Tamil organisations from the homeland and diaspora gathered in the US last month to discuss the next stage of achieving accountability and justice for Tamils in Sri Lanka.
The annual Illankai Tamil Sangam conference, spread over a weekend in New Jersey, consisted of panel discussions on issues pertaining to issues affecting Tamils in Sri Lanka. Possible ways forward after the release of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) investigation report into Sri Lanka, were discussed by all attendees.
The event was attended by several Tamil organisations and individuals including the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), British Tamils Forum (BTF), Canadian Tamil Congress (CTC), Federation of Tamil Sangams in North America (FeTNA), Global Tamil Forum (GTF), Illankai Tamil Sangam, National Council of Canadian Tamils (NCCT), Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE) and the US Tamil Political Action Committee (USTPAC).
A visiting professor at Temple University Philadelphia, A.R.M Imtiaz, who has written extensively about Muslims in Sri Lanka, led further talks on justice and recognition of Muslim sentiment by Tamils.
Ending with an evening of music and dance, an Illankai Tamil Sangam life time achievement award was presented to the director of Global Tamils Forum (GTF), Father S. J. Emmanuel. The award was presented by Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MP, Mavai Senathirajah. MA Sumanthiran, of the TNA, addressing the event, paid tribute to the Father Emmanuel's efforts in the field of Tamil activism.
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