Liberal Party Urges Canada To Take Active Role in Sri Lanka
Calling for Canada To Take Active Role in Sri Lanka, Liberal Party Foreign Affairs Critic Bob Rae in a statement released yesterday by the party in Ottawa said that “It is clear that the ceasefire has fallen apart and It is equally clear that there is no military solution to the underlying causes of the conflict.”
He pointed out in the statement that the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner Louise Arbour has taken a strong position, urging action and change by all parties to the conflict. Mr Rae said in his statement that “There is no excuse for Canada’s silence and inaction.”
“Canada should be doing more to support Ms. Arbour’s recommendations,” said Mr. Rae.
Last week when speaking at a meeting organized by Canadians for Peace in Sri Lanka in Scarborouh, Mr. Rae said “To think there is a military solution on either side is a delusion.”
The former Ontario premier Bob Rae, who has met leaders on both sides several times, said the government air strike that killed S.P. Thamilselvan, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam second-in-command, could start a new spiral of violence.
But though Mr. Rae added the LTTE must be part of any solution to the conflict, he said he told Thamilselvan not to expect Canadian approval of Tiger tactics, which include suicide bombings and recruitment of child soldiers.
The Sri Lankan government, on the other hand, must resolve the grievances underlying the war and has failed to tell the world how the standoff can end peacefully, Mr. Rae said.
“We’ve been waiting and we’re still waiting because such a plan is not forthcoming”
