Sri Lanka’s Department of Survey released an updated map of the island earlier this week, to include the controversial Chinese projects in both Hambantota and Colombo.

The Hambantota port, built by the Chinese, was included in the map along with the Colombo Port City, expressways and other development projects started by the country in the last couple of years. Colombo has increased in size by 474.5 hectares since land reclamation for the project began, with work still ongoing.

Residents in Thikkam, Vadamarachchi held a remembrance event this week in memory of their loved ones who were killed by the Sri Lankan army during a military offensive in 1987. 

Residents were shot dead and killed by shell fire from May 29 to 31, 1987 as the Sri Lankan military conducted what it described as 'Operation Liberation' to 'liberate' the Vadamarachchi region from the LTTE. 

The Northern Provincial Council's education minister, K Sarveswaran was approached by two Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) officers this week, ordering him to attend for an inquiry at their Colombo 4th floor office on June 5. 

Mr Sarveswaran complained however after the summons the TID officers provided appeared to be similar to an anonymous letter rather than a formal document and spelt his name incorrectly as 'K Parameswaran'. 

The Northern Provincial Council on Wednesday passed a resolution aimed at ending Sri Lankan military involvement in civilian affairs. 

NPC members condemned the military's ongoing activities in the province and its harassment of locals. 

The assassinated senior Tamil journalist, Aiyathurai Nadesan was remembered this week by journalists and media workers at commemorative events in the North-East.

Mr Nadesan, who worked for over 20 years with Virakesari was shot dead in Batticaloa on May 31, 2004. 

In the months leading up to his killing, Mr Nadesan had been threatened and harassed by military personnel. On June 7, 2001, he was summoned by the army for an inquiry where he was warned to cease reporting on human rights abuses. 

Journalists in Jaffna and Batticaloa protested on Wednesday against the increasing number of attacks on media workers, including one last week. 

Journalists criticised the complete lack of action and justice around murdered and attacked Tamil journalists and media workers.

Sri Lankan military forces should no longer carry out civilian tasks within Jaffna, the Jaffna Municipal Council has said.

A resolution, put forward by TNPF councillor V. Manivannan and passed on Wednesday by the council, said there was no need for military forces to carry out civilian tasks within the council’s administrative border.

"We are demanding that the military, which is occupying Tamil people's lands in the North, should leave from here,” the Council said.

The 37^th anniversary of the burning of the Jaffna Public Library was marked at a remembrance event this morning.

Sri Lanka’s president met with a US Congress delegation from the House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday, where the growing partnership between the two governments in the security sector was discussed.

^{Cover art by Sagi Thilipkumar}

On midnight 31^st May 1981, the Jaffna Public Library, famous for being the crucible of Tamil literature and heritage, was set ablaze by Sri Lankan security forces and state-sponsored mobs.

Over 95,000 unique and irreplaceable Tamil palm leaves (ola), manuscripts, parchments, books, magazines and newspapers, housed within an impressive building inspired by ancient Dravidian architecture, were destroyed during the burning. Some texts that were kept in the library, such as the Yalpanam Vaipavama (a history of Jaffna), were literally irreplaceable, being the only copies in existence. It was one of the largest libraries in Asia.

The Sri Lankan army organised a Buddhist ceremony in Vavuniya earlier this month, reportedly marking the first time that Vesak was celebrated in the region in such a large scale.

The speaker of Sri Lanka’s parliament claimed that the “our country has been elevated before the world as a decent and respected nation”, following an “A” status accreditation for the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) earlier this month.

"I believe that our country has been elevated before the world as a decent and respected nation," said Karu Jayasuriya, who also serves as chairman of Sri Lanka’s Constitutional Council.

Fishermen from Vadamarachchi have been threatened by Sri Lankan Navy intelligence officers following a protest against encroachment of their fishing areas by fishermen from other districts.

The fishermen of Vadamarachchi East held a protest on Sunday, in opposition to hundreds of structures to farm sea cucumbers put up on the coasts of Thalaiyadi, Maruthankerny, Sembiyanpattru by fishermen from the North Western Province.

^{Photograph: AOAV}

The health, economy and environment of the predominantly Tamil North-East in Sri Lanka have all suffered from the use of explosive weapons, said Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) in a report released this week.