Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

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A Guinness World Record set by nearly 5,000 Bharatanatyam dancers at Galle Face in Colombo has sparked controversy, after activists questioned why the official recognition was awarded to organisers and an overseas instructor rather than the thousands of performers who paid to take part. The SANGAMAM-2026 event, held on 14 June, saw 4,988 dancers successfully set a new Guinness World Record for…

It's only you who disagree with us - SL Amb Nonis tells Channel 4

Asked by Channel 4's Jonathan Miller on whether Sri Lanka should be hosting the CHOGM later this year, Sri Lanka's ambassador to the UK Chris Nonis replied:

"We welcome everyone to Sri Lanka, because I think it's a wonderful opportunity for everyone to make an objective and impartial analysis  of the wonder reconciliation programme that is taking part in the country."

Stalling, Sri Lankan style...

According to local Sri Lankan media reports, the External Affairs Secretary Karunathilaka Amunugama has said that the government had appointed a committee to study the draft of the resolution.

"We will make a response once the committee has presented the government with their report," Xinhua quoted him as saying.

Sri Lanka's killing fields of higher intensity than Darfur

 The Sri Lanka Campaign have released a new infographic  that portrays the devastating intensity of Tamil civilian casualties as a result of the Sri Lankan government’s indiscriminate shelling in 2009.

SL will be an important test - Canadian Liberal leader

Statement by the Canadian Liberal leader, Bob Rae on Commonwealth Day:

“Today Canadians join with people of all ethnicities and faiths around the world in marking Commonwealth Day. This is an occasion to reflect on and celebrate the ties that unite our diverse Commonwealth family of 54 nations.

It is also a time to take note of our common history and the shared values that define the Commonwealth: democracy, peace, rule of law and opportunity for all. Canada must remain committed to advancing these founding principles, and continue building on the Commonwealth’s long history of fostering democracy.

Govt should keep CHOGM attendance under review - UK's Shadow Foreign Sec

Careful to avoid calling for a boycott of CHOGM or a change of venue, the UK's shadow foreign secretary, Douglas Alexander, said that the British government should "keep its attendance at this summit under review as it awaits effective action from the Sri Lankan Government.”

Four years on, Alexander did not outline how much longer the British government should wait for.

Alexander's statement - 'Commonwealth Day should be a day for celebration' - published on Commonwealth Day, has been reproduced in full below:

“Commonwealth Day should be a day for celebration of the role of the Commonwealth in promoting human rights globally.
 
“But with the next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting due to take place in Sri Lanka in November, it should also be a day for action by the Sri Lankan government: action that acknowledges the appalling human rights abuses which have taken place there over recent years.

BJP - 'totally against the butchering of the Tamils'

Speaking in the Lok Sabha, BJP leader Yashwant Sinha, said, “We are not in favour of carving out a separate nation out of Sri Lanka but are totally against the butchering of the Tamils.”

He also outlined the party's road map for the island's future:

SL does not recognise UNHRC resolution 19/2 - SL Amb Aryasinha

Sri Lanka does not recognise resolution 19/2 adopted by the UNHRC in March 2012 said the country's ambassador to Geneva during an informal meeting on Friday regarding the resolution tabled by the US.

Ravinatha Aryasinha, the Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the UN in Geneva said:

"The Government of Sri Lanka does not recognise resolution 19/2 and maintains its consistent position that, through resolutions of this nature, what is being perpetuated is a politicized process in a manner which is unfair, biased, unjust, and contrary to the principles of cooperation, genuine dialogue and the founding principles of universality, impartiality non selectivity, that should guide all member states in facilitating the method of engagement and the mandate of the Council."

The full text of his quotes, as outlined in the Asian Tribune, are reproduced below:

1. I am here today, as I do not wish to dismiss the interest taken in Sri Lanka by member and observer states, representatives of international organizations and civil society, irrespective of whether such interest is justified or not. GOSL always has, and continues to remain engaged with all parties seeking a respectful and constructive dialogue on how to move the process of reconciliation in Sri Lanka forward. We hope this spirit of engagement will be reciprocated, and that member and observer states of the HRC will view developments in Sri Lanka with an open mind.

8 Tamil Nadu students fast in protest on Eelam Tamil issue

Eight students of Loyola College in Tamil Nadu began a 'fast unto death' on Friday, making key demands including an independent, international inquiry into allegations of war crimes, and a referendum on Tamil Eelam for Tamils in the North-East.

In a statement issued in Tamil, the students argued that was has happened in Sri Lanka was not a case of mere war crimes or human rights violations but a planned genocide of Tamils, and therefore Indian Central and Local Government must acknowledge this and declare it so.

Australia must 'issue a rebuke' to GOSL - The Age editorial

Editorial - 'Sri Lanka lets itself down' - published in the australian newspaper, The Age on Saturday:

Tamil MPs and activists in Geneva may be arrested on return - SL Govt minister

Tamil MPs and activists from the North-East who are in Geneva attending the UN Human Rights Council session currently underway, will be questioned and arrested on return if 'they have made statements detrimental to the unitary character of the state', said a prominent government minister to a Sinhala newspaper - Lakbima.