India won the seat to Human Rights Council at United Nations today with the highest votes among all candidates.

India bagged 188 votes in the Asia-Pacific category, according to reports. The election was held by 193-member UN General Assembly. India was vying for a seat in the Asia Pacific category along with India, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Fiji and Philippines who had also staked a claim in the same regional group.&nbsp;

India's term will extend to the next three years starting January 1 next year.

The 18 new members were elected by an&nbsp;absolute majority through a secret ballot. Countries needed a minimum of 97 votes to get elected to the Council.

India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin said India's win reflects the country's standing in the international community.

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Voting for a Happy Outcome. 
 
Thanks to the support of all our friends <a href="https://twitter.com/UN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@UN</a> , India wins seat to Human Rights Council with highest votes among all candidates.🙏🏽 <a href="https://t.co/zhpJAZEs7C">pic.twitter.com/zhpJAZEs7C</a>
— Syed Akbaruddin (@AkbaruddinIndia) <a href="https://twitter.com/AkbaruddinIndia/status/1050776635962740736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 12, 2018</a></blockquote>
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India had previously been elected to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council for the 2011-2014 and 2014-2017 term. Its last tenure had ended on December 31, 2017 and in accordance with the rules, it was not eligible for immediate re-election since it had already served two consecutive terms.

Created by the Assembly in March 2006 as the principal United Nations body dealing with human rights, the Human Rights Council comprises 47 elected Member States.

On the basis of equitable geographical distribution, Council seats are allocated to the five regional groups as follows: African States, 13 seats; Asia-Pacific States, 13 seats; Eastern European States, 6 seats; Latin American and Caribbean States, 8 seats; and Western European and other States, 7 seats.

All five of the General Assembly's regional groups had submitted competition-free slates, meaning that all candidates, regardless of their rights records, were virtually assured seats on the council.&nbsp;

On the eve of the elections, rights group Human Rights Watch had said UN member countries should oppose the candidacies of the Philippines and Eritrea for the Human Rights Council because of their "egregious human rights records".

Serious rights violations in Bahrain and Cameroon also raise significant concerns, it said.&nbsp;

Former president of Chile Michelle Bachelet assumed the role of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in September this year, succeeding Jordanian diplomat Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, who had in June this year released a first-ever report on Kashmir that was rejected by India.

India won the seat to Human Rights Council at United Nations today with the highest votes among all candidates. India bagged 188 votes in the Asia-Pacific category, according to reports.

India won the seat to Human Rights Council at United Nations today with the highest votes among all candidates. India bagged 188 votes in the Asia-Pacific category, according to reports. The election was held by 193-member UN General Assembly. India was vying for a seat in the Asia Pacific category along with India, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Fiji and Philippines who had also staked a claim in the same regional group. India's term will extend to the next three years starting January 1 next year. The 18 new members were elected by an absolute majority through a secret ballot. Countries needed a minimum of 97 votes to get elected to the Council. India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin said India's win reflects the country's standing in the international community. Voting for a Happy Outcome. Thanks to the support of all our friends @UN , India wins seat to Human Rights Council with highest votes among all candidates.🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/zhpJAZEs7C — Syed Akbaruddin (@AkbaruddinIndia) October 12, 2018 × India had previously been elected to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council for the 2011-2014 and 2014-2017 term. Its last tenure had ended on December 31, 2017 and in accordance with the rules, it was not eligible for immediate re-election since it had already served two consecutive terms. Created by the Assembly in March 2006 as the principal United Nations body dealing with human rights, the Human Rights Council comprises 47 elected Member States. On the basis of equitable geographical distribution, Council seats are allocated to the five regional groups as follows: African States, 13 seats; Asia-Pacific States, 13 seats; Eastern European States, 6 seats; Latin American and Caribbean States, 8 seats; and Western European and other States, 7 seats. All five of the General Assembly's regional groups had submitted competition-free slates, meaning that all candidates, regardless of their rights records, were virtually assured seats on the council. On the eve of the elections, rights group Human Rights Watch had said UN member countries should oppose the candidacies of the Philippines and Eritrea for the Human Rights Council because of their "egregious human rights records". Serious rights violations in Bahrain and Cameroon also raise significant concerns, it said. Former president of Chile Michelle Bachelet assumed the role of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in September this year, succeeding Jordanian diplomat Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, who had in June this year released a first-ever report on Kashmir that was rejected by India.

