Archive for the ‘UN Panel Report’

No respite even after war: The rape, execution, torture and disappearances of IDPs in Sri Lanka

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The Island newspaper continues to publish leaks from the report produced by the Panel appointed by the UN Secretary General to look into post-war accountability in Sri Lanka. Groundviews has covered in detail the Executive Summary and Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the leaks. The Island published today Part 5, which focusses on the conditions faced by IDPs in the aftermath of the violent denouement of the war in the Vanni. As before, we provide context and background information to frame these highlights. Much of the context also comes from dozens of articles published from May 2009 onwards on Groundviews, including many eye witness accounts and detailed reports on ground conditions in the IDP camps. The issues and concerns flagged in these articles, photos and audio recordings in fact pre-figure and underscore those featured in the leaked UN Panel’s report. The category ‘Vavuniya‘ has over 100 articles and reports worth revisiting for the content and the vibrant debate they inspired on this site….

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Debating numbers, killing lives: UN and Government differences emerge

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The Island newspaper continues to publish leaks from the report produced by the Panel appointed by the UN Secretary General to look into post-war accountability in Sri Lanka. Groundviews has covered in detail the Executive Summary and Parts 1, 2 and 3 of the leaks. The Island published today Part 4, which focusses on the significant discrepancies between the United Nations and the Government on estimating the number of civilians trapped in the Vanni during the final stages of the war, and how this numbers debate resulted in horrific ground conditions. As before, we provide context and background information to frame these highlights. In addition, we flag concern over the fact that when the Doctors reporting from the Vanni were detained, many reports suggested that the UN did little or nothing to secure their release or safety. Links to the reports filed by the Doctors to the media are included, as well as articles on the media events staged in…

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  • 20 Apr, 2011
  • 33 Comments
  • Jaffna,
    Peace and Conflict,
    UN Panel Report,
    Vavuniya,
    War Crimes

Shelling hospitals ‘packed with children, babies and the elderly’: Continuing leaks from the elusive UN report

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The Island newspaper continues to publish leaks from the report produced by the Panel appointed by the UN Secretary General to look into post-war accountability in Sri Lanka. Groundviews has covered in detail the Executive Summary and Parts 1 and 2 of the leaks. The Island published today Part 3, which focusses on the shelling of hospitals. As before, we provide context and background information to frame these highlights. Please be warned that some of the following highlights are graphic in their descriptions, and make for difficult reading. “Throughout the final stages of the war, virtually every hospital in the Vanni, whether permanent or makeshift, was hit by artillery. ” “PTK hospital was packed with hundreds of injured civilians from the NFZ. More than 100 new patients were arriving each day, many from the NFZ. Many had severe or life-threatening injuries caused by artillery fire or burns. The casualties, many of them babies, young children and the elderly, were packed…

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New leaks of UN war crimes report: Shelling civilians, horrifying medical conditions and failure of the UN system in Sri Lanka?

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The Island newspaper continues to publish leaks from the report produced by the Panel appointed by the UN Secretary General to look into allegations of war crimes in Sri Lanka. Groundviews flagged key points and placed in context what is widely acknowledged to be the executive summary of the report, published in The Island newspaper on Saturday. On the 17th and 19th of April, the newspaper published two more excerpts from the body text of the report. Going by the newspaper’s introduction to Part 1, we can expect much more content in the future, which begs the question as to why the UN itself hasn’t yet officially released the report into the public domain. As with our first story, we provide context and background information to frame these highlights. Part 1 deals with civilian casualty figures. Highlights include, “There is no authoritative figure for civilian deaths or injuries in the Vanni in the final phases of the war. Several actors…

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Tamil National Alliance statement on the leaked UN report: An irrefutable confirmation of events

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We reproduce in full a statement by the Tamil National Alliance that responds to a large excerpt from the report of the UN Panel of Experts looking into allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Sri Lanka leaked to and published in The Island newspaper on Saturday. ### We have read the disclosure made by the media, said to be the Executive Summary of the Report submitted by the Advisory Panel to the United Nations Secretary General (UNSG). The Tamil National Alliance (TNA), as the democratically elected representatives of the Tamil People of the North East, who have been the worst affected victims of the recently concluded war, we consider it our duty to respond to same, while reserving a fuller response to the full Report after it becomes available to us. We recall here with deep anguish, that for over the past half a century, we have consistently urged an acceptable and reasonable political solution to address…

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Government MP Rajiva Wijesinha clarifies allegation against Groundviews

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Rajiva Wijesinha, MP, in his column published in the Sunday Observer today, expressly notes that, “I have now had an opportunity to read through what is supposed to be the Report of the Panel appointed by the UN Secretary General to advise him on what were termed accountability issued. The report has been leaked by the indefatigable Sanjana Hattotuwa, who does however note that he cannot confirm if this is the actual text. He adds that the UN has regretted the leak.” Surprised that Mr. Wijesinha seemingly did not know the location where the UN Panel’s report was published and attributed the leak to this site’s founding Editor, he was asked to furnish any hard evidence to support his allegation and if there was none, to publish a full retraction and apology in the media. An email with Mr. Wijesinha on this score is published here verbatim with his knowledge. April 17, 2011 9:00:39 AM Dear Sanjana Thanks, I am…

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The leaked UN war crimes report: Key points and context

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The Island newspaper published today sections of what appears to be a large excerpt from the report of the UN Panel of Experts looking into allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Sri Lanka. Inner City Press followed up with a report suggesting that the text was authentic, and that the UN deeply regretted the leak to the mainstream media. It also noted that the UN would publish the report in full next week, along with a response from the Sri Lankan government. Groundviews flags below some highlights of this damning report, and places it alongside some other news article for context. Follow our tweets on this breaking story here. Our Facebook fan page will also carry highlights, and features discussions amongst the 6,000+ people already on it. Some key highlights from the leaked report as published in The Island: “In stark contrast, the Panel found credible allegations, which if proven, indicate that a wide range of serious…

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About Groundviews

Located at the Centre for Policy Alternatives in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Groundviews is a citizen journalism website that uses a range of genres and media to highlight critical perspectives on governance, reconciliation, human rights, the arts and literature, democracy and other issues. The site has won two international awards, including the prestigious Manthan Award South Asia in 2009. The grand jury's evaluation of the site noted, "What no media dares to report, Groundviews publicly exposes. It's a new age media for a new Sri Lanka... Free media at it's very best!"

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