Members of the Tamil National People’s Front marked 10 years since the death of Anton Balasingham, the chief political strategist of the LTTE, today.
The US State Department this week announced it would be offering up to $1.7 million for transitional justice and reconciliation projects in Sri Lanka. "The US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor (DRL) announces an open competition for organizations interested in submitting applications for projects that support the DRL policy goal to bolster and enhance transitional justice and reconciliation processes in Sri Lanka at the provincial and national levels." "DRL seeks proposals for programs that use a multi-pronged approach to advance reconciliation through tools...
Sri Lanka was this week selected to receive aid from the Millennium Challenge fund, the US government's Millennium Challenge Corporation tweeted today.
Protests have taken place in Hambantota over a proposed deal that will see a Chinese state owned company control an 80% stake in the town's port. Port workers and local residents blocked a main highway leading into the town to demonstrate against the $1.1 billion deal that will see China Merchants Port Holdings Company gain an 80% share of the port and adjoining land. China’s ambassador to Sri Lanka, Yi Xianliang, said the deal was part of discussions with Colombo over taking “shares in projects to help the government solve its finance problems". But the proposal has stoked fury from locals...
Today marks 10 years since the passing of Anton Balasingham, the chief negotiator and political strategist of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
Sri Lanka's military approached senior TNA MP Maavai Senathirajah to gather "information" on Sunday night, according to sources in the North-East. Two men visited the ITAK office at Martin Road in Jaffna on Sunday at around 7:30pm, asking security guards, in Sinhalese, to speak to the MP, who is also the leader of ITAK. As he wasn't in the office, the men waited until his arrival soon after. Mr Senathirajah refused to give any information to the men, who identified themselves as military intelligence. The MP stated that parliamentary speaker Karu Jayasuriya would need to give permission for...
Rejecting the UN Committee Against Torture's call on Sri Lanka to investigate the former intelligence chief, Sirisa Mendis, the state minister of defence, Ruwan Wijewardene told The Sunday Leader MR Mendis would not be investigated. Mr Wijewardene was quoted as saying "he does not see any need to investigate Mendis as the allegations against him are baseless." The government would "look into the ocncerns raised by the UN committee", he added however.
The newly appointed Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu O Panneerselvam, has written to India’s prime minister to call for action against the Sri Lankan navy after yet another reported attack on Tamil Nadu fishermen this weekend. Mr Panneerselvam told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that "the Sri Lankan Navy continues to unleash its reign of terror on our fishermen in the Palk Bay, where these fishermen have earned their meagre livelihood from time immemorial". A group of 8 Tamil Nadu fishermen were allegedly assaulted by Sri Lankan naval troops who attacked them with iron rods off the coast of...
Families of the disappeared living in Vavuniya marked international Human Rights Day on Saturday with a demonstration followed by a discussion forum. The event was organised by the'Forum for Families of Searching, Handed, Kidnapped and Forcibly Disappeared Relatives - Tamil Homeland'. At the discussion forum, the families decided they would send a petition to the Sri Lankan president, Maithripala Sirisena explaining the current situation faced by the families of the disappeared, as well as calling on the TNA and the Sri Lankan government to clearly state their views on enforced disappearances.
Photograph Sunday Times Sri Lanka's navy commander, Vice Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne assaulted a journalist on Saturday, who had been reporting on protests at Hambantota Port. Wearing civilian attire, Mr Wijegunaratne marches up to the journalist before launching a strike aimed at the cameraman.