Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

On the 16th anniversary of the Mullivaikkal genocide, senior officials from Human Rights Watch (HRW) have renewed calls for international justice, denouncing the Sri Lankan government’s continued refusal to address wartime atrocities and ongoing abuses faced by Tamil victims, particularly women. In a piece published on 19 May, Meenakshi Ganguly, Deputy Asia Director of HRW, condemned the…

Mylanthanai massacre remembered 30 years on

A commemorative event was held earlier this month to mark the 30th anniversary of the Mylanthanai massacre where Sri Lankan soldiers attacked and killed 39 Tamils.

A pooja was performed at the Mylanthanai Vinayagar temple and a minute silence was observed by locals, village development association members and social activists to remember those who were killed in the attack. 

IMF agrees to an emergency loan for Sri Lanka - reports

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reportedly agreed to issue an emergency loan to Sri Lanka but are yet to make a public statement.

The agreement comes as Sri Lanka is in the midst of its worst financial crisis in recent history.

The IMF team who have been in Colombo for a week said that they were extending their stay until tomorrow where they will hold a press conference. 

British Tamils stand in solidarity with Tamil Families of the Disappeared

Marking the international day of the disappeared, British Tamils took to the streets of London staging a protest in Trafalgar Square and calling on the British Prime Minister to deliver justice for the Tamil Families of the Disappeared.

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‘I stand with the Families of the Disappeared’ claims US ambassador to Sri Lanka

Marking the international day of the disappeared, US Ambassador Julie Chung issued a statement claiming to stand in solidarity with families of the disappeared and commended the work of civil society groups pushing for an end to enforced disappearances.

‘I stand with the Families of the Disappeared’ claims US ambassador to Sri Lanka

Marking the international day of the disappeared, US Ambassador Julie Chung issued a statement claiming to stand in solidarity with families of the disappeared and commended the work of civil society groups pushing for an end to enforced disappearances.

Tamil families of the disappeared mark International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances across North-East

Tamil families of the disappeared are protesting across the North-East today to mark International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances. 

‘What unites the global Tamil community is a collective struggle against state violence’ - TG speaks with MedyaNews

In a wide-reaching dialogue with MedyaNews, Viruben Nandakumar, an editor for the Tamil Guardian spoke on the continued struggle for Tamil Eelam, the current crisis in Sri Lanka and the need for international action.

 

A global Tamil community

Nallur therthiruvizha in photos

This week thousands attended the Nallur Kandasamy Kovil’s annual grand chariot festiva - therthiruvizha

The iconic festival garners devotees from around the world who gather to see the temple's primary deity Murugan paraded through Jaffna. 

All photographs are by photographer V Mathumegalan.

How Sri Lanka betrayed Shinzo Abe

 

 

 

Across Sri Lanka, the country’s flag is flown at half-mast on 12th July to mourn the sudden assassination of Japan’s former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. “We have lost a prime minister who gave leadership to Asia,” wrote Sri Lanka’s President Ranil Wickremesinghe in an obituary guestbook commemorating the Japanese leader. Despite Sri Lanka’s melancholic posture towards the Japanese leader’s demise, Sri Lanka’s foreign policy has posed a consistent thorn in Abe’s vision for a “free and open Asia-Pacific”.

Ahead of UNHRC session, Sinhalese protest in Geneva