Sri Lanka cannot ignore cold facts

Editorial | Gulf News
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New video footage has emerged in Britain of the final days of Sri Lanka's long and bloody civil war. The footage, which has been independently verified as being original, shows three blindfolded and bound people being shot. One of the victims is a woman. In addition, the horrific scenes also show naked corpses of men, women and children being loaded onto military trucks by smiling soldiers.

The bloody and murderous insurgency of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam shook Sri Lanka to its core for 25 years. President Mahinda Rajapaksa was successful in organising an effective military campaign to finally end the threat of terror. But while he won the war, Rajapaksa still has to win peace in the eyes of the international community. The United Nations has consistently called for a full and impartial investigation into atrocities committed during the closing chapter of the civil war. If there were mistakes made, Rajapaksa must deal with them.

War is bloody, vicious, and stretches the very boundaries of humanity itself.

Britain has joined the chorus of calls for an investigation. Since the end of the war, Rajapaksa has resisted these calls for an investigation.

That call is now deafening. It should be heeded.

© Gulf News