Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma is engaged in last ditch efforts to prevent UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay from addressing the powerful Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) meeting in New York tomorrow, the Colombo Telegraph is now able to reveal.
An explicit request has been made to the Commonwealth Secretary General in writing by Canada, backed several other members of the CMAG to request a briefing by Pillay when the grouping meets on the sidelines of UN General Assembly on September 27, Western diplomatic sources told Colombo Telegraph.
However the sources said no response has been forthcoming from Secretary General Sharma to the request, that is reportedly also backed by Bangladesh which is the current chair of CMAG and was previously very supportive of Sri Lanka.
Ms. Pillay’s office confirmed that no such request has been made to her Geneva or New York offices from any Commonwealth organisations thus far.
CMAG does not have an office or administrative structure and is dependent on Commonwealth Secretariat arrange agendas and schedule meetings on behalf of the grouping.
At CMAG’s last meeting in April, Secretary General Sharma was instrumental in ensuring Sri Lanka was not included in the agenda and Sri Lanka was only taken up briefly under ‘other business’. It was to this April CMAG meeting that Sharma refrained from divulging the contents of two legal opinions on the Shirani Bandaranayake impeachment. As exclusively revealed by Colombo Telegraph, at least one of the two reports was wholly critical of the impeachment and said in no uncertain terms that the impeachment was both legally flawed and in contravention of Commonwealth values and principles.
Even at the eleventh hour, come CMAG members are still engaged in attempts to get the Pillay briefing during the New York meeting tomorrow.
Secretary General met President Mahinda Rajapaksa in New York on Tuesday.
Luxmy Silva / September 26, 2013
”Dirty Harry” has become ”Dirty Sharma” ???????
Hope the Commonwealth will be able to find a really suitable person to succeed him – any organisation is as good as its leader. That’s why the Africans have established the African Leadership Academy.
Why not get an apprenticesip there for Commonwealth Sharma?
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I am no muslim / September 26, 2013
How about ‘Father’ Emmanuel or Ananthi who won 2nd highest number of votes at NP.
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Dinuk / September 27, 2013
Next time Sharma is in Sri lanka there must be a massive civil society and opposition protest..
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Lanka Liar / September 29, 2013
Both very suitable. By the way any hope in getting membership in BBS. He will be prepared to shave his head. But you know he will expect something more….
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Park / September 26, 2013
It is time a no-confidence motion is presented at the CMAG meeting against Sharma. Canada should lead such a motion.
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Kautilya / September 27, 2013
A friend of mine living in Canada sent this report:
Canada, with its gross violations against its own aboriginal people, exacerbated by the anti-human approach of the Harper government, has little clout on the international stage. Sri lanka has settled its refugees. But over a thousand aboriginal people who were displaced by the Red River floods are still supposed to be languishing in make-shift shelters for 5 long years! Ans there are other problems of 600 aboriginal women who have disappeared and racist police are indicted!
Canada badly lost its big to get into various committees that it held when it had a reputation as a peace keeper. Today it is simply known as a lap-dog of the US, even worse than Britain. This is because Canada is trying to get its dirty bitumen shale oil shipped to the US via a proposed pipeline (keystone0 that Obama has not been keen on approving due to its terrible environmental impact!
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Siva Sankaran Sarma / September 27, 2013
So Canada has made mistakes, does it mean this “triply blessed land” should also do the same?
Pray tell me, why doesn’t Gota ever travel abroad?
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Spring Koha / September 27, 2013
What’s this rubbish! Why is Sri Lanka, a country with a long and noble history expected to set our standards compared to Canada?
Let us be confident of our behaviour and our human rights record and not try to make comparisons to others. Unless ofcourse we have something to be ashamed of.
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Hela / September 28, 2013
CT is working with such dogs to get separatist agents like pillai to manipulate Commonwealth member states.
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Max Silva / September 26, 2013
Who is this Pillay woman?What i know is that this woman is making $$$ out of the defeated Tamil terrorists.A lucky woman!
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Piranha / September 27, 2013
You blithering idiot. You have no clue about what you are talking.
This Pillay woman is a very highly educated, powerful, intelligent and a very very important personality in the UN whereas you are a nobody – nothing, smaller than a fly’s shit and as insignificant as that.
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Piranha / September 27, 2013
Oh! I forgot to mention that she is also Tamil.
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David / September 27, 2013
Head of HR High commission is a highly respectable position, only because she HAS Tamil root you all are criticizing her. From this point anyone out of racist mind will understand that “HOW SRI LANKAN MINORITIES ARE FACING AND SUFFERING AT ALL WALK OF LIFE DAILY BASIS’ Shame on Buddha
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Jim softy / September 27, 2013
Not only that, A wife if a terrorist.
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Palayang yako! / September 27, 2013
Max Silva:
Whoever let you out of your padded cell should be put in there him/herself!
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Lankan / September 27, 2013
Did you think she is a Rajapakse?
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Fathima Fukushima / September 27, 2013
She is a Tamil woman. Doesn’t that say it all?
Disgusting!
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James Ingham / September 27, 2013
Fathima, that lebeling is exclusively if one is a ‘muslim’.
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Fathima Fukushima / September 29, 2013
Muslims never behave like this.
Muslims are well known for selfless sacrifice.
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Park / September 27, 2013
Who are you a Muslim? Muslims are people who follow the religion Islam. Tamil and Sinhalese are languages, So you are either a Tamil or a Sinhalese.
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Fathima Fukushima / September 29, 2013
Muslim is a distinct ethnic community in SL. The Muslim community of the world is bound by Islam.
Tamils on the other hand have no basis. There are Tamil Hindus, Tamil Christians and Tamil Buddhists. Same with Chingalams.
