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Message: <blockquote data-quote="lkdood" data-source="post: 12204682" data-attributes="member: 92282"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/kfx4Z.gif" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /> <img src="http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSnApUboN8MvbCy-o4yEr_sVnvNPwinu8-WPVRwTzPHEUA-glZFzg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /> The US is not the enemy of Sri Lanka and come what may  in Geneva, the two countries will continue to have good bilateral  relations, US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Patricia Butenis  exclusively told Ceylon Today last morning.  “No doubt we are going through a tough time now, but I  hope to continue the good working relationship I have with key people in  the Sri Lankan Government,” Ambassador Butenis said.  The US envoy said that her government views the proposed  US backed resolution to be presented at the 19th Session of the UNHRC  in Geneva as an effort to move the Sri Lankan Government towards  implementing some very good recommendations born of a Sri Lankan  Government commission. “The LLRC is the Sri Lankan Government’s own  commission, with some excellent recommendations. I have to say that on  accountability we find that it is disappointing and really fell short of  things we think and some people in this country think need to be  addressed. But by and large it’s a good report. What we would like to  know is – where is the government’s action plan? Which of these  recommendations has the government embraced and which do they feel they  can’t?” the Ambassador told this newspaper in a candid interview.  Addressing concerns raised by thousands of government-backed  protestors on Monday, Ambassador Butenis dismissed claims that the  resolution the US hopes to move in Geneva is in any way a conspiracy.  “This is by no means a conspiracy ...  the government has made some  progress, but not on all the issues. I think now is the time to ask the  government to commit publicly in an international forum – ‘this is our  plan and we commit to doing it’ – that is what we’re asking for,” the US  Ambassador explained.  Asked what the take home message was from the government-backed  protests on Monday, Ambassador Butenis responded that they certainly  reflected the anger of the government over what was going on in Geneva.  “I did not take it frankly as repudiation by the population of Sri Lanka  against human rights issues,” she said.   Ambassador Butenis hailed the LLRC report and the commissioners,  saying they ‘delivered’ except in the accountability area. “Up to a  point I think some in the government felt that these were foreign  issues. That we were meddling, that we were the only ones that cared  about certain issues. And yet, the LLRC disproved that. These are Sri  Lankan issues; people who had suffered from all communities,” the US  Ambassador said.  She said that the US Government would not threaten or throw down  ultimatums at Sri Lanka, but believes that attention to the country’s  post-conflict issues in an international setting will apply pressure on  the government to meet their obligations. “I think there is considerable  sentiment in Sri Lanka for progress on these issues. It’s a little  frustrating that the government does not share that sense of urgency,”  the Ambassador said.  “I understand that the government had huge challenges. They had  280,000 IDPs for whom they were responsible and we were working with  them to get those folks resettled. But at the same time there were these  other issues I am sorry they didn’t begin to address,” the US Envoy  revealed.Ceylon Today</blockquote>

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