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Canadian parliament's recognition of Tamil genocide an 'important step in the right direction' says NCCT

The National Council of Canadian Tamils (NCCT) said the Canadian parliament's recognition of the the Tamil genocide is an "important step in the right direction" and called on other countries to follow suit to "help achieve justice for the victims of Tamil Genocide."

In a statement thanking the Canadian House of Commons for passing the motion ealrier this week, the NCCT said:

"We would like to thank Member of Parliament, Gary Anandasangaree for bringing this important motion to the house. We would also like to thank the Government of Canada, all federal political parties including the Liberal party of Canada,
Conservative Party of Canada, New Democratic Party, Green Party of Canada, Bloc Québécois, and the independents for unanimously passing a historical motion in the House of Commons."

The Canadian House of Commons became the first parliament in the world to officially recognise the Tamil genocide as well recognising May 18 as Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day.

"Since the year 2009, May 18th is forever etched in the Tamil people’s memory due to the grave pain and agony endured during the height of the Tamil Genocide in Mullivaaikkal in the island of Sri Lanka," the statement added. 

In Canada, five Ontario school boards marked the beginning of Tamil Genocide Education Week last week, the first year since the Tamil Genocide Education Week Act was passed into law

Throughout the month of May, Tamils have held commemoration events to mark 13 years since the massacres of Mulliaivakkal, in which tens of thousands of Tamils were killed. The atrocities alongside the decades of violence and Sri Lankan state repression have for decades been deemed genocide by many Tamils.

Read the full statement here

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