[TamilNet, Thursday, 28 May 2009, 23:31 GMT] "This is one of the most unprincipled and shameless resolutions ever adopted by any body of the United Nations in the history of that now benighted Organization. It would be as if the U.N. Human Rights Council had congratulated the Nazi government for the "liberation" of the Jews in Poland after its illegal and genocidal invasion of that country in 1939," said Francis Boyle, professor of International Law at the University of Illinois College of Law, referring to the resolution passed at the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Sri Lanka war.
"This Resolution simultaneously gives the imprimatur of the U.N. Human Rights Council to the ethnic cleansing, genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes that the Government of Sri Lanka has already inflicted upon the Tamils in the past , as well as the Council's proverbial "green light" for the GOSL to perpetrate and escalate more of the same international crimes against the Tamils in the future," Boyle said.
Prof Francis Boyle, University of Illinois College of Law
"The U.N. Human Rights Council and those member States that voted in favor of this Resolution have thereby become ACCESSORIES AFTER THE FACT to the GoSL's genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and ethnic cleansing against the Tamils in the past, as well as AIDERS AND ABETTORS to future acts of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and ethnic cleansing that the GOSL will undoubtedly inflict upon the Tamils thanks to this Resolution-all in violation of the Genocide Convention, the Four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Two Additional Protocols of 1977 as well as the Rome Statute for the International Criminal Court.
"Sri Lanka, together with these other Council States, are contracting parties to some or all of these International Criminal Law Conventions and therefore must be held accountable for their violation and international crimes against the Tamils," Boyle added.
"History shall so judge them all!
"Orwell stands vindicated by the U.N. Human Rights Council: WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, IGNORANCE IS FREEDOM, THE U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL LOVES BIG BROTHER," Boyle said, indicating he is deeply disturbed by the U.N. action.
[TamilNet, Friday, 29 May 2009, 00:54 GMT] Evidence gathered by The Times newspaper has revealed that at least 20,000 Tamil people were killed on the Mullaitivu beach by Sri Lanka Army shelling. Aerial photographs, official documents, witness accounts and expert testimony collected by the newspaper “present clear evidence of an atrocity that comes close to matching Srebrenica, Darfur and other massacres of civilians,” the paper’s editorial says. Confidential UN documents acquired by The Times record nearly 7,000 civilian deaths in the ‘no-fire’ zone up to the end of April. UN sources said that the toll then surged, with an average of 1,000 civilians killed each day until May 19.
“These figures are not even complete yet,” the UN source told the paper. “It’s going to end up way more.”
Three independent defence analysts who examined photographs of Sri lanka Army and LTTE firing positions taken over the no-fire zone confirmed that the range of the LTTE weaponry and the narrowness of the zone make it unlikely that LTTE munitions caused significant civilian casualties.
The Times reported acquisition of the evidence of the “hidden massacre” of Tamil civilians by Sri Lanka’s Army in a set of articles Friday.
The paper also slammed the UN Human Rights Council’s resolution Wednesday congratulating Sri Lanka’s conduct of the war.
The full text of The Times editorial, titled ‘Slaughter in Sri Lanka’, follows
“Deeply disappointing” was how a human rights group yesterday described the vote in the United Nations Human Rights Council hailing the victory of the Sri Lankan Government. This is a breathtaking understatement. It was an utter disgrace. The 47-member body, set up in 2006 to replace the previous corrupt and ineffectual UN Commission on Human Rights, has abjectly failed one of its first and most important tests.
It was asked by its European members to investigate widespread reports of atrocities and war crimes committed by both government troops and the Tamil Tigers in the final weeks of the conflict. The council chose instead to debate a one-sided, mendacious and self-serving motion put forward by the Sri Lankans. This welcomed the “liberation” of tens of thousands of the island's citizens, condemned the defeated Tigers, made no mention of the shelling of civilians and kept silent on the desperate need to allow the Red Cross and other humanitarian groups into the camps where some 270,000 Tamil civilians have been interned.
Support for this deeply flawed resolution came from the usual suspects - China, Russia, India, Pakistan and a clutch of Asian and Islamic nations determined to prevent the council ever investigating human rights violations in their own or any country. It was sad to see Israel, for obvious political motives, joining in this charade, claiming that massacres, violence, repression and internment are an “internal affair”.
To her credit, Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, insisted that there needed still to be an inquiry into “very serious abuses”. Those abuses, it now emerges, are far, far worse than the outside world imagined. The UN estimated that 7,000 people were killed in the first four months of this year; the figure now appears to be at least 20,000. Thousands of these victims died as a result of the shelling by the Sri Lankan Army of the strip of coastline where the final remnants of Tiger resistance were trapped, along with at least 100,000 civilians.
