Writing in the Times of India, Frances Harrison told of how recent flooding in Mullivaikal has exposed skulls and human remains from the final killing fields, where civilains were slaughtered in 2009, according to reports.

Extracts from her article entitled "Row in Lanka as govt turns Tamil killing fields into tourist hot spot", as well as photos from Frances Harrison's Jux visualisation have been reproduced below.

"Local people who've recently travelled into Sri Lanka's killing fields, where an estimated 40,000 people perished in 2009, say skulls and human bones have risen to the surface after this year's flooding and abandoned belongings are strewn all over the landscape.

"It is a horrible scene," said one visitor, "there are still bunkers visible with saris, kid's clothing and suitcases left open under the bushes; you can't imagine what it must have been like for those people to have been crammed into that tiny place so close together". This man was too scared to go close or collect the human remains lest there were mines or unexploded ordinance."

Activists from Naam Thamizhar Iyakkam in India have protested against Sri lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa's visit to Tirupathi, picketing an express train leaving from Puducherry.

Protestors waved Naam Thamizar flags as they delayed the train with a protest also being held near a temple run by Tirupathi trust. They called on the Central government to ensure that Rajapaksa be held accountable for the massacre of Eelam Tamils, noting Rajapaksa's recent comments against the devolution of pwoer on the island.

See the report from New India Express here.

Tamil Member of Parliament Sritharan has rebuffed claims made by Australian politicians last week that Sri Lanka was safe for Tamils and the reasons for the rise in asylum seekers were “economic and lifestyle”.

Speaking on Melbourne radio 3CR, Sritharan said,

“I am very hurt by Julie Bishop’s false claims. Spreading lies with no conscience about a race that is being wiped out saddened us. We feel we have been deceived,”

Having met with the Australian delegation as they toured the island, Sritharan went on to say,

“I felt Julie Bishop and her colleagues were taking sides with the Sri Lankan Government. They did not care about Tamil grievances. The actions of people like Julie Bishop hurts us.”

“Many people who have been deported back from Sri Lanka are spending time in jails. They asked for names but I could not provide them at the time. When I asked them whether they could guarantee the lives of these young men, Julie Bishop shook her head and said we can’t guarantee anyone’s life. So we could not talk about issues certain individuals faced. It hurts us to know that they haven’t understood the sufferings of our people,”

“When they visited Tamil areas, they did not speak to any of the Tamil civilians. The people were too scared because the army and intelligence people surrounded them.”

“Thousands of Tamil youth are rotting in jails. Sri Lankan Army is everywhere. We have Sri Lankan intelligence roaming around everywhere. Even two days ago on Sri Lanka’s independence day (which Tamils mourn) Tamils were forced to hoist the Lion flag on their houses. When a flag accidentally fell down from a house, they beat up the house owner.”

“Tamils can’t live peacefully here. This why Tamils flee to places like Australia.”

Earlier, Australian opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison denied ongoing human rights abuses on the island stating,

“We didn’t hear of on-going Tamil abuse by the Sinhalese, that’s the point... The most important thing is to beef up the capacity of Sri Lanka to ensure they (the boats) don't get within a few hundred nautical miles of Australia".

 

The proposals put forward by the Coalition were shunned by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, with a spokesperson saying,

''Any such blanket approach - as past experience has shown - is operationally difficult and dangerous for all concerned,''

Australian Senator Hanson-Young also commented,

"The Coalition and Tony Abbott are prepared to do anything including illegal acts in order to continue their get tough, get cruel, get mean race to the bottom on refugees,” 

Sri Lanka’s foreign secretary has dismissed a warning by a Canadian minister that there might be a revival of “radicalisation by the diaspora”.

The Canadian Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney made the comments in Ontario last week, adding that he found the political situation was deteriorating and he had shared his views with Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

Foreign Secretary Karunathilaka Amunugama, dismissed the warning, telling Xinhua that the government knows what it was doing.

"Sri Lanka's human rights record is much better than other countries. The government knows its responsibility towards its own people and has been working on maintaining a good human rights record," he said.

In an open letter to the Commonwealth Heads of Government, Brad Adams, Human Rights Watch's Asia director, urged that the choice of Sri Lanka as the venue for the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) be changed given the state's failure to achieve meaningful progress five benchmarks outlined in an open letter late last year. 

