(OTTAWA) Canada imposes sanctions on four top Sri Lankan leaders, including two recent ex-presidents, accusing them of human rights abuses during the country’s civil war.
The announcement took the Sri Lankan High Commission in Ottawa by surprise, which told The Canadian Press that it would prefer the Canadian government to raise its concerns directly with it.
The sanctions target former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who resigned last July, and his older brother, Mahinda Rajapaksa, who served as President and then Prime Minister of Sri Lanka.
Gotabaya Rajapaksa temporarily fled his country last summer after major protests over the cost of living, while his brother Mahinda resigned as prime minister last spring.
The majority Sinhalese population of Sri Lanka hailed the two brothers for defeating Tamil separatists after a bloody 26-year civil war, but the pair are now banned from any financial dealings in Canada.
Also sanctioned are two senior army officers, including Staff Sergeant Sunil Ratnayake, who was sentenced by a court to death for his role in a massacre of Tamils in 2000.
Ottawa is also sanctioning Lieutenant Commander Chandana Prasad Hettiarachchi, who was accused in his country of kidnapping civilians who were then killed.
The sanctions provide for a freeze of their assets and prohibit persons in Canada, and Canadians abroad, from engaging in any activity related to their property or providing them with financial services. These people are also inadmissible to Canada.
This announcement from Ottawa attracted media attention in South Asia. If Mr. Ratnayake and Mr. Hettiarachchi had already been sanctioned by the United States, it is extremely rare for a recent head of state to be banned from entering a Western country.
Sri Lanka’s deputy high commissioner to Canada, Anzul Jhan, said her government was committed to peace and would prefer Ottawa to raise its concerns directly with her.
Mme Jhan noted that Sri Lanka is committed to a UN plan for accountability, reconciliation and decentralization of power. The country has signed memoranda with various other countries to formalize bilateral consultations, but noted that Canada has yet to sign such an agreement.
The current President of Sri Lanka, Ranil Wickremesinghe, took office last July and “has started formal discussions with all Tamil parliamentarians on the way forward regarding the ethnic issue in Sri Lanka”, according to Mr.me Jhan.
The High Commission said about 300,000 people in Canada have Tamil roots in Sri Lanka.
“Therefore, we believe that Canada has a role of peacemaker and that all issues should be discussed bilaterally,” said Ms.me Jhan.
“In this context, the Canadian announcement is a surprise. »