Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

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'Tamils do not even have the freedom to sing' - Mannar chairman demands rapper's release
Mannar Urban Council Chairman Daniel Vasanthan has strongly condemned the arrest of Tamil rapper Sangeethsan Ganeskumar under Sri Lanka's Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), stating that the detention reflects a situation where "Tamils do not even have the freedom to sing". Speaking at a media briefing held at the Mannar Urban Council on Friday, Vasanthan criticised the decision to arrest the…

Sri Lankan navy accused of trafficking Tamil asylum seekers

Apr 26, 2015
The trafficking of Tamil asylum seekers attempting to flee Sri Lanka occurs with the help of the Sri Lankan navy, said a recently returned Tamil asylum seeker.

Vaithilingam Linagaraja, who was smuggled off the island in 2013, told the Sunday Times that people smugglers worked with the Sri Lankan navy to allow asylum seekers to flee Sri Lanka.

Whilst fleeing off the coast of Hambantota, Mr Lingaraja said he and other asylum seekers argued with the traffickers about the danger of getting caught by the navy.

“We had a heated argument with the crew about the danger of sailing while Navy patrols were standing by a couple of kilometers away,” said Mr Lingaraja. “They told us that this ‘business’ is happening with their help. One said, ‘They are helping us with a Navy torch that shows our route clearly’.”

Mosque to be demolished after protests

Apr 26, 2015

The Kuragala mosque will be demolished and rebuilt at another location, after long-running protests by Sinhala-Buddhist groups.

Sri Lanka’s Minister of Arts and Culture Nandimitra Ekanayake said Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe appointed a committee to investigate the location, which then established that the mosque sat on a Buddhist archaeological site.

“The committee has assembled on April 21 and discussed with the Muslims of the mosque to relocate the mosque in another place since the report produced by the committee has proved that the mosque had been built in an ancient Buddhist Archaeological site,” the minister said.

The government will provide Rs1mn (£5,000) to rebuild the mosque in another location.

BBS leader to be charged with “defamation”

Apr 26, 2015

The general secretary of the Bodu bala Sena, Galagodatte Gnanasara will be charged with trespassing and making defamatory remarks, the Daily Mirror reports.

Colombo Fort magistrates ordered the police to file the charges against Gnanasara and several other monks, who will be required to attend court on June 16.

Tamil journalists summoned by Sri Lanka's Criminal Investigation Department

Apr 26, 2015
Sri Lanka's Criminal Investigation Department (CID) summoned four Tamil journalists in Vavuniya and Mannar to present themselves at the CID office in Colombo.

The journalists, Mr Manickavasangar, Mr Lambert, Mr Ananth and Mr Pachchek, have not been told the reason for their summoning to the CID offices, reports Tamilnet.

Tamil man granted asylum in Switzerland after being deported, detained and abused in Sri Lanka

Apr 26, 2015
A Tamil asylum seeker who was sent back to Sri Lanka in 2013, arrested in Colombo on arrival and subsequently tortured, returned to Switzerland on Monday.

The man was released from a Sri Lankan detention centre a few weeks ago after being incarcerated for over a year and a group of NGOs organised his return to Switzerland, reports Swissinfo.ch.

Sri Lankan navy visits US aircraft carrier

Apr 25, 2015

The commander of the Sri Lankan navy and other senior military members visited a United States nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, as it passed by the region earlier this month.

Army deserters face arrest from tomorrow warns Sri Lankan military

Apr 25, 2015

The Sri Lankan army warned deserters that they face arrest from tomorrow as a general amnesty period ends.

Sri Lankan army spokesperson Brigadier Jayanath Jayaweera told Hiru News that from Monday onwards any discovered deserters will be arrested.

He went on to add that 23,600 members of the army who had deserted had reported back to their respective regimens by yesterday evening. 18,500 had legally resigned from their positions added the spokesperson, however he did not elaborate on whether the remaining 5,100 deserters had re-enlisted.

Sri Lankan government announces new regulations for Buddhist flag sales

Apr 25, 2015
The Sri Lankan government will not be regulating the sale of Buddhist flags in the country, said a cabinet minister, after the seizure of thousands of flags this week.

Strict new conditions are to be imposed on the sale of flags, such as the order of the colours that appear said Public Administration Minister Karu Jayasuriya.

US Secretary of State to visit Sri Lanka next week

Apr 25, 2015
US Secretary of State John Kerry is set to visit Sri Lanka next week, reports the Sunday Times.

Mr Kerry is expected to arrive in Sri Lanka on Saturday for a 24 hour visit, where he will meet Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, as well as hold a media conference after talks with Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera.

The Secretary of State is not expected to travel to the North-East.

However it is reported that he will visit a Buddhist temple in Colombo to inaugurate a Vesak pandal and lay the foundation stone for the construction of the new US Embassy on the island.

A Sri Lankan government minister claimed this week that Mr Kerry was “amazed” to see what the government had achieved since coming into power earlier this year.

Government ministries refuse to release list of detainees

Apr 25, 2015

The justice and defence ministries have failed to comply with requests by the controversial Presidential Commission on Disappearances to release a list of detainees in the custody of the government, the DailyFT reported.

In a press statement regarding an interim report it submitted to President Sirisena earlier this month, the commission said it made written requests to the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Justice to release to the commission "names of persons who were in custody of prisons, detention camps, refugee camps, and rehabilitation centres".

“While noting with regret that such requests had not been complied with, the Commission decided to notice the respective officers to appear before the Commission in terms of the powers vested in the Commission by the Special Presidential Commission of Inquiry Act,” the report said.

Mosque to be demolished after protests
BBS leader to be charged with “defamation”
Tamil journalists summoned by Sri Lanka's Criminal Investigation Department
Tamil man granted asylum in Switzerland after being deported, detained and abused in Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan navy visits US aircraft carrier
Army deserters face arrest from tomorrow warns Sri Lankan military
Sri Lankan government announces new regulations for Buddhist flag sales
US Secretary of State to visit Sri Lanka next week
Government ministries refuse to release list of detainees
My duty to make SLFP win elections - Maithri
Mosque to be demolished after protests
BBS leader to be charged with “defamation”
Tamil journalists summoned by Sri Lanka's Criminal Investigation Department
Tamil man granted asylum in Switzerland after being deported, detained and abused in Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan navy visits US aircraft carrier
Army deserters face arrest from tomorrow warns Sri Lankan military
Sri Lankan government announces new regulations for Buddhist flag sales
US Secretary of State to visit Sri Lanka next week
Government ministries refuse to release list of detainees
My duty to make SLFP win elections - Maithri