August 31, 2010 Dear Justice Roberts: President Mahinda Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka is expected to visit Manhattan this fall to speak at the United Nations. Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, various United Nations officers, and the International Crisis Group have all accused Sri Lankan functionaries and military men of war crimes committed during the recent Sri Lankan civil war. All of these purported criminals, of course, reported to and took their orders from President Rajapaksa. If they are guilty of the crimes of which these numerous international bodies claim they are guilty, then the moral and legal responsibility for these crimes rests with President Rajapaksa. The accusations arise from the government’s intentional shelling of civilian refugees, intentional shelling of hospitals, and violent actions against international observers and humanitarian organizations. There was also evidence of execution without trial of prisoners. We are seeking your opinion. Is it possible to arrest a criminal who is a foreign national passing through the United States for crimes of which he has not yet been tried or convicted? Rajapaksa certainly will also have some form of diplomatic status, which will further complicate this issue. The United States has arrested and deported, even decades after the alleged crimes, individuals accused of crimes committed during the Nazi era. When a crime is ongoing and/or in progress, as in Bosnia, the United States has intervened to prevent the crime from continuing. These precedents occur to us when we hear of President Rajapaksa’s visit to our country, but we are not experts. We are therefore asking you if it is possible for American officials to place President Rajapaksa under arrest as he passes through the United States. We are eager hear from you on this matter. Thank you. Sincerely, Tamils for Obama
To read accounts of Mr. Rajapaksa’s wartime conduct from the International Crisis Group: http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/regions/asia/south-asia/sri-lanka/191-war-crimes-in-sri-lanka.aspx To read accounts of Mr. Rajapaksa’s wartime conduct from Human Rights Watch: http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/05/08/sri-lanka-repeated-shelling-hospitals-evidence-war-crimes
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