India wins UN Human Rights Council election with highest votes

The members of the Baloch Republican Party (BPR) have raised the issue of human rights violations carried out by Pakistan in Balochistan at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).

&quot;The precious natural resources of Balochistan are being looted and taken away by the Pakistani state while the Baloch people are forced to live in Stone Age like conditions,&quot; said representative of the Baloch Republican Party to the UNHRC Abdul Nawaz Bugti.

&quot;Whenever the Baloch people demanded their rights from the Pakistani state, the response has always been military operations and massacre by the army,&quot; he added, &quot;300 thousand Baloch have been displaced and 27 thousands have become the victim of enforced disappearances.&quot;

He noted that &quot;torture and custodial killings of Baloch activists are common practice. Even women and children are not spared.&quot;

Another activist of BPR threw light on the plight of women in Balochistan.

&quot;While the world talks about gender equality and equal rights for women, the women in Balochistan are facing state terrorism, in addition to global problems,&quot; activist, BPR Muhammad Jawad.

&quot;They are most affected by the military operations, enforced disappearances of their family members,&quot; he added.

Jawad went on to say that &quot;there is hardly women in Balochistan who has not lost his husband, brother, father or son as a result of notorious kill and dump policy of Pakistan Army.&quot;

The members of the Baloch Republican Party (BPR) have raised the issue of human rights violations carried out by Pakistan in Balochistan at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC)

The members of the Baloch Republican Party (BPR) have raised the issue of human rights violations carried out by Pakistan in Balochistan at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). "The precious natural resources of Balochistan are being looted and taken away by the Pakistani state while the Baloch people are forced to live in Stone Age like conditions," said representative of the Baloch Republican Party to the UNHRC Abdul Nawaz Bugti. "Whenever the Baloch people demanded their rights from the Pakistani state, the response has always been military operations and massacre by the army," he added, "300 thousand Baloch have been displaced and 27 thousands have become the victim of enforced disappearances." He noted that "torture and custodial killings of Baloch activists are common practice. Even women and children are not spared." Another activist of BPR threw light on the plight of women in Balochistan. "While the world talks about gender equality and equal rights for women, the women in Balochistan are facing state terrorism, in addition to global problems," activist, BPR Muhammad Jawad. "They are most affected by the military operations, enforced disappearances of their family members," he added. Jawad went on to say that "there is hardly women in Balochistan who has not lost his husband, brother, father or son as a result of notorious kill and dump policy of Pakistan Army."

Baloch activists raise voice against atrocities by Pakistan at UNHRC

The spokesperson of &#39;Free Karachi&#39; campaign and former convener of Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Nadeem Nusrat said that Mohajirs have welcomed <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/pakistan-harbous-un-designate-terrorists-india-slams-pakistan-at-unhrc-35320" target="_blank">India&#39;s statement on their atrocities committed by Pakistan</a> at the United Nations Human Rights session.

Highlighting the atrocities committed in Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Nusrat said that the inclusion of Sindh in India&#39;s statement on human rights violations is an important and encouraging development for nearly 70 million Mohajirs.

&quot;The people of Karachi and Urban Sindh are grateful to the Indian Government for raising the voice on the plight of Mohajirs in Pakistan,&quot; he said.

Nusrat further said that Sindh, especially in Karachi and urban centres of Sindh province, had been neglected previously by the world community while highlighting the persecution of ethnic groups in Pakistan.

More than 25,000 Mohajirs have been brutally killed by the Pakistan Army and paramilitary operations in Karachi since 1992. Enforced disappearances, abductions and extrajudicial killings are on the rise in Karachi since the latest phase of operation in 2013.

The term &#39;Mohajir&#39; is used to describe the Urdu-speaking immigrants, who left India in 1947 and came to Pakistan. A large chunk of them settled in the Sindh province of Pakistan.

Highlighting the issue of terrorism, Nusrat said that religious extremism, fanaticism and terrorism is being nourished by Pakistan which has put peace and security of the region at stake.

&quot;The Pakistani soil has been used to plan and launch major terror attacks in the region. The providers and facilitators of terror sanctuaries in Pakistan must be held accountable by the UN and all peace-loving nations,&quot; he asserted.

He further added that the &#39;Free Karachi&#39; campaign has been drawing world&#39;s attention towards the state atrocities of Pakistan on Mohajirs, Balochs, Pashtuns and other religious minorities.

