Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

Today marks 52 years since the death of Ponnuthurai Sivakumaran, the first Tamil to die in the liberation struggle.  Sivakumaran was a member of the Tamil Manavar Peravai (or Tamil Student Federation, TSF) and a leading militant in the early armed Tamil struggle. With decades of Sri Lankan state repression and deadly anti-Tamil pogroms already having taken place, Tamil militant…

‘Arrest Fonseka and Shavendra Silva’ – Tamil activist demands truth on white flag surrenders

Thambirasa urges arrest of Fonseka and Shavendra Silva to reveal fate of Tamils who surrendered under the white flag

Anger in Jaffna as Tamil mothers burn UN resolution

The final day of a relay hunger strike organised by the Association of Relatives of the Forcibly Disappeared in the North and East was held in Jaffna today, with campaigners demanding international justice for enforced disappearances and mass atrocities committed against Tamils.

Underworld hitman connected to death of rugby star Wasim Thajudeen

Sri Lankan police have revealed that a crime figure murdered earlier this year in Middeniya was in a vehicle that pursued rugby player Wasim Thajudeen shortly before his death in 2012.

Acting Police Media Spokesperson Nihal Thalduwa confirmed that the man, identified as Anura Vidanagamage, also known as “Middeniya Kajja,” was recognised by his widow in connection with the case.

Sri Lankan Air Force officer accused of looting Frenchwoman’s royal antiques

An 86-year-old French woman has lodged a complaint with the Sri Lankan police, accusing a senior Sri Lankan Air Force officer of stealing silver and gold-plated valuables dating back to the reign of King Louis XIV of France.

Remembering Balachandran

Today marks the birthday of Balachandran Prabhakaran, the third child of LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran, who was executed by the Sri Lankan military during the final days of the Mullivaikkal massacre.

‘Ranil and Mahinda are the number one thieves’ – Sri Lankan Fisheries Minister launches blistering attack

Sri Lanka’s Fisheries Minister R. Chandrasekar launched a blistering attack on former Sri Lankan presidents Ranil Wickremesinghe and Mahinda Rajapaksa, branding them the island’s “number one thieves” and accusing them of looting state resources and protecting criminals.

UN experts press Sri Lanka on disappearances, arbitrary detentions and intimidation at Geneva review

Sri Lanka faced sustained scrutiny in Geneva as the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED) concluded its first examination of the island’s record under the International Convention on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance last week. 

Tamil MPs back hunger strike in Jaffna demanding international justice for disappeared

Relay hunger strike in Jaffna enters fourth day demanding international justice for disappeared Tamils

Sri Lanka accuses Tamil reporter of ‘terrorist activity’ at UN

The Sri Lankan government has publicly accused prominent Tamil journalist and human rights defender Kumanan Kanapathipillai of “terrorist activities and financial crime” during a UN session, in what has been described as a deliberate smear campaign to intimidate him.

At the Committee on Enforced Disappearances in Geneva on Friday, a Sri Lankan government representative claimed there was “reliable information” linking Kumanan to “terrorist activities and financial crime,” alleging that he had “provoked protestors against government forces for personal gain.”

Relay hunger strike in Jaffna enters fifth day demanding international justice

Relay hunger strike in Jaffna enters fifth day demanding international justice for disappeared Tamils