Sri Lanka’s president Maithripala Sirisena stated that it was his responsibility “to protect the forces and the honour of the war heroes” in an interview to Lankadeepa this week. Mr Sirisena was responding to comments he made earlier this month where he slammed an ongoing corruption commission for investigating members of the military. The Sri Lankan president said he was merely speaking according to his conscience and continued to criticise the financial corruption investigation. “They should understand their duties and responsibilities,” he said. “They should focus on large scale financial...
Sri Lanka’s Law and Order Minister Sagala Ratnayake walked out of a press conference in Colombo on Wednesday, after refusing to answer questions on the Sri Lankan military’s alleged connection to gangs in Jaffna. Mr Ratnayake was hosting a media briefing when he was asked by a journalist on the military link to gangs in the region. “You also talked about the motorcycle gangs operating in the area,” said the journalist. “A lot of Tamil people have told us “Yes there are motorcycle gangs and they are called military intelligence”. ” The minister began to laugh and stood up to leave the press...
The spent bullet casing from an AK-47 rifle has been found by forensic investigators at the site of the murder of two Tamil university students in Jaffna last week. Forensic investigators explore the murder scene on Wednesday, identifying the exact location where the students were killed. However, the spent bullet casing was found approximately 100 metres from the where the bodies of the two students were later recovered. Investigations are still ongoing.
A group of Tamil youth where attacked by masked men yielding swords, during the Mass Hartal that took place on Tuesday. On Tuesday night a group of unidentified people in a white van with no number plate jumped out in the Anaikottai region of Jaffna shouting “ Are you Tamils going to unite?” and attacked a group of youth in front of their house. The victims added that the attackers spoke SInhalese and broken Tamil before proceeding to attack their motorcycles. A total of 3 Tamil youth were injrued in the attack. The attack took place at 8pm, resulting in several people in the village...
Clashes broke out on Tuesday in Kilinochchi between Sri Lankan police and locals protesting over the killing of two Jaffna University students by the police last week. The shooting dead of the two students has caused widespread public anger over what Tamils argue is the continuation of decades of state violence against the Tamil population in the North-East. Launching a hartal in protest at the killing on Tuesday, locals blocked vehicles attempting to travel on the A9 road leading to some windows being smashed and the police being called to the scene. A tense situation prevailed with a heated...
The governor of the Northern Province, Reginal Cooray, responded to a petition by the students of Jaffna University calling for justice over the killing of two students last Thursday by Sri Lankan police, by issuing a reply entirely in Sinhalese. The killing of the students has prompted widespread protest across the North-East, with large scale demonstrations, hartals and public outcry as locals condemn state violence against the Tamil population.
The Indian military has joined with the Sri Lankan armed forces to begin a joint military exercise entitled 'Mithra Shakthi' on Monday. The annual exercise will see 45 Indian army personnel including 6 officers take part in an operations that will “enhance understanding of transnational terrorism, inter-operability skills, conduct of joint tactical operations and sharing of each other's experiences,” according to Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Defence . The Indian delegation was welcomed by Sinhala Kandyan dancers on arriving at Colombo on Monday.
Sri Lanka’s foreign minister has called for the government not to be judged by the statements of senior officials, after Sri Lanka’s president slammed an ongoing corruption commission for investigating members of the military. "Please judge us by our actions, not by our statements,” said Mangala Samaraweera at a press conference in Colombo, in response to a question regarding his government's committment to accountability and transparency. He went on to dismiss President Maithripala Sirisena’s comments, stating, “Whatever statements the President or anyone would say, we have not veered from...
The National Organiser of the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) has called for a “total crackdown” on all former LTTE cadres in the North-East, reports the Daily Mirror, after protests and unrest in the region, after two university students were shot dead by Sri Lankan police. Nishantha Sri Warnasinghe told a press conference that "the Government should carry out a thorough check on all former LTTEers to determine their current circumstances and activities and arrest if found to be connected to any criminal activities." He went on to warn that the former cadres “still have their old attitudes...
A hartal has taken place this morning in Jaffna, with shops and businesses across the town shut in protest against the killing of two Tamil university students by Sri Lankan police. The hartal, which is backed by political parties including the TNA, was announced after the murder of Sulaxan and Kajan. The funeral of the two students took place this weekend, with demonstrations across the North-East. The killings have led to several calls from Tamil students, including in the UK, for justice. Speaking to Xinhua, Northern Provincial Council member M K Shivajilingam said the hartal was "a form...