More than 10,000 French Tamils participated in a demonstration protesting against the killing of several hundred civilians by Sri Lanka military in the past week, and urging Pakistan to stop military and other assistance to the Sri Lanka Government to prosecute war against Tamils, sources in Paris said.
The protest was organized by the World Tamil Coordnating Committee (WTCC), in the historic Etuval area of France in front of Embassy of Pakistan on January 28.
The demonstration followed a spontaneously organized protest by an activist segment of French Tamils in the La Chappelle area the previous day.
Demonstrators carried an effigy of Sri Lanka's President, Mahinda Rajapakse, and shouted slogans condemning the artillery attacks and aerial bombardment by Sri Lanka military that killed, in one day, more than 300 of civilians. The civilians had sought refuge in Udayaarkaddu safety zone demarcated by the Government where the military targeted their attacks.
Representatives of the French Tamil community handed over a memorandum to the Pakistan Embassy official, appealing to Pakistan Government to stop aiding Colombo in the perpetration of war against Tamils.
Participants in the protest said, this is the first time in France, such large numbers had assembled, and that there is marked increase in the involvement of expatriate Tamils in activities related to Tamil struggle.
The previous day, several hundred French Tamils had gathered in front of the French Parliament to demonstrate in protest against the genocide of Tamils in Vanni, but they were sent back by the French police, even though they had obtained official permission, sources in Paris said.
The protestors, however, went ahead and started the demonstration in La Chapelle area where the crowd swelled to around 4000 persons.
Though the police asked the protestors to leave the area in the beginning later they allowed the demonstration to proceed on learning about the genocide unleashed by the Sri Lanka government on Tamil civilians in Vanni.
The protestors demanded that the French media should report the large demonstration and expose Sri Lankan government’s actions. The complained that the French media is exercising self-censorship in reporting the carnage of Tamils in Vanni.
The demonstration was continued until after media persons visited the site to cover the event.
The Tamil traders in La Chapelle closed their business establishments offering full support to the demonstration.
These were part of a series of smaller protests, including another in La Chapelle, Paris on 23 January. More than 4000 Tamil men, women and students, braving the cold weather, held hands forming a human chain. ‘Our leader is Pirabakaran!’, ‘Thamil Eelam is our country!’, ‘Tamils are as the same as the people of Kosovo!’ were some of the slogans shouted by the demonstrators.
The demonstration was organized by the Tamil business owners in Paris who had closed their business establishments to join the demonstration.