See here for full letter, extracts reproduced below:

"Human Rights Watch believes that these benchmarks are reasonable and well within what any rights-respecting government—particularly a Commonwealth government committed to implementing the 1991 Harare Declaration—should voluntarily undertake. To allow Sri Lanka to host the 2013 summit without meeting these benchmarks would be to reward an abusive government with an undeserved badge of international acceptance."

"The Sri Lankan government should not receive the honor of hosting the Commonwealth summit unless it makes major progress on all the above, particularly in accountability for alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other serious conflict-related abuses; loosening restrictions on and ending threats and harassment against civil society activists and journalists; and conducting credible investigations and prosecutions of ongoing rights violations, including extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances, and torture. We have seen no sign that the government intends to undertake any of these actions."

"Human Rights Watch is also deeply concerned that in addition to hosting the 2013 Commonwealth summit, Sri Lanka will also hold the chairmanship of the Commonwealth from 2013 to 2015. Handing Sri Lanka leadership of the Commonwealth at a time when democratic institutions are under direct and sustained attack by the Sri Lankan government will be an affront to the victims of rights violations in the country and around the Commonwealth."

The circulation manager of Jaffna newspaper ‘Thinakkural’ was hospitalised after being assaulted by a gang of motorcyclists early on Wednesday morning.

46-year-old Sivagurunathan Sivakumar was followed by six individuals, all with their faces covered by helmets, on three motorbikes as he was doing his daily distribution rounds in Jaffna.

Sivakumar recalls being overtaken and stopped by one motorbike, punched in the face by one individual and beaten with metal poles and clubs by the others.

Sivakumar’s motorcycle and the bundles of newspapers which he had been transporting were then set alight by the attackers.

The Tamil National People’s Front (TNPF) condemned the ‘barbaric’ and ‘malicious’ assault.

In a statement released in Tamil on Thursday, the TNPF said:

 “Last month, a distribution worker for Uthayan was attacked in this same style... These attacks have been carried out by forces with no respect for democracy - anti-democratic forces incapable of engaging in discussions and instead trust in cultures of violence and murder."

"The government has unleashed state terrorism on the Tamil people, so that they fear for their lives and cannot demonstrate or speak out against the genocidal acts being undertaken to systematically destroy the presence of the Tamil nation. The Tamil press is bravely trying to bring these activities to the attention of the international community. This isn’t tolerated, and so such attacks are undertaken with the intent of silencing the Tamil press. This assault makes a mockery of freedom and freedom of the press.”

“If the attackers were able to escape, when every nook and cranny in the Jaffna peninsula is under military surveillance, it is highly unlikely that the incident was carried out without the prior knowledge of the army.”

The British Tamils Forum said this week it deplores the statement by the UK’s Minister in charge for Sri Lanka, Rt Hon Alistair Burt, in which he suggested that the island’s conflict has ended.

The BTF’s statement follows:

On his highly controversial trip to Sri Lanka, Minister Burt is seen giving an interview on the beaches of Mullivaikkal, with John Rankin, the British High commissioner in Sri Lanka, in which he repeatedly states that the conflict has ended in Sri Lanka.

[See the full interview here.]

Mullivaikal, a coastal village in the north east corner of the Island of Sri Lanka was where over 40,000 Tamils were massacred in just the final few days of the war in 2009. Gordon Weiss, a UN spokesman during the war described this as the "Srebrenica Moment".

British Tamils Forum’s Parliamentary Coordinator Nad Mylvaganam conveying the feelings of the Tamil people said

“The insensitivity at the choice of the place for his interview and the manner in which he refers to the conflict as a thing of the past, has incensed Tamil people who are still mourning their loved ones massacred on those beaches. Minister Burt’s untimely visit undermines the efforts of Human Rights defenders who are working hard to hold the regime to account.”

The conflict in the island is between the Tamil nation that is facing an existential threat from the Sinhala nation which is working systematically to rid the island of Tamil people in every way possible; by terrorising them, taking away their land and their livelihoods – all through “democratically” elected Sinhala governments.

War has ended, but the “conflict” between the two nations of the Island of Sri Lanka has not and will continue until a sustainable political solution in which the two nations are recognised by each other and by international community.

Here in Britain, it will be considered an insult to refer the Scottish or the Welsh people as minorities. Yet, labelling the Tamil people as minority goes unchallenged causing extreme distress to the Tamil people who see it as a direct attack on their nationhood. It is important that her Majesty’s government and its officers understand the nature of the conflict in Sri Lanka before trying to address it.

