The British government may submit its diplomatic cables to a proposed hybrid court that will examine human rights violations committed during the final phase of Sri Lanka’s armed conflict – a move that has been backed by Sri Lanka’s former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, according to a report in The Island.
When asked whether the UK would be submitting documents to a hybrid court a British High Commission spokesperson responded by saying "the UK cannot comment on its approach to court proceedings that have yet to be established,” reported The Island.
“Once such a court is established, we will decide on the release of documents in response to requests from the court, as appropriate," continued the spokesperson.
The final stages of the armed conflict saw tens of thousands of Tamil civilians killed as a massive military offensive by the Sri Lankan government came to a climax.
Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary at the time Gotabhaya Rajapaksa welcomed the potential release of diplomatic cables, telling The Island they “could be really useful in verifying unsubstantiated allegations”.
“BHC military dispatches are of pivotal importance against the backdrop of Labour Party alleging in UK parliament in Sept 2015 40 civilians and 60,000 LTTE cadres lost their lives during January-May 2009," he added.
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