Nusrat stressed that the &#39;Free Karachi&#39; team is approaching international community, lawmakers, decision-making bodies, human rights groups and is getting tremendous support from all quarters.

He urged all the major regional powers of South Asia and international powers to put pressure on Pakistan to end crimes against humanity in Karachi and urban centers of Sindh along with Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA).

The &#39;Free Karachi&#39; campaign was launched on January 15 on the eve of Martin Luther King Day to raise global awareness on human rights violations in Karachi and Urban Sindh.

Also, digital ads of &#39;Free Karachi&#39; are running on the website of the leading US newspaper in the latest phase of the campaign.&nbsp;

The term 'Mohajir' is used to describe the Urdu-speaking immigrants, who left India in 1947 and came to Pakistan. A large chunk of them settled in the Sindh province of Pakistan

The spokesperson of 'Free Karachi' campaign and former convener of Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) Nadeem Nusrat said that Mohajirs have welcomed India's statement on their atrocities committed by Pakistan at the United Nations Human Rights session. Highlighting the atrocities committed in Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Nusrat said that the inclusion of Sindh in India's statement on human rights violations is an important and encouraging development for nearly 70 million Mohajirs. "The people of Karachi and Urban Sindh are grateful to the Indian Government for raising the voice on the plight of Mohajirs in Pakistan," he said. Nusrat further said that Sindh, especially in Karachi and urban centres of Sindh province, had been neglected previously by the world community while highlighting the persecution of ethnic groups in Pakistan. More than 25,000 Mohajirs have been brutally killed by the Pakistan Army and paramilitary operations in Karachi since 1992. Enforced disappearances, abductions and extrajudicial killings are on the rise in Karachi since the latest phase of operation in 2013. The term 'Mohajir' is used to describe the Urdu-speaking immigrants, who left India in 1947 and came to Pakistan. A large chunk of them settled in the Sindh province of Pakistan. Highlighting the issue of terrorism, Nusrat said that religious extremism, fanaticism and terrorism is being nourished by Pakistan which has put peace and security of the region at stake. "The Pakistani soil has been used to plan and launch major terror attacks in the region. The providers and facilitators of terror sanctuaries in Pakistan must be held accountable by the UN and all peace-loving nations," he asserted. He further added that the 'Free Karachi' campaign has been drawing world's attention towards the state atrocities of Pakistan on Mohajirs, Balochs, Pashtuns and other religious minorities. Nusrat stressed that the 'Free Karachi' team is approaching international community, lawmakers, decision-making bodies, human rights groups and is getting tremendous support from all quarters. He urged all the major regional powers of South Asia and international powers to put pressure on Pakistan to end crimes against humanity in Karachi and urban centers of Sindh along with Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). The 'Free Karachi' campaign was launched on January 15 on the eve of Martin Luther King Day to raise global awareness on human rights violations in Karachi and Urban Sindh. Also, digital ads of 'Free Karachi' are running on the website of the leading US newspaper in the latest phase of the campaign.

'Mohajirs welcome India's statement against Pak in UN human rights session'

Speaking at the 37th session of UN human rights council (UNHRC) in Geneva, Switzerland, Mini Devi Kumam, Second Secretary, India&#39;s Permanent Mission has lashed at Pakistan for sheltering UN-designated terrorists.

Calling Pakistan a failed state, Kumam said, &quot;In gross violation of UN Security Council resolution 1267, the UN designated terrorists like Hafiz Mohammed Saeed are freely operating with State support, and the UN designated entities are being politically mainstreamed in Pakistan.&quot;

She also highlighted&nbsp;the depressing state of minorities in the country, enforced disappearances and unlawful killing of political dissidents by Pakistan security forces.&nbsp;

She said &quot;We urge the Council to call on Pakistan to stop targeting political dissidents and legitimate criticism in Sindh, Baluchistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and to stop torture, enforced disappearances and unlawful killing, including that of journalists and activists by its security agencies. Pakistan should also prosecute all perpetrators of such crimes&quot;.

She also took on Pakistan for its continued support to cross-border terrorism in India.

&quot;We await credible action by the Government of Pakistan to bring all those involved in the 2008 Mumbai attacks and the 2016 Pathankot and Uri attacks to justice,&quot; she said.

Thrashing Pakistan for its lecture to India about the protection of human rights, she said, &quot;Even as terrorists thrive in Pakistan and roam its streets with impunity, we have heard it lecture about the protection of human rights in India.

