The UK’s Minister of State for Asia, Mark Field visited a group of police officers in Colombo earlier today, just days after a Scotland’s police announced a last minute cancellation of a training visit by a contingent of Sri Lankan policemen.

Field met with the female officers and tweeted that “UK funding has been supporting police reform in Sri Lanka”.

The Sri Lanka Monitoring and Accountability Panel (MAP) has called for an independent evidence-gathering mechanism for to be set up by the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) to collect evidence of international law violations.

The Sri Lanka Campaign has re-launched its ethical tourism campaign for those who visit Sri Lanka and the Tamil homeland, reflecting ongoing concerns regarding militarisation and in an effort to prevent human rights abusers from benefitting from tourism to the island.

Residents of Pandatharippu, Jaffna protested in solidarity with Tamil political prisoners who are hunger striking for their release.

As many as 750,000 cases remain pending in courts across the island, declared Sri Lanka’s Justice Minister Thalatha Atukorale.

She noted that the massive backlog has left many losing faith in Sri Lanka’s judicial system.

Investigators from the International Cricket Council’s Anti-Corruption Unit have met with Sri Lanka’s prime minister and president as they carry out investigations into corruption allegations on the island.

The British Tamil Conservatives (BTC) hosted their annual reception at the Conservative Party Conference on this weekend, where ministers and parliamentarians came and pledged to work towards justice in Sri Lanka.

Forty political prisoners at Colombo’s Magazine prison have begun a hunger strike, Daily Mirror reports.

The 40 detainees held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act began striking on Wednesday, calling for their cases to be expedited, according to the prisons spokesperson.

Ten Tamil political prisoners at Anuradhapura prison have been hunger striking for over two weeks and refusing medical treatment since last week, demanding their release.

Sri Lanka’s pace of progress on a number of key issues, including accountability, remains slower than the UK had hoped for, a British minister has said.

Writing in Sri Lanka’s Daily Mirror, FCO minister for Asia, Mark Field, said:

The Sri Lankan navy is accused of breaking the nets of Indian fishermen who they accused of entering Sri Lankan waters, and chased away a group of approximately 1,000 fishermen on Monday morning.

Sri Lanka’s prime minister Ranil Wickeremsinghe is set to address the Oxford Union next week, as part of a visit to the United Kingdom.

Wickremesinghe will reportedly be “discussing the geopolitics of the Indian Ocean region”.

The head of the Sri Lankan army said the military remained “cautious and concerned” over commemorations for fallen Tamil fighters, due to take place next month.

Sri Lankan army commander Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake said that the commemorations were a cause for concern, but brushed off accusations that the military was not well equipped to deal with "security" threats.

A Sri Lankan minister declared that his government would increase police spy services across the island, in a press conference this week.

Sri Lanka’s Law and Order minister Ranjith Madduma Bandara said “steps will be taken to increase police spy services” in response to increased criminal activity, particularly in the Tamil North-East.

Students of the Eastern University in Batticaloa protested on Tuesday in solidarity with Tamil political prisoners currently hunger striking for their release.