New Delhi, Oct. 13 -- Western powers tightened their hold over Sri Lanka at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva by passing a resolution with the backing of 22 countries. The position of the Island-nation was so weak that it could not even demand a vote.

Though the UNHRC has given a 2-year respite to improve the human rights record, the resolution titled A/HRC/60/L.1/Rev.1 - Promoting Reconciliation, Accountability and Human Rights in Sri Lanka will continue to hang over like the proverbial Sward of Damocles as it happened in the last 15 years since the war against Tamil militants ended in 2009.

The resolution, a slightly revised version of the one which Sri Lanka formally rejected earlier was adopted at the 60th Se...