Today 5 years ago a young British Tamil self-immolated outside the United Nations Human Rights Council in protest at the inaction of the international community, in the face of the relentless onslaught of the Sri Lankan military on Tamils in the Vanni. 26 year old Murugathasan Varnakulasingham left a letter behind, in which he said that his actions were intended to wake up the international community, which “failed to stop the genocide against Tamils in their traditional homeland”. His funeral was attended by over 10,000 people in London and the anniversary of his death is commemorated every...
Antony Jeganathan, Deputy Chairman of the Northern Provincial Council and Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Councillor, has slammed the Sri Lankan government’s commission on disappearances as a fake, set up only to fool the international community, in a meeting with officials from the Japanese embassy. According to a report in the Uthayan , Jeganathan met with the embassy’s political affairs officer who was on a recent visit to Mullaithivu, and told him that no information on the thousands of people who remain missing or disappeared has been released. The Deputy Chairman also told the Japanese of...
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has rallied against an international investigation this week, slamming “foreign saboteurs” and “insidious elements” in a series of adamant speeches across the Sinhalese South of the island. Speaking in Batahena, Rajapaksa said a “smear campaign” has been started against him, stating, “Those who cannot tolerate the country's growth after the eradication of terrorism are trying to take me to the electric chair." Whilst the International Criminal Court cannot impose the death penalty, it can pass down sentences of up to 30 years of life imprisonment. In Udugama, according to the Official Government News Portal of Sri Lanka , Rajapaksa went on to launch an attack against the “sinister objectives” of “certain embassies with the help of Non Governmental Organizations”, who were attempting to destabilise the south of the country and launch a conspiracy against the security forces. He labelled a recent protest at a factory, possibly referring to the loss making state-owned Milco Company , as “part of this plan”. Rajapaksa went on to defiantly rally the South together in his speeches, adding , "Civilians should not be misled by the ongoing international conspiracy against Sri Lanka." In yet another event at the Sugathadasa Stadium in Colombo, Rajapaksa lashed out at “foreign saboteurs” as he launched a “Responsible Citizenship, Unity, and National Pride” program for school children. He stated that “a morally upright and disciplined society” needed to be created and that “ children should be guided on the correct path ” so that they could “love the country”, adding, “Therefore, it is a national need for programs of this nature (Mother Sri Lanka project), which paves the way for a well-disciplined society to be given all the support in its endeavours." The Official Government News Portal of Sri Lanka went on to add, “students expressed their loyalty to President with a Kurahan Satakaya ”.
Photograph: Daily Mirror A group of 75 Tamil asylum seekers who attempted to flee from Sri Lanka have been stopped and arrested by Sri Lankan security forces. The group, consisting of 60 men, 9 women and 6 children were all Tamils from Batticaloa and Valaichchenai, in the Eastern province. They are the latest in a sustained wave of Tamil asylum seekers who have continued to attempt to flee the island since the end of the armed conflict in May 2009. A report by Human Rights Watch found that Tamil detainees, including failed asylum seekers, were regularly tortured and raped by Sri Lankan...
The World Press Freedom Index for 2014 , compiled by Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) has Sri Lanka fall further to 165th position out of a total of 180 countries. Last year Sri Lanka occupied the 162nd spot, but has gone down the rankings due further restriction of the Tamil press. “In the north of Sri Lanka (165th, -2), the army reigns supreme, tolerating no challenge to the official vision of the “pacification” process in Tamil separatism’s former strongholds.” RSF said.
The Tamil National alliance (TNA), today, called for an independent international probe into the mass grave found in Mannar. The skeleton count rose to 59 today, after the 20th excavation at the site was completed. Evidence of bullet holes have been found on the skeletal remains whilst others bodies have been found with hands bound. Speaking to Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka, the TNA parliamentarian for Mannar, Selvam Adaikalanathan, implored , “We are also aware that some of the western countries, including the US, who are experts in forensic tests, excavation and investigation have expressed their willingness to assist the local excavation and investigation processes, but they have not been granted necessary permission. We, the Tamils, cannot simply rely on the Sri Lankan government for justice. If the investigations are to be independent, it has to be an international one. ” Outlining the risk of losing evidence, Adaikalanathan stressed the urgency of his calls, stating, “One more human skeletal remain was recovered when digging took place yesterday for the 21st time, taking the total number to 59. At least one of them was said to be of a child. We still don’t know the extent of this mass grave. Some of the skeletal remains had bullet holes while some others have been found with their hands bound behind their bodies. We urgently call for an independent international investigation into this mass grave. Otherwise, there is risk of evidence being tampered with or destroyed completely.”
China today launched an attack on countries that were pressing Sri Lanka on human rights issues, pledging to support the Sri Lankan government defend its ‘national independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity’. Responding to a query regarding the Sri Lankan External Affairs Minister, G.L Peiris’, visit to China, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Hua Chunying, said, “We believe that the people in Sri Lanka have the wisdom and capacity to manage their internal affairs and oppose some countries’ interference in Sri Lanka’s domestic affairs under the pretext of human rights issues...
3 more skeletons have been uncovered in the latest excavation of the mass grave in Mannar, reported the Uthayan. The excavation is the 20th to have taken place so far, from which a total of 58 bodies have been unearthed.
The United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA), the ruling coalition of Sri Lanka, blamed the UNP, opposition party, for the creation of the Tamil diaspora and international scrutiny faced by Sri Lanka. Speaking at a media conference at the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) headquarters, the general secretary of the UPFA, Susil Premajayantha, outlined that the UPFA government’s failure to prevent the 1983 anti-Tamil pogroms created the diaspora, who were now involved in lobbying the international community to take action against Sri Lanka using claims of war crimes during the final stages of the ethnic conflict in 2009.
Land cordoned off by the Civil Defence Force The Sri Lankan government has been forcibly acquiring land in the village of Thennamaravadi, an area that links both the Tamil dominated Northern and Eastern provinces, with over 270 acres of land owned by Tamils acquired by the state and Sinhala settlers. Thennamaravadi, located on the border of the Mullaitheevu and Trincomalee districts, has had almost 22 acres of land taken by Civil Defence Division and Civil Security Department members, despite deeds to the land being held by Tamil inhabitants of the village, according to sources on the ground. Sources also told the Tamil Guardian that 250 acres of land used for paddy cultivation has been acquired by Sinhalese farmers from Singhapura and Gayapapura, following harassment from Sri Lankan security forces, who coerced Tamil farmers into selling the land far below their market value.