UN Security Council – People for Equality and Relief in Lanka

Sri Lanka in new truce rejection

By pearlaction | March 2, 2009 |

[BBC] The Sri Lankan government has rejected fresh calls for a temporary ceasefire with Tamil Tiger rebels. Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama told the BBC that if the rebels laid down their arms there would be no need for a halt in the fighting. Reports of growing civilian casualties have prompted the UN, European Union and…

UN’s Ban Defends Lack of Sri Lanka Ceasefire Call, Misunderstands His Powers and Duties, Council President Says

By pearlaction | February 11, 2009 |

[Inner City Press] As bloodshed and civilian casualties mount in Sri Lanka, at the UN in New York Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was asked by Inner City Press why, unlike in Gaza, the Congo and elsewhere, he has not called for a ceasefire in Sri Lanka. Mr. Ban responded at some length, reading from notes. In…

Security Council, in presidential statement, reaffirms commitment to protection of civilians in armed conflict, adopts updated aide-memoire on issue

By pearlaction | January 14, 2009 |

[ United Nations Security Council ] In Sri Lanka, strict compliance with international humanitarian law was all the more critical with the intensification of fighting in the Vanni region and reports of intermittent artillery fire in civilian populated areas in recent weeks. He said the scale of humanitarian needs was difficult to gauge, given restricted…