Sri Lanka’s garment industry is losing market share in its key export destinations, the US and the EU, to its competitors from India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Vietnam and Cambodia, according to a report by the Colombo-based Institute of Policy Studies.

"Despite considerable increases in absolute export earnings to both and US and EU markets, it is of concern to note that Sri Lanka’s relative market share in garment exports has been losing ground. The increase in export earnings over the years has been due largely to a shift in Sri Lankan garment exports from the US to EU," the IPS said in its report, ‘Sri Lanka: State of the Economy 2012’.

"Sri Lanka has been seeing a steady decline in its market share in the US from 2.3 percent in 2005 to 1.8 percent in 2011. Sri Lanka has been losing out to countries such as Pakistan, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Cambodia. Pakistan’s share in the US apparel market was significantly below that of Sri Lanka in 2005 at 1.8 percent, but is now ahead at 2.1 percent. Diversification of its product range, marketing and large investments in value-added sectors including sewing machines, stitching, knitting, finishing and knitting processing have contributed towards Pakistan’s progress,"

"While Sri Lanka has been successful in penetrating the EU market, 2010 and 2011 have seen a marginal decline in the share compared to 2009. Moreover, Sri Lanka is bound to lose its foothold further as the EU GSP Plus concessions eroded. Sri Lanka garment exports will face higher tariffs under the new reforms that would come into effect from 2014. Whereas China and Turkey still account for over half of the garment export share in the EU, Sri Lanka has been losing its market share to competitor countries such as Bangladesh, India, Vietnam, Pakistan and Cambodia. Bangladesh has been particularly successful in penetrating the EU market, with an increase of 6.2 percent in 2009 to 11.2 percent in 2011.”

Industry sources said the country was losing around US$ 1 billion each year due to the withdrawal of GSP Plus, said The Island.

"Bangladesh is already a beneficiary of GSP Plus concessions, and Pakistan will also become eligible under the new reforms. Additionally, India is scheduled to sign a free trade agreement with the EU in 2014 which would guarantee benefits to Indian garment imports through tariff preferences." the report further said.

"With competitor countries gaining from such tariff concessions, securing market share in the EU would be a challenging task for Sri Lanka in 2014 and beyond. Therefore, it is imperative that market diversification takes place in Sri Lankan garment exports. In this respect, Sri Lanka has made rapid inroads in to new markets such as Turkey and the United Arab Emirates," the IPS said.

Speaking at the annual session of the Sri Lanka Economic Association last October, Shippers’ Council Secretary General Rohan Masakorala said that a considerable amount of foreign exchange was being lost due to EU’s withdrawal of the concessions.

"After losing GSP Plus we are losing a considerable amount of foreign exchange in terms of opportunity cost. A leading apparel exporter, who I will not name, found that he would have to incur an additional cost of euro 25 million to export to the EU. What did he do? He invested US$ 25 million on a production facility in Vietnam," he said.

"We could probably export to China but they would soon copy our products and produce it themselves. India is also a difficult option because of the very difficult bureaucratic environment. These two markets are very different cultures altogether. This is why it is important to enhance our trade with the US and EU," Masakorala added.

The International Bar Associations Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) expressed serious concern over the visa rejections of its four delegation members who had intended on visiting Sri Lanka.

According to Sri Lanka's External Affairs Ministry, the delegates which included the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India, Justice J S Verma, had provded inaccurate information on their visa applications regarding the purpose of their trip. The Ministry reportedly argued, 'the visit was to surreptitiously undertake an activity which is of an intrusive nature to the sovereignty of Sri Lanka'.

Rejecting this explanation, the IBARHRI argued:

"The online visa application process does not allow applicants to provide further information on the purpose of their trip."

Dr Mark S Ellis, Executive Director of the IBAHRI, said:

"It will suggest to the international community that the Sri Lankan authorities are fearful of having independent eyes on the issues of interest to the legal profession."

"To date, no further information has been forthcoming. However, we remain hopeful that the Sri Lankan government will wish to remain open to international engagement and will reinstate the visits accordingly."

The Sri Lankan parliament produced a draft bill that looks to revise the current legislation on ‘terrorist’ financing, reported Colombo Page.

The Sri Lankan government claimed  that revisions of the Terrorist Financing Act No 25 of 2005 needed revision to combat the threat of active ‘terrorists’ oversees.

The Act was amended in 2011, resulting in several terms being redefined.

