Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

Marking the 16th anniversary of the Mullivaikkal genocide, Pheonix held a screening of the documentary, “No Fire Zone”, and a panel discussion at the Kurdish Community Centre. The panel’s speakers included Dr. Thusiyan Nandakumar, Dr Mathura Rasaratnam & Dr Andy Higginbottom.   Inspiration for activism Asked by the Chair about their inspiration for political activism, Nandakumar…

Prince: A royal pain

Horror, much like most other genres, elicits laughter when it fails. Failed comedy, on the other hand, leaves the viewer horrified. This was my experience of watching Anudeep KV’s Sivakarthikeyan starrer ‘Prince.’ 

Sardar: What Cobra could have been - a competently made spy thriller

Having seen the teaser for PS Mithran’s latest release ‘Sardar’, I had braced myself  for a repeat viewing of ‘Cobra’ released earlier this Summer. The film’s star Karthi appears in multiple disguises and costumes - which was also Cobra’s primary marketing point - and I was overcome with flashbacks to rolling my eyes and sighing with the Vikram starrer. Thankfully, ‘Sardar’ is a better feature in almost every aspect. 

Will Sri Lanka go bust?

In a bid to increase government revenues, Sri Lanka’s Finance Ministry unveiled a 150% increase on annual taxes for casinos, from Rs 200 million to Rs 500 million, as well as the introduction of an entrance for locals of 200 US dollars.

13 years after the massacres, bodies discovered in Mullaitivu

More than 13 years after the Sri Lankan military massacred tens of thousands of Tamils in Mullaitivu, human remains have been discovered in the district earlier this month.

The Mullaitivu District Judge has ordered Forensic Medical Officers to conduct an investigation on the remains, which were discovered in a private site in Ananthapuram, Puthukudiyiruppu.

The remains have been sent to Mullaitivu Hospital for investigation.

Bail granted for four suspects detained over alleged plot to murder Sumanthiran

The Colombo High Court granted bail to four persons who were detained under the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) over an alleged assassination attempt on Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Parliamentarian M A Sumanthiran last week.

The four suspects had been detained since February 2017.

Senior Counsel K.S. Ratnavale with Ranitha Gnanaraja, Suranga Bandara and Suwathikka Ravichandran appeared on behalf of the suspects, who are all residents of Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu.

Kokuvil Hindu College massacre by IPKF commemorated

The 35th anniversary event of the Kokuvil Hindu College massacre by the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IKPF) was held in Jaffna on Monday.

The commemoration was in front of the entrance of Kokuvil Hindu College on Kankesanturai Road and organized by the relatives of victims.

Drugs and economic crisis fuel rise of robberies in Jaffna

The Sri Lankan police stationed in Jaffna said that cases of theft and robberies are on the rise in the peninsula, as the economic crisis in Sri Lanka and a surge of illegal drug use has plagued the North-East.

‘You are taking us for jokers!’ – MA Sumanthiran slams 22nd Amendment

On Friday, Sri Lankan parliament passed the 22nd amendment to Sri Lanka’s constitution aimed at curbing the powers of the executive presidency.

The 22nd amendment passed with a two-thirds majority gaining 174 votes during its third reading. Responding to the passage of the bill, Sri Lanka’s Justice Minister Wijedasa Rajapakshe applauded the amendment stating:

Rishi Sunak - Will Britain's new Prime Minister deliver justice for Tamils?

Rishi Sunak is set to become the next Prime Minister of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, after winning the Conservative Party leadership contest earlier today.

In August of this year, Sunak reaffirmed his commitment to justice for mass atrocities committed in Sri Lanka and discussed the possibility of applying targeted sanctions on Sri Lankan officials just as the UK has on Russians. 

Has inflation peaked in Sri Lanka?

Almost half of the Sri Lankan population has been forced to live under the poverty line, but Sri Lanka Central Bank Governor, Nandalal Weerasinghe has reassured the public that he expects inflation to ease and claimed that inflation peaked in September, hitting over 70%.