Sri Lanka’s Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) has interrogated the secretary of former Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MP Sivasakthi Anandan on Tuesday, questioning him over a protest held by Tamil families of the disappeared last week.

Ilankai Tamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) member, Peter Ilancheliyan, was rushed into surgery at Jaffna Teaching Hospital with a broken jaw after being attacked by a group of four in Mullaitivu, on Sunday. Sri Lankan police are accused of protecting the assailants.

Sri Lanka’s president Gotabaya Rajapaksa has prorogued parliament as he hurriedly flew to Singapore on an unscheduled visit, according to the latest reports.

Rajapaksa, a former defence secretary who stands accused of mass atrocities, announced that parliament would be prorogued until January 18. Initially, it was set to convene on January 11.

A Sri Lankan court has banned an event by the Human Rights Office of the Diocese of Kandy (HROK) to mark Human Rights Day, claiming that the event could “cause disunity”.

According to a report in AsiaNews, Sri Lankan police handed over the court order barring the event to HROK director Father Nandana Manatunga.

The event was due to have 22 families of prisoners receive “tokens of appreciation for the emotional, social and financial struggles they face” with members of the clergy, lawyers, prison and United Nations officials, and even Sri Lankan police officers themselves invited.

Today marks 15 years since the passing of the chief negotiator and political strategist of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Anton Balasingham. 

Balasingham, or as he was fondly known among Tamils - Bala Anna, was widely respected and adored by the nation. His charismatic addresses in venues around the world drew tens of thousands, as he provided political analysis with sharp wit. Leading LTTE delegations through numerous negotiations, Bala Anna eloquently and forcefully articulated the rights of the nation. His intellectual prowess and political acumen earned him respect from all sides of the negotiating table.

Officials from Sri Lanka's Forest Department arrived in Talaimannar West earlier today in order to carry out a survey of the forest land in the area, where they were blocked by opposition from locals.   

Sri Lanka’s Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) has continued to target a Tamil journalist and Jaffna University student, repeatedly issuing interrogation summons and harassing family and colleagues in Kilinochchi, since June. 

Journalists in Batticaloa demanded that the Sri Lankan state protect human rights and ensure freedom of the press at event held in the city on Sunday evening.

Tamil parliamentarians met in Colombo on Sunday, as they discussed the 13^th Amendment to Sri Lanka’s constitution which calls for some devolution to the North-East, amidst renewed discussion over power sharing to the Tamil homeland.

During demining excavations in Palai, human skeletal remains and an LTTE uniform were found. 

A Buddha statue has been removed in Amparai after it was secretly erected on Friday night by a group of Buddhist monks. 

Ambika Satkunanathan, Former Commissioner at the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, addressed the United States House of Representatives Tom Lantos Commission on Human Rights this week, as it held a hearing on 'Accountability and Human Rights in Sri Lanka'.

See the full text of her address and video footage of the event below.

A new statue of Subramania Bharati, an early 20th century Tamil poet fondly called Bharathiyar, was unveiled in Jaffna earlier today on the occasion of his 139th birth anniversary.