A Sri Lankan court has ordered the release of 5 Tamils who had been detained under the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act since 2019.

The Colombo Magistrate's Court ordered that the 5 Tamils, who had been detained in Magazine prison on the southern capital, were to be freed.

The five were from Pallai, Kilinochchi and Jaffna and had been in detention since 2019.

However, many more Tamil political prisoners remain detained in Sri Lanka jails. Many of them continue to be held without charge.

Sri Lankan police officers have begun learning Hindi, courtesy of the Indian government, despite ongoing discrimination against the Tamil language across the island.

A ‘Hindi Proficiency Course’ for Sri Lanka police personnel was launched by the High Commission of India this week at an event attended by 70 senior Police officers and officials.

As the Sri Lankan financial crisis continues, representatives from the UK, Hungary, Turkey and Korea are set to visit the island.

Today marks 32 years since the passing of Major Sothiya, the commander of the LTTE's first female unit. 

Maria Vasanthi Michael, known by her nomme de guerre ‘Sothiya’, was born on 20 September 1963. She first joined the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 1984.

A formidable fighter, Sothiya took part in many battles, as female cadres began to take part in combat operations from 1986 onwards.

Outrage has been sparked on social media, after a video emerged of a senior Sri Lankan police officer instructing his colleague to allow a visibly inebriated driver to continue driving along the Southern Expressway.

Writing to Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Tamil Makkal Thesiya Kootani (TMTK), and Illankai Tamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) amongst others urged India to ensure that Sri Lanka abides by its commitments under the 13th Amendment and devolve power to the Tamil provinces as a starting point "towards a federal structure". 

A remembrance event was held in Jaffna yesterday to mark the 48th anniversary since the killing of eleven Tamils by Sri Lankan police officers at the 1974 World Tamil Research Conference. 

On January 10, 1974, the final day of the conference, Sri Lankan police officers, led by the Deputy Inspector of Police for Jaffna, Chandrasekara, opened fire at the audience, killing 11 civilians. 

In a public statement, the Tamil National People's Front slammed the 13^th Amendment and maintained their steadfast commitment to “the hallowed Tamil National principles of nationhood and self-determination”.

The 13^th Amendment was established in 1987 as part of the Indo-Lanka accords and created the system of Provincial Council and promised greater devolution of land and police powers to a merged North-East. However, despite its passage, Sri Lanka has failed to implement its accord despite repeated calls from Tamil politicians and the Indian government.

Concluding his first diplomatic tour of the new year, China’s foreign minister Wang Yi maintained that China’s relationship with Sri Lanka “should not be interfered with by any third party”.

“It does not target any third party and should not be interfered with by any third party. The all-around cooperation and strategic mutual trust between the two countries have injected positive energy into regional peace and stability” a statement from Beijing read.

Captain Pandithar, who was a senior member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), was commemorated on the 37th anniversary of his passing at his residence in Jaffna yesterday.