The EU may be about to turn a blind eye to torture in Sri Lanka.How you can stop them

[ckaihatsu]

The EU may be about to turn a blind eye to torture in Sri Lanka. Here's how you can stop them.

https://www.srilankacampaign.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/No-to-GSP-768x386.png

Dear Friend,

In just under a month’s time, the EU Commission will take a decision on whether to begin the process of restoring ‘GSP+’ preferential trade status to Sri Lanka, the scheme of concessions granted to non‐EU states that uphold human rights and the rule of the law. According to sources close to the Commission, there are strong signs that it is preparing to give the go‐ahead for the move, possibly as early as 8th January 2017. In light of serious ongoing human rights violations in Sri Lanka ‐ particularly torture (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/07/world/asia/sri-lanka-torture.html) ‐ we urgently need your help to stop this from happening.

I want to help. (https://www.change.org/p/eu-commission-don-t-turn-a-blind-eye-to-torture-in-sri-lanka-say-no-to-restoring-gsp)

You may recall that Sri Lanka was stripped of its ‘GSP+’ status in August 2010 in response to repeated and systematic human rights abuses under then President Mahinda Rajapaksa. That development followed the Government of Sri Lanka’s failure address 15 conditions laid down by the EU Commission that would need to be met in order for GSP+ to be retained. Though wide‐ranging in scope, a significant portion of these comprised specific steps designed to eradicate torture.

Yet six years later, and despite the change in government, torture has remained disturbingly persistent. Following a comprehensive review, the pre‐eminent UN body for addressing torture, just last week described torture as "common practice" (http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CAT%2fC%2fLKA%2fCO%2f5&Lang=en) in Sri Lanka, the result of long‐standing impunity for perpetrators combined with a failure to undertake basic institutional reforms to deter its use. The Committee went on to make a series of 50 recommendations along with a request for the Government of Sri Lanka to provide a further implementation report by 7 December 2017.

The Sri Lanka Campaign is demanding that the EU Commission postpone any decision to restore GSP+ to Sri Lanka until the UN Committee Against Torture has evaluated this report. To determine the issue any sooner would not merely fly in the face of the EU’s own advice on the matter; it would also seriously undermine the important work of the Committee and represent a grave affront to the survivors of torture.

Please stand with survivors by clicking here and urging the EU Commission to say #No2GSP+ in January 2017. (https://www.change.org/p/eu-commission-don-t-turn-a-blind-eye-to-torture-in-sri-lanka-say-no-to-restoring-gsp)

Thank you,

The Sri Lanka Campaign Team

P.S. help increase the impact of this campaign by forwarding this email to five friends or colleagues today. You can also share the link on social media using the hashtag and image above.

P.P.S please help us continue to fight for a just and lasting peace in Sri Lanka by considering making a donation (https://www.srilankacampaign.org/support-us/donate-now/) towards our running costs.

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The Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice
http://srilankacampaign.org


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Broken Promise: an evaluation of the government of Sri Lanka’s commitments for achieving justice and reconciliation


Dear Friends,

Next month, the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) will review the government of Sri Lanka’s promise to put a stop to human rights abuses and bring about a credible process of accountability and reconciliation. That promise was made to war survivors in October 2015 as part of HRC Resolution 30/1.

The Sri Lanka Campaign has broken down the resolution into 25 specific commitments and has for the past year been monitoring the government of Sri Lanka’s progress in implementing each of them. Today, ahead of a final review of these promises at the HRC, we are releasing an updated version of our evaluation.

Our findings, available here (https://www.srilankacampaign.org/take-action/keep-the-promise/), paint a disappointing picture: the overwhelming majority of the government of Sri Lanka’s commitments remain mostly or wholly unimplemented. On only a handful has the government lived up to its word. Plainly, the government still has a long way to go in order to address, meaningfully and effectively, the country’s recent past.

For many victims and survivors of human rights abuses in Sri Lanka our findings will represent yet another milestone in the long history of broken promises by the government. Trust and confidence are justifiably in short supply. Yet as our analysis suggests, the window of opportunity presented by Resolution 30/1 remains ajar. There is still the time and political space for the government to regain the initiative and undertake the bold steps mandated by the resolution. It can and must use them.

On March 22nd members of the Human Rights Council will sit to deliberate on Sri Lanka’s progress on Resolution 30/1 and, in light of the ‘expiry date’ on the text, consider the further courses of action available to it. The international community must not shy away from the frank and robust appraisal that our analysis suggests is needed. And it must not let the government of Sri Lanka’s promises slip by the way-side. To that end we are calling on members (https://www.change.org/p/government-of-sri-lanka-keep-the-promise-to-war-survivors) of the Council to pass a second resolution which keeps those promises in play – and which sends a firm message to the government that they must make them a reality.

What can you do to help?

Earlier in 2016 we launched a campaign calling on the government of Sri Lanka to #KeepThePromise to bring about a meaningful process of accountability and reconciliation. Please take action today by signing the petition (https://www.change.org/p/government-of-sri-lanka-keep-the-promise-to-war-survivors) and signalling to the government of Sri Lanka, and the members of the Human Rights Council, that these promises have not been forgotten – and that they must be renewed and honored.

Thank you.

The Sri Lanka Campaign Team

P.S. support our work? Please help us continue to fight for a just and lasting peace in Sri Lanka by considering making a donation towards our running costs (https://www.srilankacampaign.org/support-us/donate-now/).


--
The Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice
http://srilankacampaign.org


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SriLankaCampaign mailing list

To unsubscribe from this list, email [email protected]
To subscribe to this list, email [email protected]

Visit our website for more information on the situation in Sri Lanka http://www.srilankacampaign.org