The World does not need lessons on democracy and human rights from a country whose own situation is charitably described as a failed state&quot;.

(With inputs from ANI)

Calling Pakistan a failed state India's Permanent Mission said, 'In gross violation of UN Security Council resolution 1267, the UN designated terrorists like Hafiz Mohammed Saeed are freely operating with State support, and the UN designated entities are being politically mainstreamed in Pak'

Speaking at the 37th session of UN human rights council (UNHRC) in Geneva, Switzerland, Mini Devi Kumam, Second Secretary, India's Permanent Mission has lashed at Pakistan for sheltering UN-designated terrorists. Calling Pakistan a failed state, Kumam said, "In gross violation of UN Security Council resolution 1267, the UN designated terrorists like Hafiz Mohammed Saeed are freely operating with State support, and the UN designated entities are being politically mainstreamed in Pakistan." She also highlighted the depressing state of minorities in the country, enforced disappearances and unlawful killing of political dissidents by Pakistan security forces. She said "We urge the Council to call on Pakistan to stop targeting political dissidents and legitimate criticism in Sindh, Baluchistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and to stop torture, enforced disappearances and unlawful killing, including that of journalists and activists by its security agencies. Pakistan should also prosecute all perpetrators of such crimes". She also took on Pakistan for its continued support to cross-border terrorism in India. "We await credible action by the Government of Pakistan to bring all those involved in the 2008 Mumbai attacks and the 2016 Pathankot and Uri attacks to justice," she said. Thrashing Pakistan for its lecture to India about the protection of human rights, she said, "Even as terrorists thrive in Pakistan and roam its streets with impunity, we have heard it lecture about the protection of human rights in India. The World does not need lessons on democracy and human rights from a country whose own situation is charitably described as a failed state". (With inputs from ANI)

Pakistan harbours UN designate terrorists: India slams Pakistan at UNHRC

Bangladesh has called for a meeting of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to discuss the human rights issue of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar.

Recently, Bangladesh had sent a notice along with Saudi Arabia to the UNHRC in this regard, Dhaka Tribune has reported.

Their notice has received support of 33 of the 47 member states, and 40 other non-UNHRC nations.

The move comes just over a week after Sheikh Hasina-led government signed a bilateral agreement with Myanmar on Rohingya repatriation.

According to the national daily, Bangladesh also wants to discuss the human rights condition of other minorities living in Myanmar`s Rakhine state with the UNHCR members.

Since the military action began in Rakhine in August, after some militants attacked security forces&#39;&nbsp;post, over 6 lakh Rohingyas have fled the state to neighbouring countries, especially to Bangladesh.

As of now, 6.25 lakh refugees have taken shelter in the country.

According to Myanmar`s 1982 Citizenship Act, Rohingyas are not considered naturalised citizens and, repeatedly, have been at the receiving end of the ethnic clashes in the country.

Recently, Bangladesh had sent a notice along with Saudi Arabia to the UNHRC in this regard which has received the support of 33 of the 47 member states, and 40 other non-UNHRC nations

Bangladesh has called for a meeting of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to discuss the human rights issue of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar. Recently, Bangladesh had sent a notice along with Saudi Arabia to the UNHRC in this regard, Dhaka Tribune has reported. Their notice has received support of 33 of the 47 member states, and 40 other non-UNHRC nations. The move comes just over a week after Sheikh Hasina-led government signed a bilateral agreement with Myanmar on Rohingya repatriation. According to the national daily, Bangladesh also wants to discuss the human rights condition of other minorities living in Myanmar`s Rakhine state with the UNHCR members. Since the military action began in Rakhine in August, after some militants attacked security forces' post, over 6 lakh Rohingyas have fled the state to neighbouring countries, especially to Bangladesh. As of now, 6.25 lakh refugees have taken shelter in the country. According to Myanmar`s 1982 Citizenship Act, Rohingyas are not considered naturalised citizens and, repeatedly, have been at the receiving end of the ethnic clashes in the country.

