Sri Lanka refrained from calling for a vote at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) as it did not want to waste public funds on a process it was certain to lose, Foreign Affairs Minister Vijitha Herath told Parliament yesterday.
“Past governments, using public funds and time, knowing that they would lose, performed media circuses,” Herath said while delivering a statement on the UNHRC’s adoption of Resolution 60/L.1/Rev.1 against Sri Lanka without a vote. “That is not our policy,” he emphasized.
The Minister noted that previous administrations had spent millions of rupees sending large delegations overseas in futile attempts to gain support. “Votes for Sri Lanka decreased at each consecutive session, while the number of abstentions increased,” he pointed out.
According to Herath, Sri Lanka secured 15 votes in 2012, 13 in 2013, 12 in 2014, 11 in 2021, and just seven in 2022. “Sri Lanka has only won one vote, and that was in 2009,” he said, adding that the current composition of the Council makes it difficult for the country to prevail.
The Minister also revealed that a Bill to establish a Truth and Reconciliation Commission will be presented to Parliament shortly, and new legislation to replace the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) will be introduced soon.
“Sri Lanka’s human rights issue had already been internationalised and complicated by the time this government took office in 2024,” Herath said.
He further announced that provincial council elections are expected to be held next year following the completion of the ongoing delimitation process. “Parliament has a duty regarding the delimitation process,” the Minister said, responding to questions raised by opposition MPs.
