TNA says govt lacks political will to fulfill promises

The TNA's spokesperson, M A Sumanthiran told the Daily Mirror this week the party was "disappointed that many of the things that should have been done and completed are being dragged on." "The Government does not seem to have political will to meet the promises it made in their entirety," he said. Highlighting the stalling of the Office of Missing Persons Bill, the Convention for Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances and the constitutional reform promise, Mr Sumanthiran said the government's commitment was brought into question. Commenting on the senior Buddhist clergy's...

US considers sanctions on Chinese companies over North Korea

The US is considering adopting sanctions against Chinese firms for the nation’s failure to take a harder stance on North Korea, reports ABC news. The timing and scope of the sanctions would depend on how China responds to calls for tougher steps against North Korea. US officials are set to meet Chinese officials for a high-level economic dialogue in Washington on Wednesday according to US officials. The sanctions being considered would seek to apply economic pressure on businesses and companies in countries with ties to North Korea by denying them access to the US market and financial system.

Families of political prisoners prepared to hunger strike

The families of political prisoners held without charge or trial are preparing to hunger strike if their imprisoned relatives are not released.

Rapporteur report on Sri Lanka must serve as ‘catalyst’ – Amnesty International

The damning findings of a UN Special Rapporteur report on Sri Lanka, which criticised the lack of progress on accountability and routine torture on the island, “must serve as a catalyst for wholesale changes” said Amnesty International. Responding to the preliminary findings of Ben Emmerson, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism on Friday, David Griffiths, Amnesty International’s Senior Advisor on South Asia, said Sri Lanka must make changes. “From forgotten prisoners languishing behind bars for years without trial, to whole communities targeted for...

Justice minister accuses UN Rapporteur of dictating to Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka's justice minister, Wijedasa Rajapaksha rejected the statement made by the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism on Friday, accusing him of dictating to the country. In a rebuke to Mr Emmerson criticism of the government's for failing to repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act despite promising to do so, Sri Lanka's justice minister was quoted by Reuters as saying it needed more time to deal with the abuses. "He can't dictate like this, we can't make laws immediately. They have to go through parliament," Mr Rajapaksha told Reuters. "There is a process. He must...

Sri Lanka's former navy spokesperson remanded after arrest over enforced disappearances

Sri Lanka’s former Navy Spokesperson Commodore D K P Dassanayake has been remanded after being arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department ( CID) in connection with the disappearance of 11 Tamil youth. Dasanayake was arrested on Wednesday and accused of aiding the abduction and enforced disappearances of the youths from 2008-2009. The Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court granted Commodore Dassanayake bail until July 19. He is currently reported to be hospitalised due to deteriorating health issues. See more here.

UN Rapporteur: Sri Lanka done 'almost nothing' on accountability; warns of Security Council referral

The Sri Lankan government has done “almost nothing” to hold human rights violators in the military to account said Ben Emmerson, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism on Friday, warning it was laying down conditions that may “reignite conflict”. In a press release at the end of a five-day visit to the island, Mr Emmerson criticised the Sri Lankan government for its failure to implement a UN Human Rights Council resolution that it co-sponsored in 2015 and was quoted by Reuters as saying, 'Sri Lanka could face a range of measures, including a referral to the UN Security Council, if it fails to meet commitments it made under a 2015 UN resolution.'

UN urges Sri Lankan military to return appropriated land and end civilian activities

A United Nations (UN) committee called on Sri Lanka’s military to end its involvement in commercial or civilian activities and begin returning appropriated private lands. The UN Committee for Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (UNCESCR) concluding observations on the fifth periodic report review on Sri Lanka, released in June, expressed concern that “the military still controls substantial areas of private and public land in the North and East of the country and continues to engage in commercial activities, including farming, tourism, coffee shops and hotels.” “The first challenge comes...

TNA MP files FR petition against pre-fabricated homes for IDPs

The TNA MP M A Sumanthiran on Thursday filed a Fundamental Rights petition against the Sri Lankan government's plan to build 65,000 pre-fabricated steel houses for Tamil IDPs in the North-East. An Interim Order was sought in order to stem the progress on the project. The project, which is in collaboration with the Arcelor Mittal Construction France, has been criticised by locals, civil society activists and the TNA who have called for traditional brick houses to be built. “We don’t want those steel cages,” Mr Sumanthiran told parliament last November. “We don’t want prefabricated houses. We...

Former navy spokesperson remanded over disappearances of 11 Tamils

The former Sri Lankan navy spokesperson, who was arrested over the abduction and enforced disappearance of 11 Tamil youths in 2008, has been remanded by Fort Magistrate until July 19th, the Daily Mirror reported. Commodore D K P Dassanayake was arrested on Wednesday. The leader of the PHU has defended the former navy spokesperson and said the arrest "was merely an attempt made by supporters of the LTTE to get back at the individuals who helped defeat the LTTE using the government."

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