The Australia based group, Tamil Refugee Council, welcomed the decision by the business tycoon, James Packer, to watch the 'No Fire Zone' documentary, ahead of launching a multi-million dollar casino in Sri Lanka.
Packer pledged to view the documentary, which was recently nominated for a prestigious Emmy award, at the annual general meeting of his business enterprise, Crown Resorts, in Perth this week.
Local refugee activist, Victoria Martin-Iverson, gave Packer a copy, after questions were raised about his plans to build the casino in Colombo.
"My heart bleeds for people caught in conflicts," Packer was quoted as saying by the West Australian newspaper, expressing sympathy for those, including Tamils in 2009.
Urging Packer to reconsider his business venture, the spokesperson for the Tamil Refugee Council, Trevor Grant, said Packer's decision was "welcome news".
"When he sees it, he cannot fail but allow his heart to bleed for the 70,000 Tamils murdered by the Rajapaksa regime," Grant said. "When the British Prime Minister David Cameron viewed No Fire Zone before heading to CHOGM in Colombo last November, he said it was 'one of the most chilling documentaries I've watched. It brings home the brutal end to the civil war and the immense suffering of thousands of innocent civilians. Many of the images are truly shocking'."
"The sad thing about Sri Lanka is that the war has not stopped for Tamils. The Rajapaksa regime continues to torture, rape, murder and disappear Tamils. That's why they flee to the country in such numbers. By building a casino in a Colombo Packer is helping launder the image of the man, and the government, responsible for these atrocities," added Grant.
Commenting on Packer's decision, the director of the No Fire Zone documentary, Callum Macrae, tweeted that he was "looking forward to hearing James Packer's reaction to the watching No Fire Zone".
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