Photographs taken by The Times present clear evidence of an atrocity that comes close to matching Srebrenica, Darfur and other massacres of civilians. In the sandy so-called no-fire zone where the trapped Tamil civilians were told to go to escape the brutal army bombardment, there are hundreds of fresh graves as well as craters and debris where tents once stood. This was no safe zone. This was where terrified civilians buried their dead as the shells landed - after the Government had declared an end to the use of heavy weapons on April 27.
Some civilians were probably killed by the Tigers, whose brutality and ruthlessness over the past 28 years has fully justified their depiction as terrorists. Finding out what happened, however, is impossible: the army has barred entry to all outsiders. Food is short, sanitation appalling; wounded and traumatised civilians are in desperate need of help. That much is clear from those who have been able to escape. More sinister reports are now circulating of systematic “disappearances”, of families separ- ated and young men taken away. But until the Government allows in aid workers, the presumption must be that it wants nothing to be heard or seen of what is going on.
This tactic was used in the final push to beat the Tigers. The army wanted no witness to the onslaught, no journalists to alert the world to human rights violations, no photographers to record the suffering. Sri Lanka, now basking in its victory, may set the pattern for other nations battling against insurgencies. For them, victory is all that matters. Most of Sri Lanka may rejoice at the end of a bloody civil war. But the UN has no right to collude in suppressing the appalling evidence of the cost. The truth must be told.
Damn you, your fight is with the LTTE and not the Tamils; how you fight, capture and kill the brave LTTE soldiers whom you cowardly call terrorist is your business, BUT now you have committed a heavy & the worlds most worst heinous crime against your own citizen, the Tamils; and for that you and your stupid government have to pay a heavy price including that of sending your president to be charged in Haque for genocide. Each and every member of Sri Lankan government involved in this massacre and bloody bloodbath should be tried for war crimes. The global Tamils will not let you go scott free at any time. The Tamils worldwide will bring this matter to the international forum to crush you, and we will not stop until justice is done to those innocent Tamils maimed and incarcerated by you and your government. You have the tendecy to call this matter a joke only under your diplomatic immunity otherwise you coward would not have uttered a word against the Tamils in our country Malaysia. We, the Malaysians Tamils warned you to behave like a diplomat failing which we will condemn you with worst repercussions. Damn you, dumb Comnmisioner.
* You went missing at the Bar Counsil meet, but you still have to appear somewhere, you cannot hide forever, damn you, coward.
War Crimes Committed By Government Of Sinhalese Lanka(May 25, 2009)
Singapore’s Minister Mentor, Lee Kuan Yew, who was Singapore’s founding father, has always been very direct in his comments. This was the man who outsmarted the communists in Singapore (with the innocent help of Malaya then and the willing help of the British) and who later outwitted the British and outpaced Malaysia in all spheres.
Singapore practices corrupt-free meritocracy and Malaysia affirmative action. The former attracted all the best brains and the latter chased out all the brains. The Singapore cabinet consists of dedicated and intelligent technocrats whereas Malaysia has one the most unwieldy cabinets. Not only that, brain wise it was below par not even good for the kampong.
With that kind of composition, one that is very brainy, naturally Singapore , with no natural resources could outstrip Malaysia in every aspect of development. Malaysia, on the other hand, was too much preoccupied with its Malayness and the illusory ‘Ketuanan Melayu’ and was also more interested in useless mega iconic development rather than real social and economic development.
Whenever Kuan Yew utters anything that deemed to be a slight on Malaysia , voices were raised admonishing him. Malaysia would never dare to face reality. That Singapore had shown that it could survive was a slap on those who believed that Singapore would fold up once it left Malaysia . Therefore it was natural that these doomsayers would try to rationalise their utterances to be in their favour to combat on whatever Kuan Yew commented. Its political jealousy.
Singapore achieved its development status without any fanfare. But here in Malaysia , a development that was deceptive was proclaimed as having achieved development status. It was trumpeted as an achievement that befits first world status. This was self delusion. Malaysians are led to believe into a make believe world, a dream world. The leaders who themselves tend to believe in their own fabricated world did not realise the people were not taken in by this kind of illusion.
Lee Kuan Yew believed in calling a spade a spade. I was there in Singapore when the People’s Action Party won the elections in 1959. He was forthright in his briefing to party members as to what was expected of them and what Singapore would face in the future. Ideologically, I did not agree with him. We in the University of Malaya Socialist Club had a different interpretation of socialist reconstruction. But he was a pragmatist and wanted to bring development and welfare to the Singaporeans. Well! He succeeded.
