Rajiva Wijesinha

“ In recent months there has been much criticism of the national Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka. This criticism has been a focal point of the determination of interested parties to establish a field office in Sri Lanka of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, answerable as she unequivocally put it, ‘to me’. Accompanying such claims are the myths that the deficiencies of the current HRC are entirely the fault of the current government, and that the government is unwilling to admit that there are problems.
Such myths need to be exploded. ”

“ The Sri Lankan Ministry for Disaster Management and Human Rights has made it clear that assistance in strengthening national Human Rights mechanisms is eminently desirable, and has suggested areas in which technical assistance might be forthcoming. ”

“ So much for what remains the main reason for criticism of the HRC. Another is that it has failed to produce reports on time. Yet what is remarkable about this is that the failure in this regard began with the previous Commission in this regard. Yet that Commission, the Chairperson of which is obviously exempt now, as an employee of the UN herself, from UN criticism, had in fact an appalling record as to its administrative competence – diagnosed by a stocktaking report prepared by the UNDP itself. ”