Bangladesh calls for UNHRC meeting to discuss Rohingya crisis

For eight years now, western nations and the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva have slammed the Sri Lankan Armed Forces (SLAF)&nbsp;and the former Sri Lankan government of President Mahinda Rajapaksa for brutal human rights violations&nbsp;during Sri Lanka&rsquo;s three-decade long civil war against the separatist terror group, Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).&nbsp;Of special focus for the West has been&nbsp;the last phase of the war that took place around the Nanthikadal lagoon in North Eastern Sri Lanka. &nbsp;

Repeated resolutions have been introduced against the past and present governments in Colombo for failing to acknowledge that their armed forces killed 40,000 civilians caught in the cross-fire and continued with a three-pronged assault on the last of the fleeing Tiger leadership, instead of calling a ceasefire.

Colombo,&nbsp;the SLAF and various independent war monitors present on the ground during that last phase of war, have repeatedly argued&nbsp;that the figures didn&rsquo;t match up. It has been pointed out in vain that the small country&#39;s administration and the SLAF have&nbsp;records of all births and deaths, that Colombo has always had administrative control even over Tiger-held areas in the main battlegrounds of North and East Sri Lanka, that the United Nations itself had initially estimated around 7000 deaths and inexplicably upped that figure in later months - and finally,&nbsp;that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - the only outside agency present in the war zone during the last phase - itself had used various statistical evidence&nbsp;and arrived at the conclusion that a total of 7000 people lost their lives.&nbsp;

But all logic fell on deaf ears.&nbsp;A UN body commissioned for the task came out with the so-called Darusman Report claiming the inflated figure of 40,000 as the last word on the matter and all western governments accepted it unquestioningly.&nbsp;

Last week, there was a sensational presentation in the House of Lords in&nbsp;London. Lord Naseby, a UK parliamentarian who heads&nbsp;a British parliamentarian group supportive of Sri Lanka presented damning evidence to his government. UK governments are used to Lord Naseby, the &quot;Old Sri Lanka Hand&quot; springing frequently to the defence of the country he has been involved with for 45 years.&nbsp;&nbsp;But this was a presentation that made them sit up and - cringe. And WION&rsquo;s follow-up interview with Lord Naseby, conducted&nbsp;by correspondent Mandy Clark in London just days after his presentation, is currently making&nbsp;waves in Sri Lanka&nbsp;with leading Colombo commentators calling the WION&nbsp;report a &lsquo;media coup of sorts&rsquo;.

Lord Naseby told WION&rsquo;s Mandy Clark how he went about the onerous task of accessing confidential reports compiled&nbsp;by none other than London&rsquo;s own Defence Attache present in Sri Lanka during the infamous last phase of war in 2009. And came up with some startling discoveries.

&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve tracked the war carefully because I just couldn&rsquo;t believe these official figures - they didn&rsquo;t stack up to the information I was getting,&rdquo; Lord Naseby told WION. &quot;So I then invoked our freedom of information inquiry&quot;. (Equivalent to India&#39;s RTI).&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

&ldquo;I asked for the dispatches sent by our Defence Attache to our foreign office during the last days of the war. The application was refused twice by our foreign office. I then applied directly to the information commissioner - which is my right &ndash; and got 26 pages of redacted dispatches. Missing were the last six weeks of them. &nbsp;So I appealed again. And lo and behold, another 12 arrived. I went through them very carefully.&nbsp;

And in there, there was more than enough evidence that no one in the Sri Lankan government had said anything about killing any civilians at all. That was not the objective of the exercise. And from our Defence attache&rsquo;s dispatches, I thus gleaned that about 7000 were probably killed. And even (the Attache) says that about a quarter of those killed were possibly Tamil Tigers (LTTE), because they&rsquo;d thrown away their uniforms.&rdquo;

Classified documents were not Lord Naseby&rsquo;s only source.&nbsp;He asked university experts who are &quot;traditionally left-wing.&quot; They, too, told him&nbsp;that 7000 casualties was their estimate. There was other evidence too, like&nbsp;what US ambassador to Sri Lanka, Robert Blake, had named a tentative casualty figure:&nbsp;about 5000, a few days before the end of the war.

The reasons for western nations targeting Sri Lankan governments and its armed forces and threatening them with dire - usually economic - consequences - are&nbsp;not hard to understand. Sri Lanka is reeling under external debt and thus has an arm that is particularly easy to twist at this time. About 9,50,000 Sri Lankan Tamils fled their country to settle overseas during the 30 years of war. Many rose to positions powerful enough to dictate to local members of parliament in their overseas constituencies. Add to that the huge attractiveness of the island-nation of Sri Lanka, its bounty of natural resources and its highly strategic location at the crossroads of oil shipping lanes in the Indian Ocean.