Malaysia was so much embroiled in racial politics and due to the fear of losing political power, all actions taken by the main party in power was never targeted towards bringing wealth to all. Wealth was distributed to the chosen few only. They were the cronies and the backers of the party leadership to perpetuate their own selfish ends.
Seeing the efficiency and the progress achieved by Singapore caused the Malaysian leadership to suffer from an inferiority complex. That Malaysia should suffer from this complex was of its own making.
In a recent interview, Kuan Yew said that Malaysia could have done better if only it treated its minority Chinese and Indian population fairly. Instead they were completely marginalised and many of the best brains left the country in drove. He added that Singapore was a standing indictment to what Malaysia could have done differently. He just hit the nail right there on the head.
Malaysia recently celebrated its 50th year of independence with a bagful of uncertainties. The racial divide has become more acute. The number of Malay graduates unemployed is on the increase. And this aspect can be very explosive. But sad to see that no positive actions have been taken to address these social ills.
Various excuses were given by Malaysian leaders why Singapore had far outstripped Malaysia in all aspects of social and economic advancement. Singapore was small, they rationalised and therefore easy to manage. Singapore was not a state but merely an island.
There was one other aspect that Malaysia practises and that is to politicise all aspects of life. All government organs and machinery were ‘UMNO-ised’. This was to ensure that the party will remain in power. Thus there was this misconception by the instruments of government as to what national interest is and what UMNO vested interest is.
UMNO vested interest only benefited a few and not the whole nation. But due to the UMNO-isation of the various instruments of government, the country under the present administration had equated UMNO vested interest as being that of national interest. Thus development became an avenue of making money and not for the benefit of the people. The fight against corruption took a back seat. Transparency was put on hold. And the instruments of government took it to be of national interest to cater to the vested interest of UMNO. Enforcement of various enactments and laws was selective. Thus a ‘palace’ in Kelang, APs cronies and close-one-eye umno MPs could exist without proper procedure. Corruption infested all govt departments, the worse is the police and lately even in the judiciary.
Singapore did not politicise its instruments of government. If ever policisation took place, it is guided by national interest. To be efficient and to be the best in the region was of paramount importance. Thus all the elements like corruption, lackadaisical attitude towards work and other black elements, which would retard such an aim, were eliminated. Singapore naturally had placed the right priority in it’s pursuit to achieve what is best for its people. This is the major difference between these two independent countries.
Malaysia in its various attempts to cover up its failures embarked on several diversions. It wanted its citizens to be proud that the country had the tallest twin-tower in the world, although the structure was designed and built by foreigners. Its now a white-elephant wasting away. It achieved in sending a man into space at an exorbitant price. What for purpose? These are what the Malays of old would say “menang sorak” (hollow victories).
It should be realised that administering a country can be likened to managing a corporate entity. If the management is efficient and dedicated and know what they are doing, the company will prosper. The reverse will be if the management is poor and bad. The company will go bust.
There are five countries around this region. There is Malaysia , and then Indonesia . To the east there is the Philippines and then there is that small enclave called the Sultanate of Brunei . All these four countries have abundance of natural resources but none can lay claim to have used all these resources to benefit the people. Poverty was rampant and independence had not brought in any significant benefits to the people.
But tiny Singapore without any resources at all managed to bring development to its citizens. It had one of the best public MRT transport systems and airlines in the world and it is a very clean city state. Their universities, health care, ports are among the best in the world.
It is impossible to compare what Singapore has achieved to what all these four countries had so far achieved. It was actually poor management and corruption, and nothing more. Everything is done for the vested interest of the few.
Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines and the Sultanate of Brunei need good management teams. They would not be able to do this on their own steam. I would advise that they call on Kuan Yew to show them what good governance is. Why look East to Japan when it is just next door across the causeway.
Thousands of people gathered at the Batu Caves temple this morning to protest against the Sri Lankan government despite a police warning against the rally.
The protest rally was to voice the opposition against the war crimes perpetuated by the Sri Lankan government against innocent Tamils in its ongoing war against the LTTE.
LTTE has been fighting for a separate Eelam state in the north of Sri Lanka. The war reached a boiling point earlier this week with the Sri Lankan government claiming victory with the killing of LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran.
Reporting: K Pragalath Kumar Camera: Amirudding Abdullah Editing: Shufiyan Shukur
Thousands of people gathered at the Batu Caves temple this morning to protest against the Sri Lankan government despite a police warning against the rally.
The protest rally was to voice the opposition against the war crimes perpetuated by the Sri Lankan government against innocent Tamils in its ongoing war against the LTTE.
