• Tamil refugee arrested in India for hunger strike

    Jun 27

    A Tamil refugee has been arrested in Tamil Nadu for holding a hunger strike demanding the Indian government hand him, his family and other Tamils who have fled Sri Lanka to the United Nations, instead of deporting them back to the island.

    32-year-old Chenthuran was arrested by Tamil Nadu police from a camp in Cheyyar, earlier this week and is currently being held in Puzhal Prison in Chennai.

  • Australian patrol boat ‘gift’ arrives in Sri Lanka

    A second patrol boat donated by the Australian government to Sri Lanka has arrived in Colombo this week, having been ceremoniously received by the Sri Lanka Navy.

  • Australia denies asylum seeker boat in trouble
    The Australian Immigration Minister Scott Morrison on Saturday said there were no significant reports at sea, the Sydney Morning Herald reports, despite news that a boat carrying 153 Tamil asylum seekers is in trouble off the coast of Christmas Island. 
  • ATC calls on Australian government to ensure safety of stranded refugees
    The Australian Tamil Congress (ATC) called on its government to ensure the safety of 153 Tamil asylum seekers reported to be stranded off Christmas Island.

    "Australian Tamil Congress calls on our government to take the necessary steps to ensure the safety of the stranded people who appear to be in dire conditions in the sea," the group said in a statement made on Saturday.

  • Gotabhaya says army will rebuild Aluthgama

    Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa told The Island that the army will be carrying out rebuilding work in Aluthgama and other towns affected by Sinhala mob violence.

    Rajapaksa said that the military would provide free labour while the government would cover other costs.

    "The president has issued the necessary instructions before leaving for the Maldives,’ the defence secretary said, adding that the government would take all measures to prevent recurrence of communal violence.

  • EU provides drought assistance to North-East

    The European Commission has announced it will provide €250,000 to help families in the island’s North-East, affected by the drought caused by a lack of adequate rainfall.

  • Tamil asylum seekers stranded in Australian waters, Abbott deflects questions
    The Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, today, deflected questions regarding the plight of over 151 Tamil asylum seekers from south India left stranded on an allegedly sinking boat, reports ABC News.

    The Immigration Minister Scott Morrison would not comment on the vessel or its position and said that there had been ‘no significant events involving extreme risk of safety of life at sea,’ reports the     Sydney Morning Herald.

  • BBS says Facebook accounts blocked
    Members of the Buddhist monk group, Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), accused of instigating anti-Muslim violence in the South-West of the island, reported that their social media accounts on Facebook had been blocked, reports Reuters.

    "My account is blocked," the BBS spokesperson Dilantha Vithanage told Reuters by telephone. "I can't access my account. I last visited my account on June 25 and the accounts of others have also been blocked."

  • Hague welcomes appointment of OHCHR inquiry panel

    British Foreign Secretary William Hague welcomed the appointment of the three experts to the international inquiry into Sri Lanka by the Office of the Human Rights Commissioner by Navi Pillay, in a statement released on Thursday.

    Hailing the “strong team”, Mr Hague said the inquiry is an important step in establishing the truth and facilitating reconciliation in Sri Lanka.

    The foreign secretary urged the Sri Lankan to ensure the safety of those engaging with the investigation and for government to cooperate with the investigation.

  • No evidence of BBS hate speech says SL police
    Sri Lankan police said on Thursday, there was no evidence that the the Buddhist monk group Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) had expressed hate speech, reports Colombo Page.

    According to the police spokesperson,     the investigation into the BBS Secretary, Galagadaaththe Gnanasara Thero, yielded no evidence that the Buddhist leader had been involved in inciting anti-Muslim violence in Aluthgama.

  • Military appropriates further land in North-East to extend camps
    Over 7 acres of public land including the premises of a hospital in the North-Eastern region of Pudhukudiyiruppu, will be seized by the Sri Lankan military, reports the Uthayan.

    The military made the announcement to extend a military camp using the appropriate land despite the hospital and 19 other land owners providing documents of the land ownership.


  • US urges Sri Lanka to cooperate with OHCHR investigation panel

    The United States on Wednesday welcomed the appointment of the “distinguished experts” as advisors to the OHCHR investigation panel by the High Commissioner Navi Pillay.

    During a press briefing at the State Department, spokesperson Marie Harf told reporters that the US urges Sri Lanka to cooperate fully with the OHCHR and to take meaningful steps towards accountability and justice, offering US assistance on these issues.

  • Army given Rs 150mn to repair Aluthgama damage

    The Sri Lankan government has allocated Rs 200mn to repair buildings damaged during anti-Muslim violence by Sinhala mobs, Rs 150mn of which will be given to the Sri Lankan Army, reported the Daily Mirror.

    Sri Lanka’s resettlement minister Gunaratne Weerakoon told a meeting in Kalutura today that several buildings in Beruwala, Kalutara, Matugama and Bentota divisions had been damaged in the incidents and that the security forces personnel would be deployed to repair them.

  • Swiss ambassador told of land grabs and militarisation on Jaffna visit
    Switzerland's ambassador, Thomas Litscher, was told of on-going land grabs by the Sri Lankan army, militarisation and the undermining of the powers of the Northern Provincial Council during his visit to Jaffna this week where he met with the chair, CV Sivagnanam, as well as Tamil civil society activists.

    "I have also stressed about the Vali North [resettlement] issue, and that 24 village divisions of people have not yet been resettled due to their lands being declared as High Security Zones," the Uthayan quoted Sivagnanam as saying after his meeting.

    He added,
    "I also explained that the military presence has increased in Vanni region, and [the military] have acquired the majority of lands in the area in the meantime."

  • Jaya urges Modi to secure release of 64 fishermen arrest by SL navy
    Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa urged the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to secure the release of 64 fishermen currently in Sri Lankan custody on Tuesday, as 11 more fishermen being detained by the Sri Lankan Navy on Monday, reports the Times of India.

    Forty-six fishermen were arrested last Wednesday by the Sri Lankan Navy, whilst another seven were arrested the following day.

    In her latest letter to Modi, Jayalalithaa called for a permanent solution, arguing that such a solution "lies only in [the] retrieval of Katchatheevu island".

    "Until such time, the Union government must impress upon the Sri Lankan government to abstain from attacks on and abduction of our innocent fishermen on the high seas in the Palk Bay. Further, the joint mechanisms which are designed to ensure the speedy release of apprehended fishermen should be effectively activated," she wrote.

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