The Oxford Union has cancelled a planned address by Sri Lankan MP Namal Rajapaksa, following mounting pressure from British Tamils and student organisations across the country.

A protest was held in Jaffna to demand justice for a Tamil teenager who was shot dead by Sri Lankan police earlier this month. 

The Oxford Union is no stranger to controversy. Over the decades, the prestigious student debating society has hosted a range of deeply divisive figures, from far-right agitators such as Tommy Robinson and Nick Griffin, to Holocaust deniers such as David Irving. It has justified these invitations under the banner of free speech and intellectual challenge, insisting that debate must remain open, however uncomfortable the speaker may be. The decision to invite Namal Rajapaksa to address the Union next week, however, is particularly disappointing – platforming a defender of mass atrocities and putting the welfare of its own students at risk.

Raju Murugan has had a shaky career of late. Setting aside his fun romantic-comedy episode of ‘Modern Love: Chennai’ ‘Lalagunda Bommaigal’, his last two feature films were the heavily censored 2022 Jiiva starrer ‘Gypsy’ and 2023’s Karthi starrer ‘Japan’ – easily his worst effort to date. Murugan returns with his latest film ‘My Lord’ starring M Sasikumar and Chaithra J Achar as the lead duo in a satirical drama which hearkens back heavily in tone to his sophomore film, the heavily acclaimed and awarded 2016 film ‘Joker.’

Director of last year’s breakaway hit ‘Tourist Family’ Abishan Jeevinth turns from starring in an extended cameo in his own debut to leading role in ‘With Love,’ a romantic comedy directed by Madhan (one of the co-writers of 2024’s romantic drama ‘Lover’). Also starring Anaswara Rajan, RJ Ananthi and Saravanan, ‘With Love’ is an attempt at a quirky take on the genre. 

Accused war criminal Sarath Fonseka has reignited controversy over the final days of the armed conflict, alleging that senior figures within the Rajapaksa administration explored the possibility of allowing senior LTTE leaders to surrender through international mediation in May 2009.

Sri Lankan military construction work to establish a permanent access road to the Palaly Raja Rajeshwari Amman Temple in Jaffna has been suspended following objections from local landowners, in the latest dispute over civilian land use within the High Security Zone in Valikamam North.

UK Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy met with Tamil political leaders in Colombo this week, as representatives of the Tamil nation urged renewed international action on accountability, justice and political rights.

The Cambridge Union has cancelled a scheduled speaking event featuring Namal Rajapaksa, following mounting outrage from British Tamil students this week.

British Tamil students and youth organisations have expressed widespread outrage after Namal Rajapaksa was invited to address the Oxford Union and the Cambridge Union next week, with plans for protests already underway across the United Kingdom.