LTTE has been fighting for a separate Eelam state in the north of Sri Lanka. The war reached a boiling point earlier this week with the Sri Lankan government claiming victory with the killing of LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran.
In the process, thousands of innocent victims, almost all of whom were Tamils, have been killed and about 100,000 made homeless.
The protest today was organised by the World Tamil Relief and the Coalition of NGOs movements.
Among those who attended the rally included MIC information chief and Deputy FT Minister M Saravanan, DAP’s Teluk Intan parliamentarian M Manoharan, DAP’s Ipoh Barat MP M Kulasegaran, PKR’s Padang Serai MP N Gobalakrishnan , Kapar MP S Manikavasagam and Batu Caves temple committee chairperson R Nadarajah.
Also present were DAP’s Klang MP Charles Santiago and MIC Youth wing advisor S Vell Paari.
Yesterday the Selangor police urged the public not to join the protest as it was being held without a police permit.
State deputy police chief Jamshah Mustafa however said that people can go to Batu Caves to pray but “not for an illegal rally”.
But despite the police warning, there was no strong police presence in Batu Caves.
One of the organisers SP Pathi told Malaysiakini that they had originally expected some 15,000 people to participate today but conceded that the police warning would mean fewer people turning up.
Eyewitnesses said that a few hundred people had gathered by 10am. By noon the crowd size had swelled up to about 4,000. By the time the rally ended at about 1pm organisers said some 5,000 people had attended.
They have committed war crimes
Several posters condemning the Sri Lankan government were also seen pasted in Batu Caves. A platform was set up on the field within the temple compound where fiery speeches were made.
First to speak to the crowd was Nadarajah who said that he was pressured by some quarters not to allow for the rally to take place in the temple compound today.
“But I insisted on it being held in support for the Sri Lankan Tamils,” he said to the loud approval of the crowd.
Saravanan also lauded the presence of so many politicians at the rally despite their political differences.
“I am proud that we can stand united here for our Sri Lankan Tamil brothers,” he said.
He also lashed out at the Indian government, particularly the Tamil Nadu state government, for not doing anything to stop the attacks on civilians in Sri Lanka.
“If one Prabhakaran is killed, thousands of Prabhakaran will rise. If Israel can be formed, a Tamil nation can be formed too,” he added.
He also urged the Malaysian government not to support a draft resolution tabled by Sri Lanka at the United Nations calling for member nations not to interfere in the internal affairs of the country.
He said such a support for Sri Lanka would hurt the hearts of Malaysian Tamils.
Yesterday MIC president S Samy Vellu also similarly called on the government to retract its support for the draft resolution.
Manoharan meanwhile said that the Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse had committed war crimes by killing innocent Tamils in the country.
“He is guilty of war crimes and must be charged in the war crimes tribunal,” he added.
Gobalakrishnan also similarly condemned Rajapakse for “murdering innocent children and women”.
He said that the spirit instilled by Prabhakaran would remain even if he was killed.
Kulasegaran urged the Malaysian government not to give any financial aide to Sri Lanka as it would seem like it was supporting the war crimes in that island state.
“The government of Malaysia is going to give RM3 million to Sri Lanka. We cannot allow that. I will raise this issue in the parliament,” he said.
A donation campaign was also launched at the rally to collect funds for the Tamils in Sri Lanka.
The Batu Caves resolutions
Later at a press conference, several resolutions and immediate plans were revealed to assist the Tamils in Sri Lanka.
“We will form a peace team to be sent to Sri Lanka to help rebuild the lives of the war victims,” said organising committee member K Arumugam.
And among the resolutions passed included a call for the United Nations to start a probe on the Sri Lankan government and to institute war crime charges against the Sri Lankan leaders.
Another resolution called for the lifting of all restrictions imposed on the international community to assess the full nature of the catastrophe that has struck the Tamils in Sri Lanka and offer immediate relief.
The protest group also wanted the formation of an independent Tamil state and until then the establishment of a UN peacekeeping force on the island to maintain peace.
“We call upon international community to offer all necessary humanitarian aid through international aid agencies.
“We also call upon the Malaysian government to recognise the plight of Sri Lankan Tamils and institute immediate measures to give assistance and financial support to the Tamils in Sri Lanka,” they said.
They also wanted the government to withdraw its support for the Sri Lankan resolution in the UN.
Some 3,000 people thronged the Batu Caves temple in Kuala Lumpur to witness Hindu Rights Action Force (Hindraf) leader P Uthayakumar shave his beard and snip off his long locks in an offering of gratitude for his release.
Times photo gallery of Tamil slaughter
