Commonwealth welcomes public release of LLRC report

The Commonwealth has welcomed the Sri Lankan Government’s public release of the full report of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission.

Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma yesterday welcomed the government’s transparency in releasing the report.

“We applaud the intent of transparency with which the Government of Sri Lanka has tabled the full report before Parliament and made it public, as well as the stated commitment of the government to respect the conclusions and recommendations of the report, which we are confident will see implementation in an objective, even-handed and forward-looking manner,” the Secretary-General said in a statement.

“We welcome the assurance given on the transparent and rigorous application of the law of the land,” he added.

The government has said it will fully investigate the individual accounts of transgressions during the war and take appropriate legal action on anyone found guilty.

The statement further said, “While noting that the Commission was established to examine lessons learnt from the conflict and to promote reconciliation, we trust that with the assurances given, the report will also serve to advance the cause of accountability, as genuine reconciliation and accountability go hand in hand.”  “It is for the government and people of Sri Lanka to chart their country’s way forward after the military defeat of the forces of terrorism,” Sharma said.

The Commonwealth assured that, as a partner of Sri Lanka, which is a founder member of the modern Commonwealth, it will remain ready to assist the government, “in dealing with the challenges of building a harmonious and sustainable peace.”