Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

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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…

Former LTTE official released after receiving bridal training

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Sharma attempts to defend CHOGM

Kamalesh Sharma, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth has defended the decision to go ahead with CHOGM in Sri Lanka, citing the Commonwealth's decision to 'help' and 'make a practical difference'.

Responding to an article by Gideon Rachman in the Financial Times, criticising the Commonwealth for accepting Sri Lanka's hospitality, Sharma said that the Commonwealth is active in "advancing Commonwealth values" in Sri Lanka.

Sharma also described the LLRC as "a homegrown roadmap for achieving a multi-ethnic nation at peace with itself."

Local politician makes teacher ‘kneel’

A member of the North-Western Provincial Council, Ananda Sarath Kumara , was arrested after forcing a school teacher to kneel for disciplining his daughter.

The teacher of Nawagattegama Isuru School in Puttalam was made to kneel after she asked Kumara’s daughter to lengthen the hem of her school uniform.

The deputy principal withdrew a statement given to the police, after suspected intimidation.

United States looks to improve Sri Lankan criminal justice system

The United States Ambassador Michele J Sison inspected a new laboratory complex built for the Sri Lanka Ministry of Justice Government Analysts Department, earlier this month.

The laboratory facilities were built after the U.S Department of Justice entered into a $2.1 million Forensic Assistance Program to help technically enhance the Sri Lankan criminal justice system.

Rajapaksa looks to win over Tanzania and Seychelles

Mahinda Rajapaksa arrived in Tanzania to commence a 5 day visit to Tanzania and Seychelles. Rajapaksa’s arrival in Tanzania marks the first ever visit by a Sri Lankan president to the two nations.

Tamil Eelam football players arrive in London

Tamil Guardian went to catch up with Tamileelam's UK football players joined by players from Germany and France who arrived on Tuesday. Their teammates from Canada, Italy and Switzerland are expected later this week.

The team welcomes many new faces this year, including a number of professional footballers that have played in the German and Italian football leagues.

Repeatedly tortured' as an 'LTTE suspect' without charge

Detailing three years of torture by the Sri Lankan state, one man, referred to as Thevan, describes his horrific ordeal to Amnesty International.

Thevan, who worked near Vavuniya in the North-East, was abducted in 2008, and held without charge as an LTTE suspect, during which time he was repeatedly tortured. He was finally released in 2011 following a bribe paid by his family. Thevan said,
“The only reason I’m out of prison is because my family paid. I was kept detained to get money from my family. There was never an official charge. No attempt was ever made to investigate the abuses I suffered. We don’t feel we’ll get justice out of the system,” 
Thevan's account to Amnesty International:
“I was blindfolded and with my hands tied behind my back. Sometimes our heads were banged against the wall or we would be kicked on our chests. Many times I was half conscious or would lose consciousness. When I would come back I would find people hitting me. They used to say: ‘You must accept that you are part of the Tamil Tigers and you must sign these papers’”.

“For three days we didn't know what had happened to us, they just beat us. No questions were asked, only beatings and torture. We were kept in the same place but in different rooms. I could sometimes hear my friend crying as he was being beaten up and he could hear me,”

“They were trying to push me to sign by holding a pen in my hand and putting the paper in front of me, but I refused to do that, and after that the beatings started increasing. Once they hit my head so hard the blood was pouring down my side and there was a crack in my skull. You can still see the scars now,

SLFP supports changes to 13A

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), the main constituent of the current ruling coalition, outlined today that it would support the implementation of the 13th Amendment along with the proposed revisions, reported Colombo Page.

Indian activist arrested and deported

An NGO in Sri Lanka is under investigation after it invited activists from southern India for projects in the island’s northeast.

According to The Island the NGO, called Viluthu, invited several activists, including Sharifa Khanam and Ester Devakumari, who were arrested for engaging in NGO projects while on tourist visas.

UK should call for an independent international investigation - Amnesty

The Head of Policy and Government Affairs at Amnesty International UK, Allan Hogarth, has expressed disappointment at the UK government for supporting Sri Lanka's hosting of CHOGM and urged for an independent international investigation.

See the Huffington Post for full blog post.

Extracts reproduced below:
"We were disappointed that the UK Government was so quick to support CHOGM being held in Sri Lanka."