Sri Lanka bars US envoy as president lashes out at proposed UN war crimes resolution
Colombo bars entry to US envoy as Mahinda Rajapaksa warns it would be a 'grave crime' to bring charges against his administration over civil war against the Tamil Tigers that ended in 2009
Sri Lanka has refused a top US rights official entry to the country, just days after another senior envoy alleged Colombo’s rights record was deteriorating, the US embassy said on Tuesday.
US ambassador at large for women’s issues Catherine Russell was due to visit Sri Lanka ahead of a UN Human Rights Council meeting next month at which Colombo is predicted to face fresh censure.
A US embassy spokesman said it was “regrettable” Colombo had refused to grant Russell a visa for the planned visit this month.
“Ambassador Russell’s mandate is to promote stability, peace, and development by empowering women politically, socially, and economically around the world,” the spokesman said.
The refusal came after Nisha Biswal, US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, told reporters on Saturday the US was concerned about the worsening human rights situation, during her visit to the island.
At the end of the two-day trip, Biswal also said the US was worried about a weakening of the rule of law and an increase in corruption levels and impunity in Sri Lanka since a 37-year conflict ended in May 2009.