III 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 364 

Expressing support for the internal rebuilding, resettlement, and reconciliation 

within Sri Lanka that are necessary to ensure a lasting peace. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 27, 2014 

Mr. INHOFE (for himself, Mr. CORNYN, Mr. HATCH, Mr. BARRASSO, Mr. 

BLUNT, Mr. MANCHIN, Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. BOOZMAN, Mr. CRAPO, Ms. 

COLLINS, and Mr. ENZI) submitted the following resolution; which was 

referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing support for the internal rebuilding, resettlement, 

and reconciliation within Sri Lanka that are necessary 

to ensure a lasting peace. 

Whereas May 19, 2014, marks the 5-year anniversary of the 

end of the 26-year civil war between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the Government of Sri 

Lanka; 

Whereas the people of Sri Lanka suffered greatly as a result 

of this conflict, the impact and aftermath of which has 

been felt by all, especially by women, children, and families; 

Whereas the Government of Sri Lanka established a ‘‘Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission’’ (LLRC) to 


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•SRES 364 IS 

report whether any person, group, or institution directly 

or indirectly bears responsibility for incidents that occurred between February 2002 and May 2009 and to recommend measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future and promote further national unity 

and reconciliation among all communities; 

Whereas the LLRC report was presented to the Sri Lankan 

Parliament on December 16, 2011, and officially translated into Sinhala and Tamil on August 16, 2012; 

Whereas the LLRC report acknowledges important events 

and grievances that have contributed to decades of political violence and war in Sri Lanka and makes constructive recommendations on a wide range of issues, including the need to credibly investigate widespread allegations 

of extrajudicial killings; enforced disappearances; intentional targeting of civilians and noncombatants; demilitarizing the north and the country as a whole; reaching 

a political settlement with minority communities on the 

meaningful decentralization of power; and promoting and 

protecting the right to freedom of expression for all 

through the enactment of a right to information law and 

additional rule of law reforms; 

Whereas the Government of Sri Lanka developed the National Plan of Action to implement the recommendations 

of the LLRC and has made significant progress within 

limited time in the implementation of the National Plan 

of Action, notably in the areas of demining, rehabilitation 

of ex-combatants, resettlement of displaced persons, improvements of infrastructure and social services in the 

North and East, as well as investigations into complaints 

regarding persons who have disappeared during the war; 


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Whereas there have been reports of attacks on places of worship and restrictions on the media in several places in Sri 

Lanka; 

Whereas the Government of Sri Lanka expressed its commitment to address the needs of all ethnic groups and has 

recognized the necessity of a political settlement and reconciliation for a peaceful and just society, which is a 

long-term process that will need to be driven by the people of Sri Lanka themselves; 

Whereas the September 21, 2013, elections in Sri Lanka for 

the Northern, Central, and North Western Provincial 

Councils were an important step in fulfilling this commitment; 

Whereas these elections were made possible through a sustained effort by the Government of Sri Lanka to restore 

infrastructure in the North and put in place a system for 

the conduct of the elections; 

Whereas the elections allowed the people of the North of Sri 

Lanka to exercise their political rights that had been 

withheld from them for more than 20 years by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and resulted in 

a clear victory for the provincial wing of the Tamil National Alliance; 

Whereas Sri Lanka is enjoying rapid economic growth as an 

important hub for shipping transport, technology, and 

tourism in the South Asia region; 

Whereas Sri Lanka is of great strategic importance to the 

United States, due to its location, deep-water ports, and 

proximity to the world’s busiest shipping lanes, an importance noticed and pursued by other significant powers; 

and 


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Whereas Sri Lanka seeks to be a key United States partner 

in the fight against terrorism and Indian Ocean piracy: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) calls upon the President to develop a com3 prehensive and well balanced policy towards Sri 

4 Lanka that reflects United States interests, includ5 ing respect for human rights, democracy, and the 

6 rule of law, as well as economic and security inter7 ests; 

8 (2) calls on the United States Government and 

9 the international community to assist the Govern10 ment of Sri Lanka, with due regard to its sov11 ereignty, stability, and security, in establishing do12 mestic mechanisms to deal with any grievances aris13 ing from actions committed by both sides during and 

14 after the civil war in Sri Lanka; 

15 (3) encourages the Government of Sri Lanka to 

16 put in place a truth and reconciliation commission 

17 similar to the one adopted by South Africa to help 

18 heal the wounds of war, taking into account the 

19 unique characteristics of the conflict and its after20 math; and 

21 (4) urges the Government of Sri Lanka to im22 prove religious and media freedoms and to bring to 

23 justice those responsible for attacks on journalists 


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1 and newspaper offices as well as places of worship, 

2 regardless of religion. 

Æ 


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