Fearing arrest for war crimes, Sri Lanka president cancels trip to Britain...

In an embarrassing turn of events, Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse has been forced to cancel his proposed visit to Britain following fears that he might be arrested for alleged war crimes under British law. Rajapakse's provisional engagements included an address to the Oxford Union, and it's learnt that certain Sri Lankan Tamil organisations were planning to move court for his arrest.

Asked to comment on the cancellation, the British foreign office said, "The president's plans have changed." Several phone calls to the Sri Lankan high commission fetched only silence.

Under the principle of universal jurisdiction, war crimes and crimes against humanity can be prosecuted in Britain even if they were not committed in the UK. The Global Tamil Forum has been at the forefront of the anti-Rajapakse campaign here. More...

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