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Us Fears Military Uprising in Sri Lanka?

June 15, 2016
Source
Ceylon Today

Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Yi Xianliang has advised the Sri Lanka Government on how to implement proposals of the United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC).

On China's unqualified support for Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council, which annoys the world human rights lobby, Ambassador Yi Xianliang said that China is against outside interference in domestic affairs. He also advised Sri Lankan leaders to see that the reconciliation mechanisms suggested by the UNHRC do not themselves create new conflicts. He also said, it would be ill-advised to put reconciliation before development because it is only all round equitable development that will prevent social, political and economic conflicts.

The Chinese Ambassador had given this advice at a convention held at the Regional Centre for Strategic Studies. It is reported that before he gave this advice, a discussion had been held between President Maithripala Sirisena who arrived in India, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the implementation of the UNHRC proposals. It was also reported that Modi's opinion was that foreign Judges should not participate in connection with implementing the proposals. Prior to Maithri's return to Sri Lanka, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe had summoned the heads of the Army and informed them not to let foreign Judges participate in war crimes investigations. Meanwhile, the Chinese Ambassador to this country giving advice on how the Sri Lanka Government should act, as well as the need for establishing an Indo-China investment partnership for the Chinese projects in this country being pointed out, has given rise to the doubt whether this is a strategy to minimize the influence of Western countries regarding the accusations that are being made in connection with war crimes in Sri Lanka. Even initially India was against getting foreign Judges to participate in war crimes investigations. India strongly maintained the same viewpoint even during the tenure of Mahinda Rajapaksa's administration.

Once Ranil's Government came into power and the joint proposal co-sponsored by Sri Lanka and America was presented to the UNHCR, it was clear that India was not very much in favour of participation of foreign Judges, mentioned therein. In the set of proposals prepared by Minister of Foreign Affairs Mangala Samaraweera in London together with leaders of the Global Tamil Forum and Samantha Power of the White House in America, Ranil made amendments to some points via the American Ambassador in this country based on advice from India, certain sources have confirmed. Although America was prepared to listen to India's opinion on foreign Judges, the strict stance of Samantha Power on this issue is now being leaked from American human rights organizations. It is quite clear when the points mentioned in the report of the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre of the Oakland Institute are read. The points stated are as follows: