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India should stand by Sri Lanka - Daily Pioneer
Will it be in India's national interest to vote against Sri
Lanka at the UNHRC? The answer to that question is a resounding 'No', the Daily
Pioneer said in an editorial today (March 20).
If India actually votes for the resolution which is entirely
uncalled for and whose passage would be tantamount to both questioning the
sovereignty of Sri Lanka and interfering in its internal affairs, it would mark
a sharp departure from our long-standing policy of not voting for
country-specific resolutions that accuse specific Governments of 'human rights
violations, it added.
India's voting in favour of the US resolution against Sri Lanka
at the United Nations Human Rights Council would also amount to India wilfully
rubbing a friendly country in its neighborhood the wrong way and earning the
displeasure, if not anger, of its people who are otherwise favourably disposed
towards us, the newspaper said.
Full text of the editorial follows:
Nothing can be more tragic than to watch the Prime Minister of a
nation of more than a billion people meekly surrender to a minuscule few who
brazenly indulge in political blackmail. Mr Manmohan Singh, while replying to
the debate on the President's address in Parliament on Monday, said "coalition
compulsion" had forced his Government to consider voting in favour of the
US-sponsored resolution against Sri Lanka at the United Nations Human Rights
Council. If India actually votes for the resolution which is entirely uncalled
for and whose passage would be tantamount to both questioning the sovereignty of
Sri Lanka and interfering in its internal affairs, it would mark a sharp
departure from our long-standing policy of not voting for country-specific
resolutions that accuse specific Governments of 'human rights violations'. It
would also amount to India wilfully rubbing a friendly country in its
neighbourhood the wrong way and earning the displeasure, if not anger, of its
people who are otherwise favourably disposed towards us. Already posters and
banners are up in Sri Lanka denouncing America and meddlesome countries of
Europe for trying to arm-twist the Rajapaksa Government into submission. The
question which we, the people of this country, should ask ourselves, and our
Government, is whether we would like India to be added to the list of countries
Sri Lankans despise. From that follows the second question: Will it be in
India's national interest to vote against Sri Lanka at the UNHRC? The answer to
that question is a resounding 'No'.
There are three reasons why India must not support the
resolution against Sri Lanka. First, it is a veiled attempt by the US and its
European allies to become the arbiters of Sri Lanka's future. The West was
stunned by the Sri Lankan military's remarkable victory in the war against the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, one of the most ruthless terrorist
organisations in the world. That feat was achieved without the assistance of
those who claim to lead the global war on terror. India should not be a party to
this sly attempt to browbeat Sri Lanka. Second, the UPA erred by adopting a
hands-off policy when the battle against the LTTE was raging. Had New Delhi been
more pro-active and played a decisive role, Colombo would not have had to turn
to Beijing for assistance. That lapse has led to enhanced relations between
China and Sri Lanka, and diminished India's stature. Third, by voting in favour
of the resolution, India will be paving the way for similar resolutions against
itself. In 1994 it required the combined effort of the then Prime Minister, PV
Narasimha Rao, his Minister for External Affairs, Dinesh Singh, and Mr Atal
Bihari Vajpayee (who was Leader of the Opposition) to scuttle a
Pakistan-sponsored, OIC-backed resolution against India, charging it with 'human
rights violations in Jammu & Kashmir', at the UN. Nothing prevents
busybodies in the EU to move similar resolutions against India, accusing it of
violating the rights of Maoists and other assorted terrorists. What will be
India's stand if that were to happen? Whom would it turn to for help? The DMK is
desperately trying to claw its way back into relevance and has seized upon bogus
sentiments to demonstrate its political clout. Neither the DMK nor those
sentiments should be pandered to.
Courtesy : PRIU