Jan Logie MP
New Zealand’s Green Party parliamentarian Ms Jan Logie on Friday
wrote to New Zealand’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Murray McCully,
urging him to support Canada’s political lead and publicly condemn Sri
Lanka’s persistent failure to ensure justice for alleged war crimes and
crimes against humanity. She also urged the Foreign Minister to take a
strong stand on CHOGM and to call for another Chair to replace Rajapaksa
when it comes time to appoint the Commonwealth Chairperson-in-office
for the next two years.
Jan Logie MP
“Allowing Sri Lanka’s President to
become the chair of the commonwealth would undermine our efforts to
strengthen human rights in the Asia Pacific. It would undermine the UN
efforts to get a proper investigation of the war crimes and it would
also seriously undermine the charter just developed by the Commonwealth
committing Commonwealth leaders to democracy, human rights, tolerance,
freedom of expression, good governance and the rule of law – none of
which are respected by the Rajapaksa government,” the parliamentarian
said.
“To stay silent and then go to Sri Lanka and accept their
President, even symbolically, as leader of the Commonwealth for two
years would be inappropriate, inconsistent and counter to our regional
interests,” she further wrote in her letter.
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