Intensifying the pressure on DMK partnered UPA government to take a strong stand in support of US sponsored resolution, Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa on Monday wrote to the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asking him to immediately instruct Indian diplomats to push for the incorporation of amendments to strengthen it in the UNHRC session on war crimes and genocide against Sri Lankan Tamils since the final draft is to be placed for consideration of the council on March 19. She also urged him to step forward as a champion of human rights and democracy to support long suffering ethnic Tamils in Sri Lanka and mobilise support of other nations “lobbying to nullify the impact.”
In a strongly worded letter, she said to assuage the legitimate sense of outrage and deeply hurt sentiments of Tamil diaspora it was absolutely important that India takes a strong stand in support of the US sponsored resolution in the ongoing session of the UNHRC and more importantly moves necessary independent amendments to further strengthen the resolution.
Noting that the ongoing session was the most appropriate forum and occasion to mount further pressure on Sri Lanka, Ms Jayalalithaa said: “I hope at this historic moment, the GOI will decisively step forward and take a bold stand in support of the long suffering Tamils in Lanka and thereby demonstrate its empathy and solidarity with the millions of Tamils.”
She recalled the TN legislature’s memorandum and her earlier letters to him that had called upon the GOI to take up the issue of war crimes committed against Lankan Tamils and also called for an economic embargo on Sri Lanka till the Tamils were fully resettled and were allowed to live with dignity and with equal constitutional rights as their Sinhala counterparts.
“A full year has passed since that resolution and the events and developments of the past year in Sri Lanka, are a continued and sorry saga of human rights violations against the Tamils in that country,” she said citing the report of the office of the UN high commissioner for Human Rights.
Charging that the statements made by PM and his external affairs minister in the past few days appear equivocal and prevaricating and did not give a clear indication of India’s stance, she said, “It is important that Sri Lanka is held to account on this occasion given the need to establish India as a global leader standing up for democracy and human rights.”