Political Quotes

“May 18 marks the 10th anniversary of the end of the civil war in Sri Lanka. In May 2009, the war between the government and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, LTTE, ended. The civil war was a 27-year-long assault on the coexistence of the Sri Lankan people, leaving scars that remain today. Both the Sri Lankan state and the LTTE targeted dissidents and members of other ethnic communities, indiscriminately bombing places of worship, hospitals, and public transport. On this 10th anniversary, I urge the people of Sri Lanka to renew their commitment to peace, reconciliation, and accountability for human rights violations and crimes committed during the conflict. In the wake of the devastating terrorist attacks last month, the international community should also renew its commitment to supporting those Sri Lankan citizens committed to a peaceful and democratic society where the rights of all are protected under the law. The final years of the war saw heightened intensity of fighting and soaring human rights abuses, including hundreds of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings of aid workers, arbitrary arrests, torture, and the use of child soldiers. The government labeled any reporters critical of the government's war against the LTTE as ``traitors'' and ``terrorists,'' and the LTTE tolerated no dissent in areas it controlled.…”