Today marks the 15th anniversary of the massacre of 53 school girls by the Sri Lankan Air Force. 

Responding to Police Scotland’s decision to suspend training for Sri Lankan officers due to human rights concerns, British Tamils activist groups and MPs welcomed the decision but also demanded further action.

Responding to the suspension of Police Scotland’s training of Sri Lankan Police, the International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP) has called on the British government to end its training programme with Sri Lanka’s police noting the police’s record of systemic torture.

Responding to a letter by Member of Parliament for Ilford South and Shadow Transport Minister, Sam Tarry, Minister of State for South Asia and the Commonwealth, Lord Tariq Ahmed, highlighted the British government’s concern over the deterioration of human rights in Sri Lanka and maintained that “Sri Lanka’s receipt of Enhanced Framework preferences is subject to conditions”.

Amidst intense backlash and a damning Human Rights Watch (HRW) report, Police Scotland has temporarily suspended their training of Sri Lankan police officers due to human rights concerns.

The Austrialian High Court rejected a bid from the Tamil refugee family to hear an appeal on the protection visa application of their youngest daughter, Tharnicaa. 

The Murugappan family have been fighting deportation since March 2018 after being taken away from their home in Biloela, Australia after their four year bridging visa expired and were detained on Christmas Island for three years.  

Ramasamy Sivarajah, journalist and editor of the Thamilan newspaper, filed a complaint with the police against two persons who claimed to be Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and attempted to enter his house on Thursday. 

The men in question arrived at Sivarajah’s apartment at around 2.35 AM and wanted to “search the premises”. 

Speaking to reporters, Media Minister, Keheliya Rambukella, maintained that the Government of Sri Lanka was contemplating legislation that would target websites the government deemed as “defamatory” and did not have visible ownership.

“There is an opinion that there should be some measures with regard to websites that do not have owners and defame certain people deliberately, manipulating facts,” he said.

Two women wade through water in Mullaitivu following Cyclone Burevi in 2020

Responding to the UN appointed Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Sri Lanka’s Environment Minister, Anil Jasinghe, commended the report agreeing with UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres’s assessment that climate change was a “code red for humanity”.

Sri Lankan Energy Minister, Udaya Gammanpila, has denied allegations that a cabinet paper was submitted to lease the Trincomalee Port, Oil Tank Complex and 33,000 acres surrounding it to the United States.

The statement was reportedly made in response to allegations made by JVP politician Wasantha Samarasinghe and convener of the Voice Against Corruption. Gammanpila claimed that the allegations made were a series of lies.

“His statement is a blatant lie. I did not submit such a cabinet paper. I challenge him to show me a copy of the cabinet paper,” Gammanpila stated.