It also reaches two senior officers. A Canadian MP stated that Sri Lanka cannot continue to protect impunity, even though several years have passed since the end of the civil conflict. Diaspora citizens hope that victims of heinous crimes will one day also get justice.
Colombo () – Canada has imposed sanctions for heinous crimes committed during the civil war on four Sri Lankans, including former presidents Mahinda and Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Political analysts believe that other countries, such as Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom, could soon adopt similar measures in accordance with their national laws.
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly announced on January 10 that Canada would also impose sanctions under the Special Economic Measures Act against Sri Lankan Army Sergeant Major Sunil Ratnayake and Navy Intelligence Officer, Lieutenant Commander Chandana Prasad Hettiarachchi, who had already been sanctioned by the United States in December 2021 for serious human rights violations. The US had also previously sanctioned two other senior Sri Lankan officers, former Army Commander Shavendra Silva, in February 2020, and Major Prabath Bulathwatte, who led the “Tripoli Squad” (a formation of clandestine troops within the Army). ), in December 2022.
For his part, the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, Ali Sabry, summoned the Canadian Ambassador, Daniel Bood, to express his “deep regret over the announcement of unilateral sanctions by the Canadian government against four people, based on accusations unfounded”.
The international organization Global Tamil Forum (Gtf), which fights for the recognition of war crimes against the Tamil population, has instead declared that it appreciates Canada’s measures in defense of justice, the rule of law and democratic principles.
According to Canadian MP Gary Anandasangaree, “Impunity has prevailed in Sri Lanka for the last 75 years, and in that time we have seen any form of accountability for corruption and war crimes systematically avoided. If Sri Lanka wants to get ahead Anandasangaree continued, “it must become a country based on the rule of law. In the case of the Rajapaksa brothers, their inaction has led to serious crimes against humanity. Sri Lanka has for too long avoided addressing war crimes, which instead they have been the object of great international attention since the end of the armed conflict”.
Political analyst Samantha Hendawaitharana believes that “the sanctions will not lead to rapid or major change in Sri Lanka, but these measures are a reminder that there will be mounting costs for Sri Lanka if it continues to foster a culture of impunity.”
According to United Nations data, between 40,000 and 70,000 civilians were killed in the last stage of the civil conflict, which ended in 2009. Many victims and their families have been waiting for justice for more than 13 years.
Nirmala Jeyaraj, 48, an accountant originally from Paranthan, in the north of the country, who fled to Canada in 2008, told that “Sri Lanka has long since stopped holding the Rajapaksa and former ex-war crimes to account. Army Commanders Sarath Fonseka and Shavendra Silva”.
Engineers David Alaveddy (50), Lakshmi Sithambaram (45) and Niranjan Sabapathy (43), currently based in Australia, said they were happy to be living abroad but ‘we had to leave Sri Lanka at the height of the war due to the atrocities committed by the Rajapaksa regime. We cannot forget how they killed thousands of civilians. This decision by Canada gives us relief and hope that one day the victims can get justice.”
