Dec 18, Colombo: New York based Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International today urged the United Nations Human Rights Council to take immediate action on the rapidly deteriorating human rights situation in Sri Lanka.

In an open letter at the start of the Sixth Session of the Human Rights Council the watch groups said the council should press the Sri Lankan government to agree to the immediate establishment of a UN human rights field operation with a strong monitoring mandate.

“The recent downgrading of Sri Lanka's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) by an international committee highlights the need for independent international monitoring of the human rights situation in the country,” it said.

"Unfortunately, Sri Lanka lacks credible domestic institutions to address human rights violations," Elaine Pearson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch said.

The International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights which regulates national human rights institutions recently–down graded Sri Lanka's NHRC to "observer" status citing government influence on its independence. As a result, the commission no longer has the right to vote in international meetings and is not eligible to stand for election to the international coordinating committee.

"Sri Lankan government claims that its Human Rights Commission is a strong and independent institution ring hollow," Pearson said.

HRW said the human rights situation in Sri Lanka is rapidly deteriorating and accused both the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE of failing to abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law to protect civilians from harm. In the last two weeks of November alone, more than 50 civilians have been killed in Sri Lanka, it said.