• Allegations of  economic crimes committed by the current rulers in the country and demanding appropriate action against them is a fresh move against Sri Lanka 

By Sandun A Jayasekera

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) yesterday expressed serious concerns about the new resolution scheduled to be adopted next Thursday (6) by the UN’s Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva, which would further tighten the strictures dictated on Sri Lanka at the resolution 41/1 in March 2021.   

The General Secretary of the SLFP and former Minister Dayasiri Jayasekara told Daily Mirror that the UNHRC will ask the government to show cause for the economic crimes and take action against ‘what he called ‘economic assassins’ who brought the country to the current predicament. This is in addition the demand to give tangible response to the serious allegations of the violation of human rights, suppression of free media, stifling of peaceful dissent and the collapse of the law and order etc. in the country passed last year.  

“Making allegations of  economic crimes committed by the current rulers in the country and demanding appropriate action against them is a fresh move against Sri Lanka by the UNHRC. Sri Lanka had to face only to the allegations of war crimes, violation of human rights and the violation of the International Humanitarian Law (IHL). But with the fresh demands for the accountability for economic crimes would put Sri Lanka under further stress domestically and internationally,”  Jayasekara stressed.   If the political and socio-economic disaster is not enough, the incumbent regime has brought an additional burden to the country with it’s mismanagement and incompetency. It is incumbent for the Ranil Wickremesinghe regime to provide, credible answers to the UNHRC and the global community, if Sri Lanka is to successfully restructure her debts and obtain US$ 2.9 billion from the IMF,  Jayasekara noted.  
On the bankruptcy of the country, the UNHRC says that “ Recognizing the severe economic crisis that has deteriorated Sri Lanka since late 2021, exacerbated by the corona virus pandemic, and the profound impact that it has had on the people of Sri Lanka, including women led households, under scoring the importance of addressing the underlying governance factors and root causes that have contributed to the crisis, including deepening militarization, lack of accountability in governance and impunity for serious human rights violations and abuses, which remains a central obstacle to the rule of law, reconciliation and sustainable peace and development in Sri Lanka, recognizing the recent efforts of the government of Sri Lanka to address the ongoing economic crisis and welcoming the staff level agreement reached between the government and the IMF … .. .. are at a particular risk of suffering from the adverse impact of corruption on the enjoyment of human rights,”.