The Morning yesterday (3) reported that Office on Missing Persons (OMP) Commissioner Shiraz Noordeen had resigned from the OMP, stating that it was unable to act independently to bring justice to victims. Noordeen had raised grave concerns about the OMP’s decision-making process lacking independence and being influenced, needing approval from the Justice Ministry for the OMP’s activities, and difficulties with regard to obtaining funds in an independent manner, as per the existing legal framework applicable to the OMP.
His resignation comes in a context where international human rights monitor Amnesty International has said that Sri Lanka has seen one of the highest numbers of disappeared persons in the world since the beginning of the war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has been raising concerns about the progress Sri Lanka has achieved with regard to providing relief and solutions to the families of the disappeared, among other matters related to the war.
Needless to say, an OMP Commissioner resigning from their post citing the lack of independence is a huge black mark against Sri Lanka, both locally and internationally. The OMP is an institution on which many aspects of Sri Lanka’s post-war reconciliation process depends, and due to that reason, both local and international human rights groups are paying great attention to its activities, and especially the results it delivers. In this context, the OMP’s independence is crucial, since it is on this very basis that its decisions, actions, and results will be judged.
This situation is likely to trigger concerns among the international community and among the families of the disappeared about the OMP’s trustworthiness, the authenticity of Sri Lanka’s efforts aimed at providing relief to the families of the disappeared, and the fact finding activities carried out by the OMP. The fact that the OMP has now been labelled an institution that is considerably dependent on several parties including the Justice Ministry when it comes to fulfilling its duties and taking decisions, can easily corrode the trust in the OMP.
The result is that Sri Lanka will not be able to cite the OMP’s performance as an indicator of the Government’s efforts aimed at delivering justice to the families of the disappeared, and the families of the disappeared doubting the OMP’s work thus far.
What is more, the OMP’s findings were supposed to help Sri Lanka counter uncorroborated figures about the number of people that went missing during the war, most of which are presented by those levelling allegations of war crimes against Sri Lanka. However, the independence of the OMP’s activities and the decision-making process are now in a questionable state, and this has a high likelihood of affecting Sri Lanka’s stance regarding the number of wartime disappeared.
In addition, having the foremost institution tasked with delivering justice to the families of the disappeared being labelled as an institution that is influenced by external parties, especially by the Government through the Justice Ministry, will paint Sri Lanka in a bad light at the upcoming UNHRC sessions, at which Sri Lanka has to defend itself from a plethora of war crimes allegations, and also when dealing with the EU, which has expressed its concerns about similar allegations against Sri Lanka, leading to the likelihood of the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) trade concession being revoked or suspended.
Sri Lanka’s human rights situation has been a major topic of discussion for decades, and a large share of human rights-related concerns stem from what is said to have happened during the war with the LTTE. While Sri Lanka is still struggling to address those concerns over a decade after the war, state mechanisms being weakened, or not being strengthened adequately by granting them the required level of independence, is an alarming situation.
The Government should look into the former OMP Commissioner’s claims, and take the necessary steps to address the issues he has raised, or the country risks backtracking on whatever progress, no matter how meagre, it has managed to achieve over the years.The Office on Missing Justice
03 May 2022
The Office on Missing Justice
03 May 2022
The Morning yesterday (3) reported that Office on Missing Persons (OMP) Commissioner Shiraz Noordeen had resigned from the OMP, stating that it was unable to act independently to bring justice to victims. Noordeen had raised grave concerns about the OMP’s decision-making process lacking independence and being influenced, needing approval from the Justice Ministry for the OMP’s activities, and difficulties with regard to obtaining funds in an independent manner, as per the existing legal framework applicable to the OMP.
His resignation comes in a context where international human rights monitor Amnesty International has said that Sri Lanka has seen one of the highest numbers of disappeared persons in the world since the beginning of the war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has been raising concerns about the progress Sri Lanka has achieved with regard to providing relief and solutions to the families of the disappeared, among other matters related to the war.
Needless to say, an OMP Commissioner resigning from their post citing the lack of independence is a huge black mark against Sri Lanka, both locally and internationally. The OMP is an institution on which many aspects of Sri Lanka’s post-war reconciliation process depends, and due to that reason, both local and international human rights groups are paying great attention to its activities, and especially the results it delivers. In this context, the OMP’s independence is crucial, since it is on this very basis that its decisions, actions, and results will be judged.
This situation is likely to trigger concerns among the international community and among the families of the disappeared about the OMP’s trustworthiness, the authenticity of Sri Lanka’s efforts aimed at providing relief to the families of the disappeared, and the fact finding activities carried out by the OMP. The fact that the OMP has now been labelled an institution that is considerably dependent on several parties including the Justice Ministry when it comes to fulfilling its duties and taking decisions, can easily corrode the trust in the OMP.
The result is that Sri Lanka will not be able to cite the OMP’s performance as an indicator of the Government’s efforts aimed at delivering justice to the families of the disappeared, and the families of the disappeared doubting the OMP’s work thus far.
What is more, the OMP’s findings were supposed to help Sri Lanka counter uncorroborated figures about the number of people that went missing during the war, most of which are presented by those levelling allegations of war crimes against Sri Lanka. However, the independence of the OMP’s activities and the decision-making process are now in a questionable state, and this has a high likelihood of affecting Sri Lanka’s stance regarding the number of wartime disappeared.
In addition, having the foremost institution tasked with delivering justice to the families of the disappeared being labelled as an institution that is influenced by external parties, especially by the Government through the Justice Ministry, will paint Sri Lanka in a bad light at the upcoming UNHRC sessions, at which Sri Lanka has to defend itself from a plethora of war crimes allegations, and also when dealing with the EU, which has expressed its concerns about similar allegations against Sri Lanka, leading to the likelihood of the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) trade concession being revoked or suspended.
Sri Lanka’s human rights situation has been a major topic of discussion for decades, and a large share of human rights-related concerns stem from what is said to have happened during the war with the LTTE. While Sri Lanka is still struggling to address those concerns over a decade after the war, state mechanisms being weakened, or not being strengthened adequately by granting them the required level of independence, is an alarming situation.
The Government should look into the former OMP Commissioner’s claims, and take the necessary steps to address the issues he has raised, or the country risks backtracking on whatever progress, no matter how meagre, it has managed to achieve over the years.Kapruka
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Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Automobile, Mother and Baby Products, Clothing, and Fashion. Additionally, Kapruka offers unique online services like Money Remittance, Astrology, Medicine Delivery, and access to over 700 Top Brands. Also If you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.Send love straight to their heart this Valentine's with our thoughtful gifts!