Amnesty International, Forum Asia, Human Rights Watch, the International Crisis Group, and the International Commission of Jurists have released a joint statement calling for the release of human rights activists detained by the Sri Lankan government and urged the international community to “stand up for human rights in Sri Lanka.”

David Griffiths, Amnesty International’s deputy director for Asia Pacific, said,

“The Sri Lankan authorities need to release Fernando and Father Praveen, and end the ongoing state harassment of human rights defenders… How can the international community take Sri Lanka’s claims to respect rights seriously when rights defenders continue to face intimidation and criminal charges for demanding accountability and human rights protection?”

"I note that Ms. Sasitharan in referring in her statements to the council to quote unquote Tamil Eelam, has failed to adhere to agreed language of the United Nations, and is in violation of the constitution of she has pledged to uphold."

The South Asia Director of Human Rights Meenakshi Ganguly has called on the United Nations Human Rights Council to demand the release of detained human rights activists in Sri Lanka in a piece written earlier today.

Extracts from her piece entitled ‘Silencing Sri Lanka’s Rights Advocates’ have been reproduced below. See the full piece here.

“There’s a grim irony in the timing of the arrests that come just as a resolution on Sri Lanka’s failure to address accountability is under discussion and will be voted on soon at the ongoing United Nations Human Rights Council sessions in Geneva. In spite of council resolutions in 2012 and 2013, Sri Lanka has taken no meaningful steps towards ensuring justice for the victims of abuses during its civil war, and has instead launched an aggressive campaign against those Sri Lankans who advocate for accountability. Human rights defenders, activists, journalists, and civil society members who are critical of the government have regularly been threatened and harassed. Those who have an international profile, such as Fernando, face particular government hostility.”

In the aftermath of the Muttur massacre, French aid organisation Action Contre la Faim (Action Against Hunger) has called on the UN Human Rights Council to protect aid workers, in a new campaign launched this week.

The organisation stated that,

“As the United Nations Human Rights Council is gathering for the 25th session until March 28th, ACF International calls to put an end to impunity in Sri Lanka. We ask for a strong resolution allowing an international and independent inquiry into the murder of 17 aid workers in Muttur in 2006.”

‘An International Women’s Day (IWD) Celebration & Conference’ was held in Toronto earlier this month, highlighting the various achievements of women globally and examining the social and economic issues faced by Tamil women in the North-East and the diaspora.

The third week of the UN Human Rights Council's 25th session begins today with palpable sense of renewed impetus towards the need for concrete action. The second draft of the resolution calling for accountability in Sri Lanka has evidently been strengthened. The High Commissioner's office is called upon to establish a stand alone investigative mechanism. The strengthening of the text is without doubt welcome however ambiguity remains around the core issue of an international investigation into mass wartime atrocities. As the continued calls from international and Tamil voices for a Commission of Inquiry highlight, questions remain over the nature and scope of the investigation envisaged in this latest text - will it have the necessary mandate, sufficient resources and right direction to go beyond mere fact-finding but gather evidence towards a judicial process and prosecutions.

"According to reports that we have received they were reportedly not arrested for their work, however, they are being interrogated. This is likely to be connected to the incident that happened yesterday [Thursday] - the arrest of a mother and daughter [Balendran Jeyakumari and Vipoosika]."

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Jaffna has called for the early release of Rev. Fr. Praveen Mahesan and the Sri Lankan human rights activist Ruki Fernando, who were detained by TID officers on Sunday evening in Kilinochchi.

In a statement released Monday, the Jaffna Diocesan Laity Council said,

"We understand that this priest and Ruki were involved in mercifully investigating into the circumstances surrounding the plight of that defenceless mother and child. As a further threat to such HR Defenders these two too have now been arrested and detained.