From the Sri Lanka Democracy Forum (SLDF) Newswire

Civil Rights Movement calls for immediate appointment of CC

No further delay in the appointment and functioning of the Constitutional Council can be countenanced now that all the appropriate ‘smaller parties’ have agreed on retired Auditor General S. C. Mayadunne to fill the vacant tenth place, the Civil Rights Movement stressed in a statement issued recently.

The statement added that it has always been the view of the Civil Rights Movement (CRM) that the delay was inexcusable and that there were other options to make the function without a break. Now however, even the objections of those who claimed otherwise, have been set to rest.

It goes without saying that fresh appointments need to be made in place of those made directly by the President while the Council was not functioning. The suggestion has been made that such persons should be called upon to resign or be removed. The CRM however prefers to believe that such appointees will voluntarily resign as a matter of course. This sorry chapter in our constitutional history could then at least end on a hopeful note, CRM said.

Properly functioning institutions and state officers whose independence, legitimacy and credibility are unchallenged, is important in any society. It is especially important during the present time of increased tension and violence in our country. We refer in particular to the Human Rights Commission and the Police Commission.

LTTE, Government show little regard for safety of civilians

In the continuing conflict between the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE, both sides show little regard for the safety and well-being of civilians-and violate international humanitarian law-by indiscriminately firing on civilian areas and unnecessarily preventing the delivery of humanitarian aid. Since the breakdown of the ceasefire and the resumption of major military operations in mid-2006, hundreds of civilians have been killed and over 208,000 persons remain displaced as of October 31.

The above is an excerpt from the Human Rights Watch 2007 report on Sri Lanka. The full text is available at http://hrw.org/englishwr2k8/docs/2008/01/31/slanka17626.htm