The LTTE were the inventors of the fidayeen attack - the suicide bomb - and of the horrendous practice of forcibly recruiting child soldiers. And yet, the UK and EU countries gave shelter to many LTTE cadres and some LTTE&nbsp;top brass who fled the last stage of war. The Tamil Tigers are proscribed by most countries including the UK, the US, and the EU. And yet,&nbsp;the UK allows Tamils to celebrate LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran&rsquo;s birthday and hoist the flag of the banned organization in public&nbsp;every year.&nbsp;

Lord Naseby says that he keeps telling the Metropolitan Police of London that it is wrong to allow such demonstrations. But that the police claim that the demonstrators cleverly change tiny details on the flag each year,&nbsp;in order to escape the ban on the original design.

The MP,&nbsp;who has lived and worked in India for many years before he was transferred to Sri Lanka, also reminds Indian readers and viewers of WION that is was the LTTE who killed former PM Rajiv Gandhi. But while he has appealed to&nbsp;the UK government to amend the erroneous casualty count from 40000 down to 7000, he is all for an investigation into some controversial deaths during the last phase of war, such as the killing of three top Tigers despite their attempt to surrender carrying a white flag.&nbsp;

&ldquo;Of course, those really guilty of war crimes must be investigated. But to decry the entire&nbsp;leadership of Sri Lanka as war criminals - it&rsquo;s not done,&rdquo; Lord Naseby told WION.

The British parliamentarian also acknowledges that Sri Lanka&rsquo;s current government under President Maithripala Sirisena is making sincere attempts to resettle and address the concerns of the Tamils of the North and East of Sri Lanka, whose lives were shattered by the war. But Lord Naseby is keen that the world finally sees the Tamil Tigers in the right perspective: as a proscribed organization that systematically killed the most influential and educated Tamil leaders to ensure the solitary supremacy of its own tyrannical chief: Velupillai Prabhakaran.

(With inputs from Mandy Clark, London)

British Lord quotes UK's own classified files to prove 'manipulation' of number of civilian deaths.

