The House resolution 711 passed in the House of Representatives in the U.S. Congress on Thursday, November 05 called on the Government of Sri Lanka to engage in speedy resettlement of Tamil civilian refugees in welfare camps but significantly recognized the positive initiative Sri Lanka has taken so far regarding the settlement of the IDPs.
The House resolution passed by a vote 421 to 01 does not talk of the standard of treatment and living conditions of the IDPs as it has inferred that reasonable care is being taken.
The lone dissenter was Republican Congressman Ron Paul of Texas.
The resolution thus does not contain the normal rhetoric of international rights organizations such as Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International.
The House Resolution does not call for independent oversight but recognizes the GSL ability to do so.
The resolution does not incorporate wild language of some international rights organization, a clear departure from earlier practices.
As Asian Tribune assesses the language and tone of the House Resolution it does not seem to have any hand even in remote way of the State Department’s South and Central Asian Affairs Bureau headed by assistant secretary Robert Blake.
The resolution shows that it is balanced and that some sanity has crept in to a section of the House in the U.S. Congress.
Interestingly, it was Democratic Congressman from the State of Illinois Danny Davis who flirted with the Tamil Tigers to undertake a controversial tour in the then Tiger-held areas in the north and east of Sri Lanka in 2007, who led the co-sponsors of the resolution.
It was revealed later that Mr. Davis’ Sri Lanka tour was funded, arranged and managed by the LTTE.
Nevertheless, the House resolution resolved that the GSL should speed up the release and settlement of the Tamil civilian refugees while acknowledging that it is doing so in a creditable manner.
The sponsors of the resolution has recognized the GSL’s difficult task in identifying the former LTTE combatants saying:”Whereas the Government of Sri Lanka is seeking to identify former combatants who were part of the LTTE and as part of the vetting process the Government of Sri Lanka has set up make-shift camps that initially housed over 280,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) who fled their homes as the war drew to an end.”
It further states “Whereas of those 280,000 internally displaced persons at the end of the war, approximately 10,000 of those individuals are being separately held by the Government of Sri Lanka on suspicion of having supported the LTTE.”
Desisting from the normal practice of the U.S. Congress in the past incorporating misinformation and rhetoric in resolutions and statements when it comes to the issues of Sri Lanka this House Resolution has accepted the credible information and statistics in incorporating in it as: “Whereas as of October 23, 2009, over 52,000 IDPs have been released from the closed camps in the Vanni, and of those 36,000 have been returned to their districts of origin and found accommodation in their own homes or, pending return to their homes, with host families and in vacant houses of friends or relatives; and over 16,000 IDPs of special categories, such as the elderly, pregnant women and their families, priests, students, or people of special needs, have been released to host families or institutions.”
The U.S. Congress’ House or Senate resolutions in regard to Sri Lanka issues in the past had the habit of asking the International Community (IC) and the U.S. Government to take steps to address the human rights and humanitarian situation. In a significant departure from that past this resolution called the Government of Sri Lanka shoulder that responsibility in saying: “Amend the title so as to read: ‘‘Calling on the Government of Sri Lanka to address the human rights and humanitarian needs of its internally displaced Tamil population currently living in government-run camps by working with the United Nations and the international community to implement a process of release and resettlement of such internally displaced persons (IDPs), and allowing foreign aid groups to provide relief and resources throughout the process.’’
The House Resolution urged the Government of Sri Lanka “to pro mote justice and political reconciliation for all parties, and engage in dialogue with all parties, including Tamils inside and outside Sri Lanka on new mechanisms for devolving power, improving human rights, and increasing accountability”.
The Asian Tribune can see some encouraging Sri Lankan diplomacy has played a vital role in bringing some sense to at least a section of the U.S. Congress getting them to drop the usual rhetoric that some international rights organizations and still-remaining LTTE professionals that influence Congressmen and their activities. It is an encouraging sign that U.S. legislators are prepared to listen to those other than the pro-Tamil Tiger lobby.
It is also significant that Sri Lanka diplomats and the foreign ministry separate the U.S. Congress and the State Department when dealing with their nation’s issues. It seems that this separation has taken place to prevail sanity to at least a section of the U.S. Congress, especially to a strong-headed congressman like Danny Davis.
The language, tone and the flow of the language do not indicate that the State Department has any input to this House resolution passed on Thursday, November 05.
- Asian Tribune -
Comments
Equal Opportunity Comparison: Sri Lanka vs USA
Forty three grade five students from a makeshift school in a camp for internally displaced people in Sri Lanka have received scholarships granted by the Government of Sri Lanka. Brimming with heaps of dreams, children in the Kadirgamar School want to become doctors, engineers, lawyers... the list goes on with some even aspiring to become musicians and singers. Further details are given in the following link. http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2009/11/08/spe01.asp
In USA children in poor neighbourhoods and ghettoes are doomed to the perpetuation of poverty by restricting their education to the neighbourhood schools full of violence. I believe President Obama should introduce an 'Equal Opportunity Bill' for all young people of USA, by providing opportunities for primary school students from the disadvantaged schools to enter the best schools in the district with full scholarships, based on a scholarship examination. I hope Mr. Daya Gamage will consider conveying this comment to those who pass resolutions on Sri Lanka.