A lawsuit against MR dismissed

1 March 2012 02:40 am

A US District court has dismissed a lawsuit against Pesident Mahinda Rajapaksa over alleged war crimes committed during the war, foreign media reported.
U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly ruled that she must dismiss the suit against President Mahinda Rajapaksa because the Obama administration says he is immune from the litigation as a foreign head of state.

"The court does not take this step lightly," Kollar-Kotelly wrote. "The plaintiffs' complaint contains shocking allegations of human rights abuses and violations of United States and international law. The court's dismissal of this case is in no way a reflection of the merits of plaintiffs' claims or defendant's defenses. Rather, two centuries of case law and basic constitutional and statutory principles prevent this court from allowing plaintiffs' complaint to move forward at this time."

"This court is not in a position to second-guess the executive's determination that in this case, the nation's foreign policy interests will be best served by granting defendant Rajapaksa head of state immunity while he is in office," Kollar-Kotelly wrote.

The suit was brought by relatives of Tamil Tiger minorities and a humanitarian worker who was assisting them. The plaintiffs claim all were killed by government security forces under Rajapaksa's control.