For eight years now, western nations and the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva have slammed the Sri Lankan Armed Forces (SLAF) and the former Sri Lankan government of President Mahinda Rajapaksa for brutal human rights violations during Sri Lanka’s three-decade long civil war against the separatist terror group, Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Of special focus for the West has been the last phase of the war that took place around the Nanthikadal lagoon in North Eastern Sri Lanka. Repeated resolutions have been introduced against the past and present governments in Colombo for failing to acknowledge that their armed forces killed 40,000 civilians caught in the cross-fire and continued with a three-pronged assault on the last of the fleeing Tiger leadership, instead of calling a ceasefire. Colombo, the SLAF and various independent war monitors present on the ground during that last phase of war, have repeatedly argued that the figures didn’t match up. It has been pointed out in vain that the small country's administration and the SLAF have records of all births and deaths, that Colombo has always had administrative control even over Tiger-held areas in the main battlegrounds of North and East Sri Lanka, that the United Nations itself had initially estimated around 7000 deaths and inexplicably upped that figure in later months - and finally, that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - the only outside agency present in the war zone during the last phase - itself had used various statistical evidence and arrived at the conclusion that a total of 7000 people lost their lives. But all logic fell on deaf ears. A UN body commissioned for the task came out with the so-called Darusman Report claiming the inflated figure of 40,000 as the last word on the matter and all western governments accepted it unquestioningly. Last week, there was a sensational presentation in the House of Lords in London. Lord Naseby, a UK parliamentarian who heads a British parliamentarian group supportive of Sri Lanka presented damning evidence to his government. UK governments are used to Lord Naseby, the "Old Sri Lanka Hand" springing frequently to the defence of the country he has been involved with for 45 years. But this was a presentation that made them sit up and - cringe. And WION’s follow-up interview with Lord Naseby, conducted by correspondent Mandy Clark in London just days after his presentation, is currently making waves in Sri Lanka with leading Colombo commentators calling the WION report a ‘media coup of sorts’. Lord Naseby told WION’s Mandy Clark how he went about the onerous task of accessing confidential reports compiled by none other than London’s own Defence Attache present in Sri Lanka during the infamous last phase of war in 2009. And came up with some startling discoveries. “I’ve tracked the war carefully because I just couldn’t believe these official figures - they didn’t stack up to the information I was getting,” Lord Naseby told WION. "So I then invoked our freedom of information inquiry". (Equivalent to India's RTI). “I asked for the dispatches sent by our Defence Attache to our foreign office during the last days of the war. The application was refused twice by our foreign office. I then applied directly to the information commissioner - which is my right – and got 26 pages of redacted dispatches. Missing were the last six weeks of them. So I appealed again. And lo and behold, another 12 arrived. I went through them very carefully. And in there, there was more than enough evidence that no one in the Sri Lankan government had said anything about killing any civilians at all. That was not the objective of the exercise. And from our Defence attache’s dispatches, I thus gleaned that about 7000 were probably killed. And even (the Attache) says that about a quarter of those killed were possibly Tamil Tigers (LTTE), because they’d thrown away their uniforms.” Classified documents were not Lord Naseby’s only source. He asked university experts who are "traditionally left-wing." They, too, told him that 7000 casualties was their estimate. There was other evidence too, like what US ambassador to Sri Lanka, Robert Blake, had named a tentative casualty figure: about 5000, a few days before the end of the war. The reasons for western nations targeting Sri Lankan governments and its armed forces and threatening them with dire - usually economic - consequences - are not hard to understand. Sri Lanka is reeling under external debt and thus has an arm that is particularly easy to twist at this time. About 9,50,000 Sri Lankan Tamils fled their country to settle overseas during the 30 years of war. Many rose to positions powerful enough to dictate to local members of parliament in their overseas constituencies. Add to that the huge attractiveness of the island-nation of Sri Lanka, its bounty of natural resources and its highly strategic location at the crossroads of oil shipping lanes in the Indian Ocean. The LTTE were the inventors of the fidayeen attack - the suicide bomb - and of the horrendous practice of forcibly recruiting child soldiers. And yet, the UK and EU countries gave shelter to many LTTE cadres and some LTTE top brass who fled the last stage of war. The Tamil Tigers are proscribed by most countries including the UK, the US, and the EU. And yet, the UK allows Tamils to celebrate LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran’s birthday and hoist the flag of the banned organization in public every year. Lord Naseby says that he keeps telling the Metropolitan Police of London that it is wrong to allow such demonstrations. But that the police claim that the demonstrators cleverly change tiny details on the flag each year, in order to escape the ban on the original design. The MP, who has lived and worked in India for many years before he was transferred to Sri Lanka, also reminds Indian readers and viewers of WION that is was the LTTE who killed former PM Rajiv Gandhi. But while he has appealed to the UK government to amend the erroneous casualty count from 40000 down to 7000, he is all for an investigation into some controversial deaths during the last phase of war, such as the killing of three top Tigers despite their attempt to surrender carrying a white flag. “Of course, those really guilty of war crimes must be investigated. But to decry the entire leadership of Sri Lanka as war criminals - it’s not done,” Lord Naseby told WION. The British parliamentarian also acknowledges that Sri Lanka’s current government under President Maithripala Sirisena is making sincere attempts to resettle and address the concerns of the Tamils of the North and East of Sri Lanka, whose lives were shattered by the war. But Lord Naseby is keen that the world finally sees the Tamil Tigers in the right perspective: as a proscribed organization that systematically killed the most influential and educated Tamil leaders to ensure the solitary supremacy of its own tyrannical chief: Velupillai Prabhakaran. (With inputs from Mandy Clark, London)

UN fudged Sri Lanka war casualty figures, UK Parliamentarian says citing classified files

India today asked Pakistan to rein in its &quot;compulsive hostility&quot; towards it and fulfil its obligation to vacate illegal occupation of PoK, which has become a &quot;hub&quot; for the global export of terror. 
 
Exercising its right to reply during a UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva, the Indian representative said Pakistan must rein in its &quot;compulsive hostility&quot; towards India.

Also Read:<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/pakistans-violence-against-people-of-balochistan-unacceptable-eu-parliamentarian-13335">&nbsp;Pakistan&#39;s violence against people of Balochistan unacceptable: EU parliamentarian</a>

&quot;We ask Pakistan to stop inciting and supporting violence and terrorism in any part of India and refrain from meddling in our internal affairs in any manner,&quot; the official said.

Once again Pakistan&#39;s delegation has chosen to misuse the Council to make fallacious references about internal matters pertaining to Jammu and Kashmir, the diplomat said.

Emphasising that terrorism is the violation of human rights and should be so acknowledged by any impartial and objective observer, the Indian side said a part of the territories of Jammu and Kashmir remain under the forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan.

