Protests began in Tamil Nadu in January 2017 against the banning of the ancient sport jallikattu, where people try to tame a raging bull. Xinhua/SIPA USA/PA Images. All rights reserved. Just prior to the United Nations Humans Rights Council’s (UNHCR) March 2017 hearings on war crimes committed during Sri Lanka’s civil war, the main political party of Sri Lanka’s Tamils, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), had urged the UN to pressure the Sri Lankan government to expedite its investigations. Instead, the consensus resolution passed on 23 March provided the Sri Lankan government with a further two years to investigate the war crimes. This comes as no surprise because the March 2017 resolution, like all previous resolutions on war crimes committed during Sri Lanka’s civil war, was initiated and backed by the US.
Between 2012 and 2014, the US-backed resolutions in the UN were designed to pressure Sri Lanka, which, under the presidency of Rajapaksa, had become a close ally of Beijing. However, following the regime change that saw Rajapaksa ousted and Wickramasinghe, from the right-leaning United National Party (UNP), appointed Prime Minister, the US changed tack. Thereafter, the resolutions were intended to maintain US influence by placating Sri Lanka’s Sinhala political establishment, which was opposed to the very notion of war crimes.
Ever since Tamil Nadu became aware of New Delhi’s assistance to Colombo during the final days of Sri Lanka’s civil war, it has been on the boil.
