Sri Lanka to Establish Domestic Accountability Mechanism with UNHRC Support

COLOMBO (News 1st); Minister of Foreign Affairs Vijitha Herath has informed UN Human Rights Commissioner Volker Türk that the government is prepared to move forward with a domestic accountability mechanism to address human rights violations in Sri Lanka, with technical assistance from the Human Rights Council.

The meeting took place yesterday in Geneva, where Minister Herath is attending the 60th session of the UN Human Rights Council.

During the discussion, the two sides engaged extensively on the report presented by Commissioner Türk. 

Minister Herath outlined Sri Lanka’s position in detail and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to upholding human rights under the new administration.

Commissioner Türk expressed his expectation that Sri Lanka will not miss the opportunity to ensure a new approach to protecting human rights, to carry out independent investigations into past violations, and to establish a credible accountability framework.