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WORLD NEWS Saturday 15 February 2020
U.S. travel ban for Sri Lanka army chief in hospital shelling

By BHARATHA MALLA- Sri Lanka's foreign ministry
WARACHI said in a statement that
Associated Press Silva was appointed army
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) commander because of
— The U.S. government on his seniority and asked U.S.
Friday issued a travel ban officials to verify the sourc-
Sri Lanka's army chief, say- es of the information used
ing there is "credible infor- to justify the travel ban.
mation of his involvement" The statement added that
in human rights violations "it is disappointing that a
during the final phase of foreign government should
the island nation's civil war question the prerogative of
that ended 11 years ago, the democratically elect-
Secretary of State Michael ed President to call upon
R. Pompeo said. persons with proven exper-
The army chief, Shavendra tise to hold key positions on
Silva, and his immediate national security related
family members are now matters."
prohibited from traveling to Sri Lanka declared victory
the U.S. in a ban that was over the rebels in May 2009,
quickly denounced by Sri ending the Tamil Tigers' 26-
Lanka's government, which year campaign for an inde-
said "there were no sub- pendent state for minority
stantiated or proven alle- This April 24, 2009, file photo shows Sri Lanka's Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva at a military facility in ethnic Tamils.
gations of human rights vio- Kilinochchi, Sri Lanka. Associated Press Both the Sri Lankan military
lations" committed by Silva. and the rebels have been
Silva in 2009 was in charge ment that "the allegations vestigation cited evidence amid international con- accused of wartime abus-
of the 58th Division which of gross human rights vio- that the hospital and a U.N. demnation but is widely re- es.
encircled the final strong- lations against Shavendra facility were shelled. spected among Sri Lanka's The United Nations has
hold of the Tamil Tiger reb- Silva, documented by the "Witnesses alleged the use ethnic Sinhalese majority. said some 45,000 ethnic
els in the last stages of the United Nations and other of cluster-type munitions by Pompeo urged Sri Lanka's Tamil civilians may have
civil war that killed at least organizations, are serious the Sri Lankan armed forc- government "to promote been killed during the final
100,000 people. Human and credible." es in their attacks on Putu- human rights, hold ac- months of the conflict.
rights groups have ac- According to a 2015 investi- mattalan hospital and the countable individuals re- Sri Lanka's government
cused the division of vio- gation by the U.N. office of United Nations hub," the in- sponsible for war crimes promised the U.N. Human
lating international human the High Commissioner for vestigation's report said. and human rights viola- Rights Council in 2015 that
rights laws, including using Human Rights, near the end After the civil war, Silva was tions, advance security it would investigate the al-
artillery to shell a hospital, of the war Silv a was tasked promoted to major gener- sector reform, and uphold legations against Silva and
an allegation he has de- with capturing the coun- al. He was promoted again its other commitments to involve foreign prosecutors
nied. try's Putumattalan area and became Sri Lanka's pursue justice and recon- and judges, but has not
Pompeo said in a state- from the Tamil Tigers. The in- army commander last year ciliation." done so.q

E.U., others work on refugee

job development in Latin America

By ASTRID GALVAN the three-year initiative, around the world.
Associated Press which aims to create more In Costa Rica, a nation of
MEXICO CITY (AP) — The job opportunities and pro- about 5 million people,
European Union says it is tections for asylum seekers. nearly 60,000 migrants
donating 4 million euros In Mexico, the United Na- sought asylum last year.
($4.3 million) to help refu- tions High Commissioner for Most are Nicaraguans who
gees in Mexico, Costa Rica Refugees has been work- are highly educated and
and Honduras find living- ing with government of- in professional fields. Hun-
wage jobs and better inte- ficials to place people in dreds of Nicaraguans were In this July 25, 2019 file photo, United States Border Patrol officers
grate into society. central and northern Mex- killed and thousands were return a group of migrants back to the Mexico side of the border
The announcement in Mex- ico cities, where there are injured during anti-gov- as Mexican immigration officials check the list, in Nuevo Laredo,
ico City on Thursday came more jobs. Migrants who ernment protests in 2018 Mexico.
as the number of asylum have been granted asylum in what human rights ad- Associated Press
seekers in Mexico in partic- and therefore can legally vocates say has been an asylum in the Mexico get Thursday will fortify relation-
ular has skyrocketed. Just work contributed 40.6 mil- egregious crackdown on permanent residency in ships between non-govern-
over 70,300 people sought lion pesos ($2.1 million) to dissent. the country, meaning they mental groups that help
asylum in Mexico last year, the Mexican economy last In addition to instability in can work and eventually migrants.
and this year is already out- year, according to the EU. Latin America, the policies become citizens. But many "We are absolutely con-
pacing last. Nearly 6,000 Extreme violence, poverty, of U.S. President Donald aren't equipped to find vinced that working is the
people applied for asylum political conflict and food Trump have made it ex- steady work. best form of social integra-
in January, a 50% increase and medicine scarcity tremely difficult for asylum Gerardina González Mar- tion, that work dignifies a
over the same time last have driven tens of thou- seekers to find refuge in the roquín, director of the Inter- person, that work solves
year. sands of people to leave United States, forcing many national Labor Organiza- poverty, that work gener-
Several organizations will their home countries in Lat- to stay in Mexico. tion for Mexico and Cuba, ates growth," González
be involved in carrying out in America and elsewhere People who are granted said the agreement signed Marroquín said. q