• Teach a soldier to fish...

    The Sri Lankan Army has intimidated a fishing society to allow itself access to fish in Iranaimadukulam, reports Uthayan.

    Troops in Mullaitivu are reported to have approached the Freshwater Fisheries Co-Operative Society on Tuesday afternoon to demand access to fish in the waters, claiming it was necessary for camp food stocks.

    The Society said in a statement about the demands:

    “[The Army] said that they need 100 kilos of fish for their daily cooking needs and that we should allow them to catch those themselves. When society members refused this and said we could sell them the fish, they were intimidated and threatened by troops of the 56th battalion.”

    “Around 400 families in the surrounding areas – Santhapuram, Selvapuram, Dharmapuram, Vaddakachi, Ambalnagar – depend on fishing in Iranaimadukulam as their livelihood.”

    “If the Army takes 100 kilos of fish a day what would happen to all these people? They would of course lose their livelihoods. This kind of action [on the part of the soldiers] is unacceptable and appropriate measures should be taken to set things right.”

  • Sinhala nationalists unite against 13th Amendment
    Ruling collation parties, the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) and the National Freedom Front (NFF), have rallied together in their call against the 13th amendment, making a joint statement calling for its abolition.

    At a joint press conference held in Colombo, NFF leader and government Minister Wimal Weerawamsa reportedly said,
    "The 13th amendment to the constitution, which introduced the Provincial Councils to the country is not a suitable system for Sri Lanka. It was a system forced on us by coercion and PCs were set up in an undemocratic manner".
    "The 13th amendment to the constitution and the establishment of the Provincial Council system were done under pressure from India following the Indo-Sri Lanka Agreement to establish peace and normality in Sri Lanka. But that purpose has not been fulfilled".
    The Minister had previously called the amendment a “time bomb” and has continuosly campaigned against its implementation.

    He was joined by JHU Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka, who added,
    "The international community cannot take decisions on behalf of the people of this country. The Tamil National Alliance is refusing to participate in the Parliamentary Select Committee proposed by the government to devolve power. They are taking the problem before the international community without holding discussions with the country's leaders".
    Also see our earlier post:

    Professionals body reiterate call for 13A repeal (02 November 2012)
  • World Tamil Conference calls for an international investigation into crimes of genocide

    TNPF leader Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam addresses World Tamil Conference

    Gathering at the 2012 World Tamil Conference, Tamil activists and politicians from the North-East and the diaspora, together with British parliamentarians and Tamil Nadu politicians and civil society activists, made a united call for an international, independent investigation into the allegations war crimes, crimes against humanity and crimes of genocide by the Sri Lankan state against the Tamil nation.

    The event, organised by the All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils (APPGT) and British Tamils Forum (BTF), was held on Wednesday, inside the British Houses of Parliament in Westminster, London.

    Follow us on Twitter @TamilGuardian to see our live coverage of today's event.

     

    In a proposed resolution delegates from Tamil political parties and organisations worldwide urged:

    1) Take immediate steps to provide for space for free flow of information that would bring to light as to the ground realities prevailing in the North and East of the Island of Sri Lanka.

    2) To stop decimation of the Tamil Nation by the Sri Lankan State.

    3) To stop Sinhalisation of the Tamil traditional Homeland.

    4) To demilitarise the Tamil People’s Homeland for the people to exercise their democratic rights free from fear of persecution.

    See here for full text of proposed resolution.

    Addressing the event, the leader of the Tamil National People's Front (TNPF), Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, asserted that the genocide of Tamils was nothing short of "a systematic dismantelling of the existence of the Tamils as a nation in the island of Sri Lanka", and though the international community may hestitate in recognising it to be so, the Tamil nation must never hesitate in articulating it.

    "If you've seen the recent dialogue that's been taking place internationally, that dialogue has been very specific. The international community has only been interested in talking about war crimes that have been taking place, only in the last stages of the war, that is from January 2009 to May 2009."

    "Whilst those crimes were being committed, and whilst we as former members of parliament, and members of parliament at that time, engaged with the international community, we were given two assurances. One was that if there was a blood bath, the Tamils were given assurances that there would be very serious consequences for the Sri Lankan state. The second assurance that was given, was that the LTTE - in the eyes of the international community being a terrorist organisation - once that organisation is taken out of the picture, the Tamil people's struggle for their rights will be recognised and that there would be peace."

    "I think both these assurances today, have to be called into question. Firstly what we know is that purely focusing on war crimes is actually really counter productive. Three years after the war finished where there is no war, so obviously there is no war crimes, crimes are still being committed against the Tamil people."

    "Today [Tamils in the Vanni] are in fact telling us that they rather.. they feel that they rather should have died in Mullivaikkal, than live the life they are living today. Such are the crimes that are being perpetrated against those people today. So talking about war crimes, is actually, immaterial in today's context. Whilst we must certainly address the most heinous crimes that took place during the war, if we don't widen our ambit, we will be failing by those people today, who are still being massacred, who are being destroyed, their livelihoods are being destroyed, their very existence is being called into question."

