to have perpetrated gross international human rights violations or serious humanitarian law violations.

It also seeks support for the High Commissioner's office to continue its monitoring and reporting and its strengthened work on accountability for human rights violations and related crimes in Sri Lanka.

The High Commissioner also called on Sri Lanka to undertake deep Constitutional and legal reforms.

He said that Constitutional and legal reforms are crucial to ensure tragedies of the past are not repeated.

Meanwhile, his report noted that the Government of Sri Lanka has for years failed to acknowledge the responsibility of the State and the role of the military and other security forces in allegedly committing gross human rights violations and international crimes.

“The President has publicly recognized the shared pain and grief of individuals from all communities. It is important to build on this momentum and to translate it into tangible results for accountability in the form of truth-telling, justice, reparations and non-recurrence, as necessary to end impunity and provide for healing and closure,” the report said.

Welcoming the Government's initiative to establish an independent public prosecution office, OHCHR underscores the need for transparency and the proactive inclusion of civil society organizations in the process to ensure the credibility of the office.

The post UN seeks further sanctions on Sri Lankans accused of gross human rights abuses appeared first on Colombo Gazette .

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