In its latest report published today on Sri Lanka - 'Assault on Dissent', Amnesty International documents what it has described as the Sri Lankan government's intensifying "crackdown on critics through threats, harassment, imprisonment and violent attacks".

Calling for a boycott of the Commonwealth meeting in Sri Lanka later this year, AI's Deputy Asia Pacific Director, Polly Truscott, said:

“Violent repression of dissent and the consolidation of political power go hand in hand in Sri Lanka,”

“Over the past few years we have seen space for criticism decrease. There is a real climate of fear in Sri Lanka, with those brave enough to speak out against the government often having to suffer badly for it.”

“The CHOGM meeting must not be allowed to go ahead in Colombo unless the government has demonstrated beforehand that it has stopped systematic violations of human rights. All attacks on individuals must be promptly, impartially and effectively investigated and those responsible held to account.”

"It is abundantly clear that Colombo is unwilling and unable to investigate the credible allegations of crimes under international law, including war crimes, during the conflict. What is needed is an independent, impartial and internationally led investigation.”

Find report here, extracts of accompanying statement by AI published below:

"The document, Assault on Dissent reveals how the government led by President Mahinda Rajapaksa is promoting an official attitude that equates criticism with “treason” in a bid to tighten its grip on power.

Sri Lanka's ambassador to the UK, Chris Nonis slammed the Amnesty report as a "propaganda exercise in misinformation and heresay", during an interview with BBC Radio 4's Today Programme. 

Asked about the countless deaths during the end of the armed conflict, Nonis replied: "the terrible thing about a terrorism is that we don't have any other option"

Listen here at 01:20:55 for full interview. Extract transcribed below:

The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) has stated that Internally Displaced Persons within the island of Sri Lanka are still ‘in need of protection and assistance’, in their latest Global Overview report.

The report noted that the number of IDPs had risen to 28.8 million last year, particularly noting the conflicts in Syria and the Democratic Republic Congo had significantly pushed up the numbers of displaced.

On Sri Lanka the report stated,

“Hundreds of thousands of current and former IDPs in Sri Lanka remained in need of protection and assistance as of the end of 2012… More than 93,000 people were still living in camps, with host communities or in transit situations. Of more than 480,000 people who had returned to Northern and Eastern provinces, many are still to achieve durable solutions”.

The IDMC was also critical of the government’s increasing militarisation in the North-East, stating,

“Of more than 1,300 IDPs still living in the camp in September, 560 were unable to return to their home areas because they were occupied by the Mullaitivu Security Force headquarters. Instead they were relocated, many of them against their will.

Military occupation of land is preventing around 26,000 people from returning across the north and east of Sri Lanka, and it is estimated that more than 3,000 people have been relocated, in many cases involuntarily.”

Human rights expert Yasmin Sooka has criticised the decision to go ahead with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Sri Lanka.

Sooka, who was on the Panel of Experts, appointed by Ban Ki-moon to investigate human rights abuses in Sri Lanka, said it must not be rewarded by hosting the event, as it was still perpetrating abuses against civilians.

Hundreds of Tamil protesters were met with riot police and Sri Lankan security forces, at today's demonstration in Tellipalai against the Sri Lankan Army's seizing of private land in Valikaamam North in Jaffna. (See here for report in Tamil by Uthayan).

After staging a sit down protest in front of Tellipalai Divisional Secretariat, tensions rose as protesters breached police barricades and began to march towards the entrance of the High Security Zone, and attempted to enter the Divisional Secretariat building in order to make their pleas for the military to leave their land.

Dozens of riot police and security forces immediately stepped in to kettle back the protesters within the barricades.

Sri Lanka's External Affairs Minister, GL Peiris, slammed any notion of foreign intervention in Sri Lanka, whilst speaking at an event to mark the start of Sri Lanka's 'National Policy on Social Integration'.

Dismissing foreign intervention in what he described as Sri Lanka's 'internal affairs', Peiris said:

The United States Embassy in Colombo has announced that the country has been providing training to Sri Lanka’s Navy and Coast Guard as part of improving the island’s “border security”.

20 Sri Lankan Coast Guard Officers and 4 Sri Lankan Navy Officers had graduated as Coast Guard instructors who could go on to train other members, after training funded by the US Export Control and Related Border Security (EXBS) program.

The Sri Lankan Air Force has opened a new office of its commercial wing in Jaffna.