Sri Lankan’ll not succumb to pressure after UNHRC resolution – president

Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, on Monday, said that his country will not succumb to any pressure in response to the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) passage of a resolution presented by some western countries.

In a statement released by his office, the president said Sri Lanka will face the challenge without fear and that it will not succumb to pressure.

Meanwhile, he noted that Sri Lanka’s national development strategies were in place, including environment-friendly projects such as electricity to all households while boosting the economy in the country.

“Therefore, foreign and local forces, who are against our progress, are misleading the public.

“If you give in to those lies, the damage could be irreversible,’’ he said.

The UNHRC resolution calls for accountability over incidents related to Sri Lanka’s 30-year civil conflict between the government forces and the Tamil Tiger rebels who were militarily defeated in May 2009.

The resolution was passed at the UNHRC with 22 countries voting in favour, 11 countries against and 14 abstaining.