The Hindu Federation of Switzerland has condemned the arrest of the eight Tamils at Vedukkunaari Hill Athi Sivan temple and the ongoing attempts by Sri Lanka's archaeology department to acquire places of religious worship belonging to the Tamil Hindu community. 

The statement comes as Tamils across the homeland protest against the unlawful arrest of eight Tamil men who participated in the observance of Shivarathri at Vedukkunaari Hill Athi Sivan temple in Vavuniya North. 

The United States completed a three-day training of Sri Lankan troops earlier this month, teaching the air force how to conduct Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) flights, as the military relationship between the two continues to grow.

The Sri Lankan Air Force boasted that the latest training is “ultimately encouraging greater interoperability between the United States Department of Defense and the Sri Lanka Tri-Services”.

Sri Lanka’s State Intelligence Services (SIS) has filed a report against the principal of the Koppay Teaching College, S Laleesan, accusing him of‘ provoking the Tamil youth to rise up and disturb the ethnic harmony’ at a panel discussion last year.

The SIS report has been filed with Sri Lanka’s education ministry, which has reportedly launched an investigation into Laleesan’s remarks, which were delivered during a panel discussion on December 10, 2023.

A survey conducted by the Center for Policy Alternatives found that a growing number of people on the island agree that “in certain situations, a dictatorial government can be preferable to a democratic one,” reaching levels last beaten in 2018 – shortly before Gotabaya Rajapaksa was elected as president.

Representatives of civil society organisations, clergy, and the general public staged a protest in front of the Trincomalee Shiva Temple to demonstrate their anger at the continued detention of the Vedukkunaari devotees by the Sri Lankan state.

The Sri Lankan state is on a concerted mission. Following a long history of killings and massacres, it is fervently pursuing a more insidious endeavour across the North-East, attempting to erase Eelam Tamil existence. Buddhist monuments are being purposefully constructed, whilst attempts to seize Tamil-owned land have persevered through the military and government’s archaeology and forestry departments. Whilst members of the international community seem to place more interest in embellishing ties with Colombo, the Tamil homeland remains under threat.

Local Tamils in Vavuniya staged a sit-down protest outside the Human Rights Commission office in the town, condemning the inaction by officers to investigate Sri Lanka’s arrests of the eight Tamils at the Vedukkunaari temple last week after devotees were assaulted and manhandled.

Shops and stores across Nedunkerny were closed all day on Friday, as a mark of protest over Sri Lanka’s arrests of eight Tamils who took part in Shivarathri observances at the Vedukkunaari Adi Shiva temple in Vavuniya last week. 

Trading and daily economic activities were brought to a standstill, with shopkeepers and residents vowing to continue their protest, until all those detained are released and charges dropped.

Sri Lanka’s Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) has summoned yet another Tamil journalist form Mullaitivu to their headquarters in Colombo for questioning, as Eelam Tamil press workers continue to face intimidation for their work.

Thiruchelvam Divakaran, a freelance journalist and media officer at the Government Information Department, was summoned to the TID office at the Butani Capital Towers in Colombo for questioning, hundreds of miles away from his home in Mullativu.

Protesters are rallying through Vavuniya today as they demand the release of the eight Tamil men who were unlawfully arrested at a Shivarathri pooja at Vedukkunaari Hill Athi Sivan temple last week.