&quot;We also demand that Pakistan must fulfil its obligation to vacate illegal occupation of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK),&quot; the diplomat said.

&quot;It is unfortunate that in recent times the people of PoK have become victims of sectarian conflict, terrorism and extreme economic hardship because of Pakistan&#39;s occupation and discriminatory policies,&quot; the Indian side said.

&quot;The Indian state of J&amp;K is part of a pluralistic and secular democracy, where an independent judiciary, an active media and a vibrant civil society guarantee freedoms. In contrast, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is administered by a &#39;deep state&#39; and has become a hub for the global export of terror,&quot; the diplomat said.

The Indian side asserted that India does not accept attempts by Pakistan to denigrate the democratic choice that has been regularly exercised by the people of J&amp;K over the last six decades since our independence.

&quot;Pakistan&#39;s continued support for terror groups operating in J&amp;K is the main challenge to protecting the human rights of our citizens in the state,&quot; the diplomat added.

&quot;Pakistan&#39;s selective approach in tackling terror groups operating outside Pakistan and within, despite the numerous solemn promises made underscores the continuing unwillingness to acknowledge the truth,&quot; the Indian representative said.

The Indian side said apart from becoming &quot;world&#39;s terrorism factory&quot;, Pakistan has alienated its own people through continued mistreatment of Hindus, Christians, Shias, Ahmadiyas and other minorities.

&quot;In this Council, Pakistan has referred to the situation of minorities in India. Minorities in India have been prime ministers, presidents, vice-presidents, senior cabinet ministers, senior civil servants, cricket team captains, Bollywood superstars-can the minorities of Pakistan claim even a shadow of this? All they have are blasphemy laws and relentless abuse and violation of their human rights,&quot; the Indian side said.&nbsp;

(PTI)

An Indian diplomat at UNHRC session in Geneva said Pakistan must rein in its 'compulsive hostility' towards India

India today asked Pakistan to rein in its "compulsive hostility" towards it and fulfil its obligation to vacate illegal occupation of PoK, which has become a "hub" for the global export of terror. Exercising its right to reply during a UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva, the Indian representative said Pakistan must rein in its "compulsive hostility" towards India. Also Read: Pakistan's violence against people of Balochistan unacceptable: EU parliamentarian "We ask Pakistan to stop inciting and supporting violence and terrorism in any part of India and refrain from meddling in our internal affairs in any manner," the official said. Once again Pakistan's delegation has chosen to misuse the Council to make fallacious references about internal matters pertaining to Jammu and Kashmir, the diplomat said. Emphasising that terrorism is the violation of human rights and should be so acknowledged by any impartial and objective observer, the Indian side said a part of the territories of Jammu and Kashmir remain under the forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan. "We also demand that Pakistan must fulfil its obligation to vacate illegal occupation of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK)," the diplomat said. "It is unfortunate that in recent times the people of PoK have become victims of sectarian conflict, terrorism and extreme economic hardship because of Pakistan's occupation and discriminatory policies," the Indian side said. "The Indian state of J&K is part of a pluralistic and secular democracy, where an independent judiciary, an active media and a vibrant civil society guarantee freedoms. In contrast, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is administered by a 'deep state' and has become a hub for the global export of terror," the diplomat said. The Indian side asserted that India does not accept attempts by Pakistan to denigrate the democratic choice that has been regularly exercised by the people of J&K over the last six decades since our independence. "Pakistan's continued support for terror groups operating in J&K is the main challenge to protecting the human rights of our citizens in the state," the diplomat added. "Pakistan's selective approach in tackling terror groups operating outside Pakistan and within, despite the numerous solemn promises made underscores the continuing unwillingness to acknowledge the truth," the Indian representative said. The Indian side said apart from becoming "world's terrorism factory", Pakistan has alienated its own people through continued mistreatment of Hindus, Christians, Shias, Ahmadiyas and other minorities. "In this Council, Pakistan has referred to the situation of minorities in India. Minorities in India have been prime ministers, presidents, vice-presidents, senior cabinet ministers, senior civil servants, cricket team captains, Bollywood superstars-can the minorities of Pakistan claim even a shadow of this? All they have are blasphemy laws and relentless abuse and violation of their human rights," the Indian side said. (PTI)

Stop meddling in our internal affairs: India tells Pak at UNHRC

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