<p>Over a billion rupees have been allocated for special military allowances in Sri Lanka’s budget for this year.</p> <p>Presenting the budget in parliament last week, Sri Lanka’s finance minister said Rs 1.175 billion had been allocated to increase allowances for military forces, including commando allowance, uniform allowance, rent allowance and ‘good conduct’ allowance. <a href="http://www.colombopage.com/archive_19A/Mar10_1552161270CH.php">(See more from Colombo Page)</a></p>

In the week when Tamils across the North-East were preparing to condemn Sri Lanka’s failure to progress on accountability and justice, including its failure to demilitarise the Tamil homeland, with widespread protests, the Sri Lankan army held a Sinhala-language workshop on ‘modern social etiquette’, ‘western dress code’, leadership and drug prevention with 300 Tamils in its occupying headquarters in Palaly.

A decade after the end of the armed conflict, only 12 percent of police officers in the Northern province speak Tamil, the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Roshan Fernando admitted this week. 

Sri Lanka's Leader of the House, Minister Lakshman Kiriella reassured parliament on Friday that foreign judges would not hear cases within a war crimes inquiry, Colombo papers reported. 

<p>The United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture&nbsp;and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (SPT)&nbsp;will visit Sri Lanka next month, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said on Friday.&nbsp;</p> <p>“The visit to Sri Lanka will take place in early April, and a media advisory announcing the precise dates, as well as further information, will be issued ahead of the visit,” the OHCHR said.&nbsp;</p>

Sri Lanka's opposition leader and former president, Mahinda Rajapaksa warned this week that what "Geneva and the [Tamil] diaspora" wanted was being implemented in Sri Lanka. 

Sri Lanka has made "virtually no progress" on the investigation of war crimes, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in its report on Sri Lanka's efforts towards implementing resolution 30/1, which called for accountability and transitional justice through a hybrid mechanism. 

The report also raised concerns over the on-going reports of abduction, torture and sexual violence, institutional failures within the criminal justice system, ongoing harassment of human rights defenders since 2015 and the military’s continued occupation of civilian land.

Marking the 11th anniversary of the assassination of the Tamil MP K Sivanesan, Tamil National People's Front (TNPF) held a commemorate event on Wednesday remembering his life. 

Families of the disappeared in Trincomalee collected signatures today, marking two years of campaigning for answers. 

Tamils in Batticaloa staged a protest yesterday demanding the removal of Murakkoddansenai army camp. 

Residents gathered in front of the camp yesterday, demanding the withdrawal of the army from the school building and residents' lands, as well as the re-opening of the road for civilian use. 

Murakkoddansenai army camp has been present since 1990 occupying Murakkoddansenai Ramakrishna School and the lands of 52 residents.