UN Human Rights Panel Barred from Sri Lanka

On Tuesday of this week, UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon announced the appointment of a panel of experts to investigate human rights abuses alleged to have been committed by both the Sri Lankan government and the opposition forces of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during the final months of Sri Lanka's recent civil war.  Sri Lanka rejected the need for an independent investigation and announced yesterday that it will deny visas to the members of the UN panel.  Sri Lanka has appointed its own internal panel to investigate, which it claims will be sufficient.  Sri Lanka's refusal to cooperate with an independent international body is disheartening and will likely further undermine efforts to restore peace in the country and to gain credibility and acceptance of the Sri Lankan government.

(cgb)