Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

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Amnesty International demands immediate release of detained Tamil artist
Amnesty International has called for the release of detained Tamil rapper Sangeethan Ganeshkumar and renewed demands for the repeal of Sri Lanka's Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), warning that the legislation continues to facilitate arbitrary detention and human rights abuses. In a statement issued this week, the international rights organisation expressed concern over the continued use of…

Sri Lanka finance minister meets with IMF, World Bank

Feb 19, 2015
Sri Lanka's finance minister, Ravi Karunanayake discussed the country's development needs and financial assistance with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank in Washington this week.

"We had a fruitful discussion about recent economic developments in Sri Lanka and the near-term outlook," a joint statement issued by Mr Karunanayake and the IMF Managing Director, Christine Lagarde on Wednesday.

"These discussions will continue in the context of the next regularly scheduled Post-Program Monitoring mission led by Todd Schneider, which will visit Sri Lanka from February 23 through March 4. IMF Asia and Pacific Department Director Changyong Rhee will also join the mission to meet with senior officials."

Sinhala Ravaya files complaint against Ranil to anti-terror police

Feb 19, 2015
The Sinhala group, Sinhala Ravaya, filed a complaint with the Terrorism Investigation Department against the prime minister, Ranil Wickremasinghe, on Friday, over his decision to release a stock of Indian magazines stopped by customs featuring the LTTE leader, Vellupillai Prabhakaran.

"His order to release the magazine was a threat to national security. We want police to investigate," the Buddhist monk and general secretary of the Sinhala Ravaya, Madille Pannaloka was quoted by PTI as saying.

No Fire Zone screened across US, director calls for international pressure on Sri Lanka

Feb 18, 2015
The ‘No Fire Zone: The Killing Fields of Sri Lanka’ documentary has completed its tour of the United States with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis. The documentary, which was updated with new evidence and commentary on the recent Presidential elections in Sri Lanka, toured the US to raise awareness about the need to keep international pressure on Sri Lanka to secure justice and address the grievances of Tamils on the island.

The director of the film, Callum Macrae, whilst on tour addressed, senior policy makers from the State Department and a round table discussion organised by the Congressional Caucus on Ethnic and Religious Freedom in Sri Lanka, to stress the importance of not taking the international pressure off Sri Lanka to ensure that there was a long standing political solutions addressing injustices against Tamils.

The distribution and further screenings of the documentary can be supported using the 2015 No Fire Zone Impact Distribution Project page on Kickstarter.com. 

UK MPs had urged UN inquiry on Sri Lanka to be released for the victims of genocidal crimes

Feb 18, 2015
A cross-party group of UK MPs had urged the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to release the findings of the OHCHR Investigation on Sri Lanka examining mass atrocities committed against the Tamil people to schedule stating that "Tamil people in the UK and around the world, and most importantly the victims and witnesses of these genocidal crimes are looking to the OISL report to be released in March 2015."

"The OISL report into the systematic genocide against Tamil people in Sri Lanka should be released in March 2015 without postponement and there is no doubt that if this is not done, it would be seen to be a retrograde step for the UN if it is delayed; as well as reflecting on the opinion of the neutrality of the UN," the All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils (APPG-T) had written in a letter, sent to the UK Foreign Secretary, ahead of the UN Human Rights Council's decision on Monday to defer the publishing of the findings by six months in order to gain further information through cooperation by the new Sri Lankan government.

Drivers of terror' still send Tamils fleeing Sri Lanka, says TRC

Feb 18, 2015
The Tamil Refugee Council (TRC) has condemned the Australian government for the removal of four Tamil asylum seekers to Sri Lanka earlier this month, stating the situation remains dangerous for those who are deported despite the change in government on the island.

“This is another shameful act by a callous Australian government,” said Tamil Refugee Council convenor Trevor Grant, after four Tamil asylum seekers were intercepted by Australian authorities at sea and deported.

Commenting on the change of government in Sri Lanka earlier this year, Mr Grant added that Maithripala Sirisena taking office has led to “no perceptible change for these people”.

“[Sirisena] has made a point of saying he will maintain the military occupation in the north and east and the draconian Prevention of Terorrism Act,” said Grant.

“These are the main drivers of the terror that sends these people, who are mostly Tamil, fleeing from the island.”

