As Tamils across the island gear up to vote in Sri Lanka’s parliamentary elections this week, candidates from across the array of Tamil parties have all tried to showcase their nationalist credentials to secure the Tamil vote.

The election, set to take place on November 14, has seen a surge in Tamil nominations as hundreds of individuals, some from newly formed Tamil political parties, are standing to become MPs.

Sri Lankan police officers in Jaffna assaulted several Tamil civilians in Chunnakam last night, including a woman and her 2-month-old baby, in an incident that has sparked outrage and demands for justice, amidst ongoing police brutality.

The United States Department of Justice has unsealed criminal charges against a man allegedly tasked by Iran with “surveilling and plotting to assassinate” Donald Trump before the presidential election, the indictment also reveals that the man had been tasked to plan a mass shooting to target Israeli tourists in Sri Lanka. 

On Thursday, the Chunakkam police force carried out a brutal and unlawful arrest of two innocent individuals, leaving the affected families in fear. This follows multiple acts of police brutality in the region.

The Association of the Families of the Disappeared staged a protest in Vavuniya criticized Tamil political leaders for prioritizing individual seats over justice for the disappeared, stating that this fragmented approach risks weakening Tamil representation. The group held a demonstration at Vavuniya Old Bus Station today, where members voiced their concerns about the divisive state of Tamil politics in the homeland.

Dr. P. Sathiyalingam, Secretary General of the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK), has called for a unified, ethnicity-based vote in the upcoming parliamentary elections for the Vavuniya district. In a press conference held at his Vavuniya office today, he emphasized the critical need for Tamil representation in the face of ongoing issues such as illegal settlements, land grabs, and deprivation of opportunities affecting the Tamil community.

“I didn’t make it like it was my first film. I made it like it was my last.”

On November 8, 2006, in the early morning hours, Tamil civilians in Kathiravelli, northern Batticaloa, became the tragic victims of a deadly artillery exchange between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan military. The conflict in the Vakarai area had been intensifying for weeks, with both sides shelling each other's positions. But for the 2,000 displaced Tamil civilians taking refuge in the Vigneshwara Vidyalayam school compound, this day would end in unspeakable tragedy.