UN human rights chief talks tough on legal reform in Sri Lanka

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay kicked off her high profile visit to Sri Lanka, focusing on government progress on institutional and legal reforms pertaining to accountability including court cases against former Tamil Tiger carders, an official said here Monday. She discussed legal aspects of detainees, victim and witness protection, government inaction against the rise of religious hardliners, delays to introducing a right to information act and rolling back the contentious Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). Following her arrival in Sri Lanka on Sunday, Pillay met with the chief justice, attorney general and justice minister before making a delayed exit from the Supreme Court complex to meet National Languages and Social Integration Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara. Pillay remained tight lipped during her exit from justice minister's office despite being mobbed by media. Subsequently, Justice Minister Rauf Hakeem held a tri-lingual press conference and debriefed reporters on the wide ranging discussions that had taken place. Hakeem acknowledged that issues relating to criminal justice as well as on legal and institutional reforms were touched upon, particularly in relation to Sri Lanka's own accountability report the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commissioner (LLRC) report. "She posed a few politically related issues pertaining to the recent incidents of intolerance, particularly religious intolerance by attacks on mosques,"he told the media. Discussions had also revolved around legal and institutional reform. Hakeem assured Pillay that the Victim and Witness Protection Bill had been submitted to cabinet for the second time after some refinement of the act as suggested by the Attorney General's Department. The bill is crucial, analysts say, to pushing ahead with cases regarding thousands of people who disappeared during the war. President Mahinda Rajapaksa, whose regime has been under allegations of war crimes since the end of a three decade war in 2009, earlier this month appointed a special commission to investigate war time abductions. However, analysts have been skeptical as allegations implicate Sri Lanka's powerful army that has been staunchly protected by the government. Hakeem said that government officials had also explained to her in detail about special attention being taken by the ministry to speedily dispose of pending cases pertaining to former Tamil Tigers, some of whom are already in judicial custody while others are being held under special PTA provisions. "We have shown her our commitment to try and dispose of these cases as speedily as possible including special courts that we have been able to sanction. I think she was happy with our responses, the fact that we are able to engage with her so freely is a great source of pride to us."