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November 3rd, 2018

Jagmeet Singh Calls on Trudeau Government to do More to Restore Democracy and Prevent More Violence in Sri Lanka

NDP leader Jagmeet Singh today called on the Trudeau government to do more to restore democracy and prevent more violence in Sri Lanka:

“On October 26, Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena suspended parliament for three weeks and fired Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, replacing him with Mahinda Rajapaksa, a former president alleged to have played a role the deaths of 70,000 and disappearance of at least 146,000 Tamil people in 2008 and 2009.

President Sirisena was elected on a promise to investigate Rajapaksa’s role in alleged war crimes, and the Tamil people – including Canada’s Tamil community – are understandably reeling at the news that instead of carrying through on that promise, the president has put Rajapaksa back in power.

Canada must do everything in its power to ensure democracy prevails in Sri Lanka, including considering the use of the Magnitsky Act to sanction public officials in Sri Lanka who may be responsible for gross human rights violations.”