UN rights body approves more scrutiny of Sri Lanka

The Human Rights Council on Tuesday adopted a resolution calling on the office of the U.N. rights chief to step up its monitoring of the situation in Sri Lanka.

In a 22-11 vote with 14 abstentions, the vote at the U.N.’s top human rights body also called on the government in Colombo to ensure “prompt, thorough and impartial investigation and, if warranted, prosecution” of alleged crimes linked to rights violations or “serious” violations of international law.

Western countries led the way in sponsoring and voting in favor of the measure, while other countries such as China, Russia, Eritrea and the Philippines opposed it.

India was among those that abstained.

The move aims to strengthen the ability of the office of the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, Michelle Bachelet, to “collect, consolidate, analyze and preserve evidence” on rights violations in Sri Lanka that could be made available for future prosecutions.

The representative of Sri Lanka said "the resolution will polarise Sri Lankan society and adversely affect economic development, peace and harmony."

Human Rights Watch hailed the resolution as a “landmark resolution” that it said would boost scrutiny of rights violations, improve international justice and advance accountability for victims and their families.

The voting came on the next-to-last day of a four-week council session, the first of three held every year.