Initially targeted ‘terrorist groups’, the act was expanded to  include ‘individual terrorists’ and consider any  asset as funding , whether they were kept within  or outside Sri Lanka. Further amendments allowed for any citizen of Sri Lanka as well as any noncitizen to be culpable of financing terrorism.

The new bill looks to build on these previous amendments.

See here and here for the Sri Lankan government’s perception of a terrorist.

"Yes. Still believe that although progress been made, much remains to be done. Hope SL gov will work constructively."

"Essential that human rights defenders are free to speak out as we continue to make clear to SL authorities"

"there is freedom of speech but too many comments about intimidation to be ignored"

The Sri Lankan government will reject the US-sponsored resolution at the 22nd session of the UN Human Rights Council, said a member of the cabinet.

Chief Government Whip and Water Supply and Drainage Minister Dinesh Gunawardena told the Daily News that Sri Lanka has fulfilled its obligations as a member of the UN.

"We will explain our human right standards and progress achieved in the sphere of national reconciliation in terms of the previous UN resolution,"

"This is not the first time that US -sponsored resolutions have come against sovereign states in Asia at the UNHRC. We will not welcome any resolution against the country at the upcoming Geneva sessions since we have fulfilled requirements of the UN as a member country," he said.

The Minister said that "representatives of the US and other UN member countries can visit Sri Lanka and eyewitness [sic] the progress in the spheres of post-war development and national reconciliation."

"People's rights have been established by the government. The people are enjoying freedom of movement after a three decade war," he said.

"The country introduced a Human Rights Action Plan by the UN, fulfilling its commitments to the UN. Secretary to the President Lalith Weerathinga carried out the implementation of the LLRC recommendations.

"Steps have been taken by the government to make constitutional changes that are necessary to implement some recommendations in the LLRC report.”

The minister blamed the delay to implementing recommendations of the LLRC on the TNA.

"The government is taking steps to change the electoral system. Tamil National Alliance(TNA)'s reluctance to participate in the Parliamentary Select Committee to reach a consensus on sensitive issues on the devolution of power, has delayed the implementation of some recommendations of the LLRC report," he said.

The opposition immigration spokesperson, Scott Morrison, said that if in power they would provide more data on asylum seekers arriving by boat to Sri Lanka.

Morrison said that "generic" information would be supplied, including location of where the boats departed from, where the asylum seekers are from and the name of the smuggler, reports The Australian.

He added that they would not disclose the names of aslyum seekers.

Speaking to The Australian, Morrison said:

"We understand there is sensitivity about people's specific information, but that doesn't mean it should operate as a one-way street,"

"Intelligence sharing should be a two-way street, but obviously respecting some information that would always have to remain confidential because of our obligations."

"There is no obstacle to us returning people to Sri Lanka. The frustration with this government is they've known that for a long, long, long time,"

"This surge in arrivals started in May last year and we're now in February and they haven't sent one patrol boat. We've got one AFP officer in Sri Lanka."

The increasing number of sexual assaults is causing concern amongst tourists, with rapes in Sri Lanka reported to occur 5 times each day.

Last week, a 25-year old German was attacked in broad daylight while sunbathing on a beach in Chilaw. She managed to escape after kicking the would-be rapist and fleeing into a hotel. A 28-year old suspect was arrested.

A European gender consultant in Sri Lanka told the Sunday Times that several European tourists complain of sexual harassment, but do not report it to the police.

“A white girlfriend was really shocked and angered after a man on a motorbike grabbed her breasts outside her apartment and a lot of my friends get routinely stopped on the street and accused of prostitution for merely being a white female,” she said.

She added that while the increasing incidents of rape were horrendous and sickening, the incidents were examples of how Sri Lanka ignores and accepts violence against women across the country.

“This would be the same with foreign women as most men here assume that white women are there solely for their pleasure.”

The paper cites several incidents of tourists raped on the island.

In 2011, a British national was murdered while his Russian girlfriend was raped by a group led by a local politician. A South African tourist is reported to have been raped by hotel employees, while there were attempted rapes against a Dutch tourist and a woman from New Zealand.

According to statistics from the Sri Lanka Tourist Development Authority, tourists from Western Europe make up the highest number of visitors to the island in 2011 and 2012. Last year, 373,063 had arrived in the country with the vast majority from Britain, Germany and France.

Tourist Hotels Association Past President Srilal Miththapala attempted to explain the “culture” of rape.

“There are huge cultural differences and people in the areas [that] still believe that white skin means promiscuity, especially because of their independence, attire and body language,” he said.