India on Thursday abstained on a draft resolution in the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka which was adopted.
While abstaining, India stressed that it will work with Sri Lanka and the international community to attain the related objectives of legitimate aspirations of Tamils of Sri Lanka and prosperity for all Sri Lankans.
The draft resolution on ‘Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka’ was adopted at the 51st Session of Human Rights Council in Geneva, with 20 nations voting in favour in the 47-member Council, seven against, including China and Pakistan, and 20 abstentions, including by India, Japan, Nepal and Qatar.
The 20 countries that voted in favour of the resolution included, the United Kingdom, the United States, Argentina, Finland, France, Germany, Mexico, the Netherlands, Paraguay, Poland, Republic of Korea and Ukraine.
In a statement during the adoption of the resolution, Ambassador Indra Mani Pandey, Permanent Representative of India to UN & other International Organizations, said that while India has taken note of the commitments by the government of Sri Lanka on issues of implementation of the commitments in the spirit of the 13th Constitutional Amendment, meaningful devolution and the early conduct of provincial elections, “we believe that the progress towards the same remains inadequate.” India urged Sri Lanka to work meaningfully towards early implementation of these commitments.
