Sri Lanka’s Bar Association (BASL) launched an Anti-Torture unit focused on tackling issues of police brutality, torture, and deaths in police custody.

During the launch of the new unit President of BASL’s Counsel, Saliya Pieris, affirmed BASL’s commitment to ending “torture and custodial violence”.

In a letter addressed to Sri Lanka’s Health Minister, Sri Lanka’s Medical Association and the Intercollegiate Committee have called for the banning of flights from 6 South African countries and to strengthen quarantine laws.  However the virus has already been detected in the country.

M.A. Sumanthiran, a parliamentarian from the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), condemned the recent attack by the army on a Tamil journalist in Mullivaikkal. Vishvalingam Vishvachandran was physically assaulted when he was in the area as a reporter to take pictures. 

Sri Lanka's inflation hits 12-year high at 9.9% in November, as the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) issued a high alert warning for the country as food prices soar.

Marking Maaveerar Naal, Australian MP, Hugh McDermott, expressed his solidarity with the Tamil community as those in the North East faced a brutal crackdown on memorialisation events.

Sri Lanka’s finance minister and another brother of the Rajapaksa regime, Basil Rajapaksa, is in Delhi this week, as his government looks to India for crucial financial support amidst a deepening economic crisis and growing tensions between the neighbours.

Rajapaksa arrived in Delhi on Tuesday, with a range of meetings scheduled. He is expected to meet with Indian prime minister Narendra Modia, as well as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and others.

Thousands of Tamils across Australia commemorated Maaveerar Naal at events across the country, as they gathered to pay tribute to the fallen fighters of the Tamil liberation struggle this weekend.

Events took place across the country, with speeches, performances and commemorations. Australian politicians joined many of the events that took place.

See photos from across Australia below.

Tamils in Naples, Italy marked Maaveerar Naal - Great Heroes Day - to commemorate the tens of thousands of cadres who laid down their lives in the struggle for Tamil liberation. 

The Committee against Torture noted that Sri Lanka was amongst the nations that failed to submit their report to the Committee within the allocated deadline, during a discussion held on Tuesday.

French Tamils commemorated Maaveerar Naal on November 27th by lighting candles and observing a moment of silence for fallen cadres who sacrificed their lives for Tamil liberation. 

Flowers were laid at the gravestones of Captain Gajan, Lt. Colonel Nathan and Colonel Parithi. 

Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L.Peiris said that the controversial Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) will not be rescinded in a meeting with the Sri Lankan Collective for Consensus (SLCC), a civil society organisation. 

Private commemorations to mark Maaveerar Naal were held across the North-East on November 27^th, amidst a Sri Lankan military crackdown and fears of intimidation, harassment and arrest.

In Kilinochchi, there were reports that the Sri Lankan military had blocked access to destroyed LTTE cemeteries, where locals had gathered in previous years to pay tribute to those that gave their lives in the Tamil liberation struggle.

Local Tamils managed to block off another land grab attempt by the Sri Lankan military this week, as armed troops from the navy squared off against demonstrators in Jaffna.

Residents state that Sri Lanka’s land survey department was attempting to acquire at least 1 acre of private land for the navy in Mathagal, Jaffna.

Tamil families of the disappeared held a protest in Jaffna yesterday calling on the Sri Lankan government to reveal the whereabouts of their loved ones who were forcibly disappeared during and at the end of the armed conflict.