The president of the Congress Party Sonia Gandhi said at an election rally in the Tamil Nadu, that her party had done more than any other party for the welfare of Tamils in Sri Lanka. Speaking in Kanyakumari on the southern-most tip of India, she rejected allegations by political parties in the state, who say that the Congress has not done enough for Tamils on the island, just across the water from the town. "I want to ask them, is there any party, which has done more than the Congress party for the Sri Lankan Tamils? Rajiv Gandhi sacrificed his life while fighting for our brothers and sisters in Sri Lanka," she said. Gandhi also called on Tamil Nadu to reject the BJP’s Narendra Modi.
Sri Lankan security forces are investigating alleged ‘close association’ between TNA MP Sritharan and ‘Gopi’ and his associates, who were accused by Sri Lanka of reviving the LTTE before being killed by the army, after a manhunt spanning several weeks. Higher Education Minister S.B. Dissanayake told The Island that the MP had harboured the fugitives and provided them with transportation, and that he had been seen with ‘Gopi’ in Colombo and Batticaloa. Dissanayake said a mobile phone used by ‘Gopi’ was recovered and details retrieved from the phone will be used to reveal more information. Police spokesperson Ajith Rohana said that there was evidence to prove that ‘Gopi’ had contact with the MP and several others.
The Commonwealth Secretary General, Kamalesh Sharma, expressed his "disappointment" at Canada's decision to withdraw its $10m funding to the international body in light of Sri Lanka's role as chair. A statement released by the Mr. Sharma's office on Tuesday, read, "Mr Sharma expressed disappointment at this step but looked forward to the resumption of the contributions." See full statement here . Announcing Canada's decision to cut funding on Monday, the country's Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird said, "We can no longer justify providing additional funding to an organization that turns a blind eye to human rights abuses, anti-democratic behaviour and religious intolerance in its member states".
Amidst the heightened surveillance in the North-East, the violent attack against the journalist Sivagnanam Selvatheepan on Monday could not have been carried out without the Sri Lankan state being aware the Tamil National People’s Front (TNPF) said today. “The army, the police and the intelligence service are involved in surveillance all over the Tamil homeland. In such circumstances, there is no way that this attack could have been carried out unknown to the state . Therefore the government must accept full responsibility for this assault,” a statement quoted party secretary, S. Kajendran as saying. Stating that the TNPF “deeply condemned” the “cowardly” attack on the 29-year-old journalist, Mr. Kajendran said, “We have learnt that Selvatheepan was [previously] threatened several times by groups seeking to continue repressing and strangling the voice of the Tamil people.” Calling on the international community to act, Mr Kajendran said it must take steps to curb the oppression and attacks which the Sri Lankan government has “unleashed” on media and journalists. Pointing to the " use of terrorism prevention laws to arrest and torture of human rights activists and Tamil people struggling for justice against government oppression, the assaults and murders of journalists seeking to expose injustices, and the burning of press offices ", Mr. Kajendran said, " these things have all become commonplace throughout the Tamil homeland .”
Sri Lanka's Secretary of Defence, Gotabaya Rajapaksa said whilst Sri Lanka had defeated terrorism on the island, it was still alive within the Tamil diaspora, reports Colombo Gazette . 'LTTE network continues to sustain an international propaganda campaign against Sri Lanka through front organisations that have now put on a democratic face' Mr. Gotabaya is quoted as saying whilst addressing delegates at Malaysia's 'Defence Services Asia' conference today. Colombo Gazette further quoted him as saying, 'Some nations seem to have chosen to turn a blind eye to these front organisations and their activities because they claim to support political activism or humanitarian relief. At the same time, the network’s operatives, most of whom are trained terrorists, remain involved in various illegal activities, and are constantly seeking ways to revive terrorist activities in Sri Lanka.'
Sri Lanka ranked 4th on a global impunity index by the US based press freedom group, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), on the murder of media workers. "Government and military officials are suspected to be behind several of the murders," said CPJ. The index included 13 countries where at least five journalists had been murdered without any convictions, over the past year. Iraq, Somalia, and the Philippines, ranked ahead of Sri Lanka, with Syria just behind in 5th place.
New Year's event in Konapulam, Jaffna (Picture: CIMIC-Jaffna) The Sri Lankan Army organised several events for the Tamil community in the Northeast to celebrate the Tamil and Sinhala New Year. The Security Force Headquarters - East (SFHQ-E) held an event at Welikanda, a few miles from the border with the Batticaloa district. The official army website reported that the 54th Division, under the direction of Major General Lal Perera, organised the event, which gave “prominence to Sinhala and Hindu traditions”. Tamil women soldiers, who were recently recruited into the army also participated in the event, the website said.
Sri Lanka has accused the Canadian government of using the funding it gives to the Commonwealth as a political tool, holding the body to ransom due to electoral politics, reported Colombo Gazette. Canada yesterday suspended its voluntary funding to the Commonwealth over ongoing human rights concerns in Sri Lanka and condemning the country’s role as the organisation’s chair. “It is the Government of Sri Lanka which is best placed to continue the evolution of a home grown solution for its people in accordance with a realistic time frame,” an External Affairs Ministry spokesperson said to the Colombo Gazette.
The Malaysian Prime Minister, Mohd Najib Tun Razak, received the Sri Lankan Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the UK Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence, Philip Dunne at his office today in two separate meetings. The Malaysian government is at present hosting the annual ' Defence Services Asia ' conference at the Putra World Trade Centre in Kuala Lumpur.
The mother of one of the Tamil men shot dead by the Sri Lankan military, after claiming that he was attempting to revive the LTTE has been released from prison, reports Uthayan . The mother of the man, named by the military, as 'Gopi, was arrested by officers of the Terrorism Investigative Division on March 26th along with another woman. No charges were brought against her.