{"id":55864,"date":"2016-06-22T22:44:27","date_gmt":"2016-06-23T04:44:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=55864"},"modified":"2016-06-22T05:24:18","modified_gmt":"2016-06-22T12:24:18","slug":"sri-lanka-to-set-up-office-of-missing-persons-now-log-the-names-of-40000-missing-or-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2016\/06\/22\/sri-lanka-to-set-up-office-of-missing-persons-now-log-the-names-of-40000-missing-or-dead\/","title":{"rendered":"Sri Lanka to set up Office of Missing Persons \u2013 Now log the names of 40,000 \u2018missing\u2019 or \u2018dead\u2019 \u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Shenali D Waduge<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

An excellent opportunity has now arise to catch red handed every person who ranted about 40,000 to 100,000 being dead. They have for years been going on and on about these \u2018missing\u2019 or \u2018dead\u2019 numbers without so much as producing a single name. Now the ball is in their court to prove their allegations by giving the names and details of the dead. The allegation of war crimes against a country and its national army rests on this crucial argument of proving that this quoted figure was \u2018killed\u2019, isolated cases cannot warrant war crimes against a state or its army. Isolated cases have to be proved and the soldier must be charged by a military court and sentenced if found guilty. This is where the calls for hybrid or any such other courts gets thrown to the dustbin as thus far there is nothing substantial in the UNHRC investigation report to concretely prove war crimes as per international charter were committed. So far other than well-funded campaigns and well-funded mouthpieces nothing substantial has been put out.<\/p>\n

Here are the people who will need to now come out and produce the names of the dead from the \u2018sources\u2019 they claim to have got the figures. These are just a handful of examples given to show that anyone can throw numbers but now they are cornered to prove the numbers they have been quoting.<\/p>\n

If none of the below can produce names and details of the dead the farce behind the war crimes must end. No court can commence until a name list is produced to show that people have been killed. To claim war crimes it must also be proved that orders were given to kill. Collateral damage or civilian combatants dying during hostilities cannot be included as war crimes. Also if individual soldier misadventures have taken place these also must be proved and thereafter a military court must take punitive action following investigations.<\/p>\n

The GOSL has no moral right to agree to any court with international or local judges without proof of war crimes being committed. Why should all laws and even the Constitution be changed just to spend years and money to see if war crimes have been committed? <\/strong>Those who claim war crimes were committed by quoting dead figures must now come out and in the least produce the names of the dead. It is only then that the country should agree to move to stage 2. If cases produced with evidence are related individual soldier misadventures then a military court suffices to take action against them. A country or its national army cannot be slapped with war crimes charges for a handful of sporadic individual misadventures. <\/strong>It is hilarious to agree to implement hybrid courts when so far nothing has been proved with evidence except for a well-funded propaganda of numbers without names. First investigate the UNHRC report. Demand UNHRC to table it in the UNGA or UNSC. <\/strong><\/p>\n

US former envoy Robert Blak<\/strong><\/p>\n