Briefing by Sir John Holmes to UNSC
Item
Title
Briefing by Sir John Holmes to UNSC
Description
"In Sri Lanka, strict compliance with international humanitarian law is all the more critical with the intensification of fighting in the Vanni region and with reports of intermittent artillery fire into populated civilian areas in recent weeks. The scale of humanitarian needs is difficult to gauge, given the restricted humanitarian access due to the intensified fighting and the relocation of United Nations agencies and non-governmental organizations from rebel-held territory in mid-September.
I am, however, particularly concerned that some 350,000 civilians are trapped in an increasingly confined space and effectively prevented from leaving by Tamil Tiger rebels. This raises deep concerns over the possible use of civilians to render areas immune
from military operations. Regarding those who are able to leave Vanni, while the Government has the right to screen for fighters among them, it must not unduly continue to restrict their freedom of movement. "
Ms. DiCarlo (United States of America) ..." We are also deeply concerned about the recruitment of child soldiers by Governments and rebel movements in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
in the Sudan, by the Lord’s Resistance Army, by the Burmese regime, by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in Sri Lanka, by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and by other groups and
Governments too numerous to name here. "
Mr. Okuda (Japan): .. "We are gravely concerned about the dire situation of vulnerable civilians in armed conflict worldwide, including in Afghanistan, Iraq, Darfur, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia and Sri Lanka, as Under-Secretary-General Holmes pointed out in detail. We cannot accept deliberate attacks against civilians, journalists and humanitarian workers; recruitment of child soldiers in camps for refugees and internally
displaced persons; restriction of humanitarian access; sexual violence; or any other violations of international human rights and humanitarian law. "
Mr. McNee (Canada): ..."Civilian populations caught in armed conflict
often account for the majority of casualties as indirect
victims and, more sobering still, as deliberate targets.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the recent
escalation of fighting has led to the displacement of
hundreds of thousands of people, as well as to a serious
increase of sexual and gender-based violence. In Sri
Lanka, civilian populations continue to face unending
displacement as they move ahead of shifting front lines
to avoid crossfires. "
http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/Civilians%20SPV%206066.pdf
I am, however, particularly concerned that some 350,000 civilians are trapped in an increasingly confined space and effectively prevented from leaving by Tamil Tiger rebels. This raises deep concerns over the possible use of civilians to render areas immune
from military operations. Regarding those who are able to leave Vanni, while the Government has the right to screen for fighters among them, it must not unduly continue to restrict their freedom of movement. "
Ms. DiCarlo (United States of America) ..." We are also deeply concerned about the recruitment of child soldiers by Governments and rebel movements in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
in the Sudan, by the Lord’s Resistance Army, by the Burmese regime, by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in Sri Lanka, by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and by other groups and
Governments too numerous to name here. "
Mr. Okuda (Japan): .. "We are gravely concerned about the dire situation of vulnerable civilians in armed conflict worldwide, including in Afghanistan, Iraq, Darfur, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Somalia and Sri Lanka, as Under-Secretary-General Holmes pointed out in detail. We cannot accept deliberate attacks against civilians, journalists and humanitarian workers; recruitment of child soldiers in camps for refugees and internally
displaced persons; restriction of humanitarian access; sexual violence; or any other violations of international human rights and humanitarian law. "
Mr. McNee (Canada): ..."Civilian populations caught in armed conflict
often account for the majority of casualties as indirect
victims and, more sobering still, as deliberate targets.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the recent
escalation of fighting has led to the displacement of
hundreds of thousands of people, as well as to a serious
increase of sexual and gender-based violence. In Sri
Lanka, civilian populations continue to face unending
displacement as they move ahead of shifting front lines
to avoid crossfires. "
http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3-CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/Civilians%20SPV%206066.pdf
Date
2009-01-14