Colombo: Sri Lanka yesterday warned India of possible repercussions over Kashmir after it voted for a US resolution in Geneva on rights abuses during its war on the Tamil Tigers.
Government spokesman Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said some countries or groups might use the vote on Sri Lanka as a precedent to bring a similar resolution on India over the Kashmir dispute, Xinhua reported.
Sri Lanka was, however, mindful that India acted as a result of immense pressure from Tamil political parties, Abeywardena, the acting media minister, said.
Much to the disappointment of Colombo, India was among 24 countries which voted in support of the US-sponsored resolution on Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on Thursday.
President Mahinda Rajapakse has warned that countries which voted for the resolution would have to worry about consequences of terrorism.
Lankapage.com quoted Rajapakse as saying that "no external forces will be allowed to threaten the country's sovereignty".
The president commended the 15 countries which voted against "the anti-Lanka resolution for their support" and the eight nations which abstained in the 47-member UNHRC.
But, Minister Maithreepala Sirisena pointed out that the resolution was passed with the amendments added by India to safeguard Sri Lanka from "the interferences of UN bodies".
India forced the US to amend its resolution to safeguard Sri Lanka from international intrusions by adding a clause that said the UNHRC can provide advice and technical assistance "in consultation with, and with the concurrence of, the government of Sri Lanka".
‘Right thing'
Meanwhile, India reiterated yesterday that it did the right thing by voting for a US resolution at the UNHRC that asked Sri Lanka to do more to rehabilitate its minority Tamils because devolution of power to them "is not moving forward".
"Many promises were made but very little has been done. The rehabilitation process has proceeded well, in fact better than in countries like Cambodia but the political process is not happening. The devolution [of power] is not moving forward," official sources said.
