Freedom House has deemed internet freedom in Sri Lanka as only “partly free” in its annual report, highlighting attempts to censor the Tamil Guardian and the detention of Tamils over social media posts.

Clearing has begun at the Visuvamadu Theravil Thuyilum Illam in preparation of Maaveerar Naal which is marked on November 27. 

In a historic event that echoed the resilience and spirit of the Tamil nation, the 'Yaazh Gaanam' concert, headlined by the acclaimed Tamil music maestro Santhosh Narayanan, unfolded on the evening of October 21st at the Muttraveli ground in Jaffna. This gathering marked not only a celebration of music but also a poignant tribute to Tamil heritage, a moment of reflection on the liberation struggle, and a resounding call to action using the power of music.

The Sri Lankan government announced the so-called ‘presidential palace’ in Jaffna, which was constructed by the military in 2012 on land that it had seized from local Tamils, will now be leased out to a private university.

The Sri Lankan government has announced that it will distribute air rifles to farmers to fight of an expanding population of monkeys and other animals that are destroying crops.

Speaking to reporters Sri Lanka’s Agricultural Minister Mahinda Amaraweera lashed out at environmental groups protecting the toque macaques monkeys and maintained that “if the crisis becomes worse standard rifles will have to be given”.

The Colombo Magistrate Court has finally released former MP Vijayakala Maheshwaran from a case filed against her more than five years ago after she made remarks calling for a resurgence of the LTTE to curb high crime rates in North-East.

Maheswaran faced criticism from cross-party Sinhala politicians for calling for a resurgence of the LTTE in order to curb rising crime rates in North-East and was forced to resign from her ministerial post.

TNA parliamentarian Selvam Adaikkalanathan told reporters that Sri Lankan military and police intelligence services had intimidated small business owners in order to try and prevent them from joining a hartal, protesting against the intimidation of a Tamil judge who was forced to resign and flee the island last month.

Former Tamil parliamentarian Suresh Premachandran expressed his scepticism regarding the credibility of a Sri Lankan Criminal Investigation Department (CID) report which claimed that a Tamil judge who resigned from his posts and fled the island due to death threats, did not face any issues.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reached an agreement with Sri Lankan authorities to unlock the second tranche of bail-out funds worth approximately US$330 million after they were initially withheld by the global body.

A protest condemning the action of the Sri Lanka navy and demanding the immediate release of detained Tamil Nadu fishermen was staged in Rameshwaram last week.

The demonstration was organised by the families of the affected fisherfolk and fishing unions, following yet another arrest of Indian fishermen and the seizure of their vessels.