Tamil National People's Front (TNPF) MP Selvarajah Kajendren has written to Sri Lanka’s prime minister urging him to “prioritise the needs” of the Tamils who have been longing for a separate divisional secretary in Kalmunai North. In his letter to Dinesh Gunawardena, who also serves as the Minister of Public Administration, Kajendren highlighted that Tamils in Kalmunai have been protesting for 20 days opposing a move by the Sri Lankan government to subjugate their division under the Kalmunai South Division. “For three decades, the community of Kalmunai North has grappled with unresolved...
The latest report released by the World Bank has revealed that poverty in Sri Lanka has increased over the past four years from 11 percent in 2019 to 26 percent in 2024 putting more than a quarter of the Sri Lankan population living in poverty. Titled “Bridges to Recovery” the report describes how the unprecedented economic crisis that engulfed the country in 2022 had affected the masses. “Households have adopted risky coping strategies to deal with lower incomes and price pressures, including using savings, taking on more debt, and limiting their diets. Food insecurity rose during the second...
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recognised the "important contributions" made by Tamils in Canada, in his statement marking Tamil New Year.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak extended his wishes to the Tamil community celebrating the new year and thanked them for their 'tremendous contribution' to the country.
Tamil families of the disappeared in Vavuniya marked 2611 days of continuous protests on Tamil New Year as they continue to campaign to know the fate of their forcibly disappeared relatives. “We have been fighting for 2611 days to find our missing children,” they said. “We are grateful for the recognition of our struggle from politicians from the USA and EU in their pursuit for accountability and truth.” They also extended their appreciation to members of the U.S. Congress, who called for a referendum in Tamil Eelam and the referral of Sri Lanka to the ICC. Last month, US Congresswoman...
Last week, the leader of Sri Lanka’s Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and National People’s Power (NPP) coalition undertook a tour of the Tamil homeland. Though the party trumped up the visit, Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s speeches lacked substance. His explicit ruling out of political solutions to the decades-old ethnic conflict will have done little to enthuse Tamils to vote for him. Instead, his remarks have done the opposite, reaffirming to many that there is little to differentiate him from the other Sinhala candidates. Dissanayake’s electioneering has fallen flat.
The Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) has pledged to work on lifting the ban on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and push for a referendum on establishing Tamil Eelam in its manifesto as elections in India are set to take place later this month. The Hindu reported that the party general secretary Vaiko said the MDMK would urge the Union government to conduct a referendum among Tamils in the homeland and the global Tamil diaspora on establishing Tamil Eelam. This is not the first time that the MDMK has made such a decision. In 2014 , the MDMK outlined in their new...
A memorial float dedicated to Annai Poopathy travelled through Jaffna today and will make its way to Batticaloa to mark 36 years since her fast unto death.
Speaking to the press in Jaffna, former Chairman of the Northern Provincial Council, C.V.K Sivagnanam, maintained that the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) would not field a common candidate ahead of Sri Lanka's presidential elections. Sivagnanam noted that whilst some parties had called for a Tamil candidate at the polls, with some having suggested "names and published pedigrees of persons who could be the presidential candidate" this would not be the position of the TNA. "The TNA has decided that under no circumstance, there would be a common Tamil candidate at the next Presidential elections...
The Indian High Commission organised an event in Colombo last week where it showcased weapons for sale to senior Sri Lankan officials, including those accused of war crimes.