Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

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  The lawyer representing detained Tamil rapper Sangeethsan Ganeskumar challenged allegations that his client sought to revive the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during proceedings before the Jaffna Magistrate's Court this week, arguing that the material cited by police contains no reference to the organisation or its leadership. Sangeethsan, better known by his stage name…

Minister slammed for dismissing Tamil calls for justice as ‘September dramas’

Sri Lanka’s Minister Bimal Rathnayake has come under criticism after remarks he made at an event to mark the International Day of the Disappeared at Temple Trees on Friday, where he referred to victims’ campaigns as “dramas” staged around September to coincide with the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) sessions in Geneva.

Sri Lanka uses PTA against underworld suspects despite pledge to scrap law

Five high-profile underworld figures who were arrested in Indonesia and repatriated to Sri Lanka last night, are being held and interrogated under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), police confirmed today.

Sri Lanka doubles down on Katchatheevu after Vijay blasts navy killings

Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath has issued a stern response to remarks made by Indian actor-turned-politician C. Joseph Vijay, who recently called for the retrieval of Katchatheevu island to protect Tamil Nadu’s fishermen.

“Katchatheevu Island belongs to Sri Lanka. It is an island belonging to Sri Lanka. Therefore, that will never change,” Herath told reporters during the weekly Cabinet press briefing in Colombo.

Amazon pulls sanctioned Sri Lankan war criminal's book, Penguin India under fire

Amazon UK has confirmed it has removed from sale the memoir of Sri Lanka’s former navy chief Wasantha Karannagoda, who remains sanctioned in the UK for command responsibility over “human rights violations including illegal killings and activities amounting to torture.”

Tamil Nadu fishermen’s boats demolished ahead of Sri Lankan president’s visit to Myiliddy

On the eve of Sri Lankan president Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s visit to Myiliddy, boats belonging to Tamil Nadu fishermen were demolished with JCB machinery and removed from the harbour premises.

Excavations at Chemmani reveal intertwined skeletons among over 200 bodies

At the Chemmani mass grave, ten additional sets of skeletal remains were fully exhumed on Sunday, while a further twelve remains were identified — bringing the total number uncovered to 209.

British Tamils in London denounce Colombo’s cover-up of genocide

British Tamils held a demonstration in London last week to mark the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, marching from the Sri Lankan High Commission to the British Prime Minister’s Office to demand justice for the disappeared and for those massacred at Chemmani.

Tamils in Paris mark International Day of Disappeared with open air exhibition

Tamils in Paris, France, held an open air exhibition to highlight Sri Lanka's legacy of enforced disappearances. 

The exhibition, organised by the Tamil Youth Organisation- France and the Tamil Coordinating Committee in France, was held yesterday to mark the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances. 

'Voice of Justice' campaign calls for international accountability for Tamil Genocide

Chemmani protest

The banner reads: 'Is the homeland a graveyard?'

The 'Voice of Justice' campaign was launched in Chemmani, Jaffna on August 23, calling for international justice for the genocide committed against the Tamil nation.