Protests have taken place in Mullaitivu and Jaffna to condemn Sri Lanka’s arrest of two leading Tamil rights activists, just hours after they demonstrated against the illegal construction of a Buddhist vihara.

Former Northern Provincial Council member T Ravikaran and civil society activist R Mayuran were arrested and accused of “criminal coercion” for taking part in the protest on Wednesday. They have since been released on bail.

Tamil leaders of political parties in Sri Lanka jointly release a letter, with urgent request that the current draft of the Sri Lanka Resolution at the UNHRC refer Sri Lanka to the ICC. 

The Core-Group on Sri Lanka, comprised of the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Germany, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Malawi, drafted the resolution which fails to “[...] include the recommendation by the UN High-Commissioner for Human Rights in her report to the UNHRC calling to refer Sri Lanka to the International Criminal Court (ICC).” 

Amidst the ongoing 51^st session of the UN Human Rights Council session, leader of the British Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey, and MP for Richmond Park, Sarah Olney have written to newly appointed Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, stressing the failures of Sri Lanka’s domestic institutions to deliver on accountability; the need to recognise the Tamil genocide; and, the need for sanctions on senior Sri Lankan officials implicated in war crimes.

US Under Secretary Victoria Nuland has assured continued support for Sri Lanka through its economic crisis, as she met with Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Ali Sabry in New York this week.

On her official Twitter account Nuland stated that, “The United States will continue to support Sri Lanka through its economic crisis, and we will work together to support a free and prosperous region”.

The meeting took place at the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

Sri Lanka is currently facing its worst ever economic crisis.

Sri Lanka's inflation rate has hit the highest level in decades, as the island’s devastating economic crisis continues.

According to the Sri Lankan government’s statistics department, the inflation rate has accelerated to 70.2% in August, up from 66.7% in July.

Today marks the 27th anniversary of the Nagarkovil massacre, where the Sri Lankan air force bombed a school in Jaffna killing dozens of Tamil school children.

On September 22, 1995, a SLAF aircraft bombed the Nagarkovil Maha Vidyalayam schoolyard crammed with 750 children on their lunch break, killing more than 30 – of whom 12 were six or seven-year-olds – and injuring 150 others. The overall death toll from the raids reached 71. The bombing occurred just hours after the Sri Lankan government imposed press censor­ship on the reporting of military events.

On 16 September India and Sri Lanka held the first round of talks regarding restructuring Sri Lanka’s bilateral official debt to India.

According to Reuters India’s support to Sri Lanka, this year has included a “$400 million currency swap, a $1 billion credit line for essential goods and a $500 million line for fuel.” Additionally “India has also deferred payment on Sri Lankan imports of about $1.2 billion and given a credit line of $55 million for fertilizer imports.”

Sri Lanka has been ranked third worst in the world for food price inflation, according to a report from the World Bank, as an economic crisis continues and malnutrition looms.

According the data analysed by the global body, Sri Lanka ranked third in terms of real food inflation, with 30% rate of increase based on the latest month from May to August 2022.

In terms of nominal food inflation, which does not take into account overall inflation Sri Lanka ranks fourth in the world, behind Zimbabwe, Lebanon and Venezuela.

A Sri Lankan international cricketer who sparked controversy over his links to the war crimes accused military, has been rewarded with an army promotion this week.

Army cricketer Maheesh Theekshana has now been promoted to the rank of Sergeant, and was photographed shaking hands with the Sri Lankan army commander as he received a cheque for Rs. 500,000.

Dozens of Tamils were joined by politicians as they demonstrated against the illegal construction of a Buddhist vihara in Kurunthurmalai, Mullaitivu earlier today.

Sri Lankan authorities have continued with the construction of the Buddhist shrine on Kurunthurmalai, a hill-top site of an ancient Tamil temple in the district’s Thannimurippu area, despite a Sri Lankan court order barring any new construction.