Sri Lankan army give houses to Tamil IDPs in Vavuniya

Feb 18, 2015


The Sri Lankan army gave 15 houses in Vavuniya to Tamil people displaced from the Vanni in a ceremony on Wednesday, led by the commander of the army, Lieutenant General Daya Ratnayake.



Tamils call for Sri Lanka's paramilitary leader Iniya Bharathi to face justice

Feb 18, 2015

Tamils in Amparai protested on Wednesday demanding that the Tamil paramilitary leader, K Pushpakumar (alias. Iniya Bharathi) should face justice for crimes committed during his time as Amparai's UPFA district coordinator, when hundreds of Tamil youths were reported missing.

"Iniya Bharathi, where are our children abducted by you?," read placards held mothers, who also held photographs of their missing children.

Calling for an investigation into the arrests and abductions made by Iniya Bharathi during his time as coordinator, protesters also demanded that the bodies and the remains of missing people to be excavated from his premises and sent for investigation.

Justice delayed must not be justice denied' says Sri Lanka Campaign

Feb 18, 2015
Sri Lanka Campaign stressed on Wednesday that the delay in publishing the findings of the UN inquiry into mass atrocities against the Tamil people in Sri Lanka, must not become a denial of justice.

On Monday the UN Human Rights Council decided to deferred the publishing of the report by the OHCHR Investigation on Sri Lanka by six months to September, citing promises made by the new government of "broad cooperation" with the OISL and thus the hope of further information.

"The news will doubtless come as a disappointment to the survivors of Sri Lanka’s civil war, who have waited patiently for justice for over six years, with little other cause for hope," Sri Lanka Campaign said.

Sri Lanka's domestic commission to hold new sittings in Trinco

Feb 18, 2015
Sri Lanka's Missing Persons Commission, set up by the former president Mahinda Rajapaksa in response to international calls to investigate the allegations of mass atrocities at the end of the armed conflict is start a new round of sittings in Trincomalee at the end of the month, the president's media unit said on Thursday.

The commission is to begin its hearings on February 28, and will continue until March 3.

"The Commission says it has held regular meetings with the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and has obtained their views and experiences gained in other parts of the world particularly on matters relating to missing persons at the end of a conflict," the state news website said.

Tamil refugees arrested off Sri Lanka coast

Feb 18, 2015

Sri Lanka's police arrested 35 suspected Tamil asylum seekers off the coast near Weligama, in the south of the country, Xinhua reported.

The Tamils, aged between 30 and 40, are all resident in the Northern Province towns of Jaffna, Mankulam, Chavakacheri, Olumadu, Vavuniya, Mullaitivu, Oddusuddan and Mallavi.

According to Xinhua, the arrests on Wednesday were the first of Tamils attempting to flee the country since the new government of Maithripala Sirisena came into power in January.

Police said the Tamils were preparing to sail to another country when they were spotted by the navy.

Sinhala Ravaya files complaint against Ranil to anti-terror police
No Fire Zone screened across US, director calls for international pressure on Sri Lanka
UK MPs had urged UN inquiry on Sri Lanka to be released for the victims of genocidal crimes
Drivers of terror' still send Tamils fleeing Sri Lanka, says TRC
Sri Lankan army give houses to Tamil IDPs in Vavuniya
Tamils call for Sri Lanka's paramilitary leader Iniya Bharathi to face justice
Justice delayed must not be justice denied' says Sri Lanka Campaign
Sri Lanka's domestic commission to hold new sittings in Trinco
Tamil refugees arrested off Sri Lanka coast
US welcomes Indo-Lanka nuclear pact
Sinhala Ravaya files complaint against Ranil to anti-terror police
No Fire Zone screened across US, director calls for international pressure on Sri Lanka
UK MPs had urged UN inquiry on Sri Lanka to be released for the victims of genocidal crimes
Drivers of terror' still send Tamils fleeing Sri Lanka, says TRC
Sri Lankan army give houses to Tamil IDPs in Vavuniya
Tamils call for Sri Lanka's paramilitary leader Iniya Bharathi to face justice
Justice delayed must not be justice denied' says Sri Lanka Campaign
Sri Lanka's domestic commission to hold new sittings in Trinco
Tamil refugees arrested off Sri Lanka coast
US welcomes Indo-Lanka nuclear pact