Muslim is the only ethnic community that is also a religious creed. One to one. That shows how genuine it is.
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Hela / September 28, 2013
Max you are right. Educational qualifications does not certify morality of such people.
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Lanka Liar / September 29, 2013
Yea zero dollars. Hope you made something out of this comments. They are paying KP Karuna Pillayan Doglas Mokkans band few stooges in overseas so you too are entitled? Contact the nearest SL embassy or the foreign ministry.
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Common Sense / September 26, 2013
Congress politicians and people connected with it are big time businessmen and would go to any low level to make a biz deal. Sharma is one of them. MR would have offered him sky & the moon to bribe this piece of shit called Kamalesh Sharma.
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Javi / September 27, 2013
That’s because Ganesh the son in law of Banki made it easy for Punjabi tatte Sharme to be on the pay too (Sharme learnt the game at east timor as special rapporter UN). BTW, UK’s Northern Ireland is grateful to him for breaking the deadlock to bring in Indian investment so he is the chancellor of Queens Uni. Belfast too- wheels within wheels hard to shatter. Its like Shrub going to war with Iraq (where he tells the french show us your cards you have none and Jose Maria aznar PM Spain then head of EU in Shrubs pay and promises from bLiar too etc etc)Sadly hard luck nothing lost hoping.
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Leon / September 27, 2013
Canada should take the lead in this matter and get Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillai to speak at the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group on the 27 th . She has just returned from Sri Lanka and has also made an Oral
statement at the Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Sharma is a slimy fellow who is determind to hold the conference in Sri Lanka. So Canada it is now up to you
to,make sure that Ms Navi Pillai is permitted to speak at thenCMAG.
Time is of the essence Canada.
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Safa / September 27, 2013
Sharma seems to be under obligation to MR. CMAG has been reduced to a powerless conclave under his tutelage.
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bruz / September 27, 2013
Kamalesh Sharma is an Indian Snake, dancing according to Indian Music and Tabla. This guy is not a fit and proper person to hold the office of Secretary General at all and so is Banki-moon the baffoon of UN. The culprit is India as always been, totally against humanity and especially Tamils of Lanka. They helped GOSL Terrorists with arms, logistics & advisers to kill innocent Tamils with hateful vengeance in the guise of eradicating terrorism. Tamil’s # 1 enemy is India’s Congress party headed by the Italian Sonia the satan !Rajapakses come only after the unforgivable rascal rulers of India.
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gamini / September 27, 2013
Many blame RW in this scenario where MR not only rigs elections but also receives support from Corrupt World Leaders to remain in power.
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Mahela / September 27, 2013
Commission and Bribery is Rajapakse’s survival game plan. While getting all the ill gotten commissions including the poor peoples donated Stunami fund and Bribing the useful people including VP Rajapakses are playing a smooth game.
The whole world knows that MR is a world famous crook, dictator and a manipulator.He is nothing but a Cancer and a headache to the International community.
Very soon Sharma will be in trouble and Rajapakses made his downfall.
Better to stay away from the Village Cunning fox who will spread his virus around, and they will be in trouble.
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Hela / September 28, 2013
Other corrupt leaders try to depose MR.
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Diogenes / September 27, 2013
This Sharma fellow seems to be a rogue bought over by Maha Rajah Co. A shameless rascal who should be immediately sacked from his post!
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pontius P / September 27, 2013
One of our glories is that while we are careful to count various kinds of Tamils separately, but this lady from south africa is only and always a Tamil!
And we like to believe that divide and rule was entirely a british invention and practice.
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Siva Sankaran Sarma / September 27, 2013
Poor Canada, thought it would be fashionable to bat for terrorists but just ended up becoming the smelly kid of the Commonwealth that no one wants to sit next to :)
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Lanka Liar / September 29, 2013
There is nothing to bat. This is not cricket. this is about principles. you cant buy it in Sri Lanka because you don’t find it there. I don’t think you know what that is ether.
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Chandra Seneviratne / September 27, 2013
We,as independent spokesmen, have pointed out repeatedly to to Colombo
Telegraph on the events reported that Sharman has been bought over by MR and he is acting on a joint agenda with MR and that one cannot expect such a person to act independently and that he should step down in the best interests of the Commonwealth nations. Sharman will go down in the history of the Commonwealth as a person who has put his official position to disrepute. Indians should ashamed of the caliber of this ex-civil servant the Indian civil service has produced.
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Javi / September 27, 2013
UK will not back it they have given him a golden handshake at Northern Ireland for bringing in NRI funds and RM the famous Rolls Royce’s before cMoron loses the elections. Punjabi pakistan has also voted him for the second term to be unoposed. On top of it the Oxford/Cambridge lobby at its best in graft india/terror paki.So now he has become the multinational (they run nations not politicians) broker for nations. The whole nation can only protest on that day Spring- send RM and family to join Gaddafi in his neverland
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punchinilame / September 27, 2013
Now it is left to the Commonwealth Law Society to take K. Sharma to
Courts – the sooner the better. He thinks he can run the show with MR
for two years when both can share the “profits”.
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Hela / September 28, 2013
Why can’t they share profit? They also have right to the pie at some point.
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Waran / September 29, 2013
What is there to Hide? Let Madam Navi Pillai speak to the Ministers.
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Fathima Fukushima / September 29, 2013
However bad NP is and how biased she is, I don’t approve anyone stopping her from expressing herself.
She has the same right to be heard as much as Rajafucksa has. So let her speak her heart out. Anyone can respond to it.
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Lanka Liar / September 29, 2013
They should have called Sharma to do this assessment. He loves Sri Lankan hospitality. Especially the massages.
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