Canadian parliamentarians from across the political spectrum debated a bill that would proclaim the week ending May 18th as Tamil Genocide Education Week, unanimously voting in favour of it.

The bill, put forward by MPP Vijay Thanigasalam, was voted for by 59 parliamentarians with none opposing and has been sent to the Standing Committee on Regulations and Private Bills.

Tamils around the world held vigils, rallies, marches and exhibitions to mark May 18 as Tamil Genocide Day.

Tamils across the homeland gathered at the Mullivaikkal memorial today 10 years since the end of the armed conflict to remember the killing of tens of thousands by Sri Lankan armed forces. 

Marking 10 years since the Sri Lankan military onslaught that massacred tens of thousands of Tamils, we revisit the final days leading up to the 18^th of May 2009 – a date remembered around the world as ‘Tamil Genocide Day’. The total number of Tamil civilians killed during the final months is widely contested. After providing an initial death toll of 40,000, the UN found evidence suggesting that 70,000 were killed. Local census records indicate that at least 146,679 people are unaccounted for and presumed to have been killed during the Sri Lankan military offensive.

As part of a collaborative project marking the 10th year since the end of the war in Sri Lanka, today the Adayaalam Centre for Policy Research, Tamil Guardian and 47 Roots, launched: www.RememberMay2009.com. 

The website aims to provide a resource that maps out the atrocities that took place during the final months of the armed conflict and reflects on their impact 10 years later.

A future Labour government would be committed to the causes of achieving justice and accountability for the Tamil people, as well as recognising their right to self-determination, the party’s leading figures said this week at an event marking the tenth anniversary of Mullivaikkal in Parliament.

“This is a sad occasion because we are commemorating the tenth anniversary of that terrible massacre,” said Labour leader and Leader of the Opposition Jeremy Corbyn MP.

Military personnel, Special Task Force officers, and police were seen in heightened numbers across the North-East this weekend as more people were arrested for alleged involvement with the Easter Sunday blasts. 

Residents in Maruthamunai, Amparai described seeing security forces directing all Muslim people in the area to Kariyappar School after a gun battle between troops and Islamists extremists took place. Muslim residents were interrogated and forced to register their details with the military. 

Reports have emerged of Muslims businesses and homes being attacked in Sri Lanka as well as Muslims forced to flee their homes, in the aftermath of the Easter Sunday bombings that have killed more than 350 people so far.

At least two Muslim shops have been burnt down, mosques have been pelted with stones and there have been several incidents of attacks on homes and individuals, including Pakistani refugees. A Sri Lankan parliamentarian with the prime minister’s United National Party has also called for a ban on burqas, a type of traditional Muslim attire.