Nov 02, Washington, DC: The United States said today it concerned by actions taken to impeach Sri Lankan Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake and urged the government of Sri Lanka to avoid any action that would impede the efficacy and independence of Sri Lanka' judiciary.

Addressing the press briefing Friday State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland also mentioned the last month's attack on the Secretary of the Judicial Services Commission Manjula Thilakaratne

"We also note with concern recent threats to Sri Lankan judicial officials, including the assault last month on a judge who had publicly criticized government pressure on members of the judiciary," Nuland said.

"The United States, along with our partners in the international community, continues to urge Sri Lanka to address outstanding issues of the rule of law, democratic governance, accountability and reconciliation," the Spokesperson stressed.

At the Universal Periodic Review of Sri Lanka at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva yesterday the U.S. called on the Sri Lankan government to strengthen judicial independence by ending government interference with the judicial process, protect members of the judiciary from attacks and restore a fair, independent, and transparent mechanism to oversee judicial appointments.