    "We must also understand what that genocide is. It is not a genocide against a religious group, it is not a genocide against some other ordinary group, it is a genocide in that it is a systematic dismantelling of the existence of the Tamils as a nation in the island of Sri Lanka. It is nothing else. Though the international community might not want to accept it as a genocide firstly, secondly, the international community will hesitate in recognising that we are a nation in our own right, but that does not mean that we should not say what is actually happening."

    Speaking to the Tamil Guardian on the sidelines of the conference, TNA MP Suresh Premachandran said:

    "There are two matters. One there is no democratic space in the North-East specifically in the North. People can't express their own views. We are totally under army occupation, and the military intelligence in every nook and corner of that area. So definitely the people do not have the freedom to say whatever they want. So that is number one."

    "Number two is the political settlement, that in Sri Lanka when we say political settlement they normally mean talks about talks, or they are interpreting as devolution or power sharing. Here the president and his siblings - very clearly they said - we are against the 13th Amendment (that is where the powers were devolved through that part of the constitution)... The President said, I'm not going to give the land powers or the police powers... Now, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa the defence secretary says, we have to abolish the 13th Amendment, so which clearly shows the government's attitude."

    "So definitely, yeah I don't think there is any chance for a proper dialogue with the government because the government is simply against the power sharing method. So on that basis, what's the point in talking.. what's the point in with the government unless otherwise the government comes forward with a proper – how do say – proposal, for a proper settlement, which we can't expect from the Sri Lankan government."

    "So I think this is the time for the international community to understand these things and come forward, maybe to investigate the whole thing, that is the war crimes, and the genocide, and the crimes against humanity and all these things. Then only, there might be a chance for reconciliation, as well as for a political settlement. So I think simply that is the situation in Sri Lanka."

    The call for an international, investigation into allegations of crimes of genocide was endorsed by the Tamil Nadu politicians present:

    M.K. Stalin of the DMK, Thirumavalavan of the VCK, G.K Mani of the PMK and D. Raja of the CPI.

     

    Photograph Tamilwin

    See TamilNet for photographs and details of Tamil Nadu delegates.

    The event was also addressed by Tamil Nadu civil society activists including Thirumurugan Gandhi of the May 17 Movement.

    The host, and chair of the APPG-T, Conservative MP, Lee Scott, reiterated the need for true justice when speaking, and was accompanied by British parliamentarians from all three main political parties including Robert Halfon, Simon Hughes, Gavin Barwell, Siobhain McDonagh and Gareth Thomas.

    In the evening, as delegates attended a chandelier shrouded gala dinner, TNA MPs Sreetharan and Appathurai Vinayagamoorthy addressed the conference, highlighting the overwhelming militarisation of the North-East. Speaking in Tamil, Sreetharan described how the military is every where you look, with over 30,000 military personnel for just 6000 civilians in the Kilinochchi district.

    During the dinner, Tamil Nadu civil society activists from groups such as Pasumai Thayagam, and the Sinhalese academic Jude Lal Fernando also spoke, and stressed that the persecution of the Tamil nation is nothing short of a genocide.

    The conference is due to continue on Thursday.

  • Khurshid - expectation to go beyond 13A

    Speaking at a press conference on Friday, at the 12th meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation, India's new External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said that India "had no indication whatsoever that there is an issue of dilution or a reversal of the 13th Amendment."

    Khurshid said:

    "If anything, we have understood that there is a demand from one side for going beyond the Thirteenth Amendment and that the Thirteenth Amendment would not be adequate. This is my understanding of the distance between the two sides on moving forward. We have no indication whatsoever that there is an issue of dilution or a reversal of the 13th Amendment."

    "The bottom line that we know is that the 13th Amendment stands, and the 13th Amendment is reaffirmed, but that there is now an expectation that has been placed that there is need to go beyond the 13th Amendment."

    "How soon that is possible, if at all it is possible, what will be the procedure and the process that will be undertaken to examine this further, what will be its impact on the deadlines and dates that Sri Lanka has set for itself for elections in the Northern Province, which is sometime next year, this is the matter that we will have to watch and wait for,"

     

    "It of course has an implication for us, but it is an internal matter for that country."
  • EU ambassador calls for greater steps towards accountability

    The ambassador and head of the European Union delegation to Sri Lanka, Bernard Savage noted that further efforts were needed to address the issue of accountability.

    Speaking to a journalists, the ambassador outlined various issues that were yet to be resolved.

    Referring to enforced disappearances, Savage said,

    “These are issues that have not been properly resolved. There are other cases of disappearances that have not been satisfactorily addressed. It is an issue where more clarifications are needed and the culprits brought to book.”

    Although the EU is not represented on the UNHRC, Savage emphasised that the EU member states were active members of the UN council and had already made interventions with regards to accountability issues.

    He added,

    “The member states have also voiced concerns on certain issues, notably issues related to questions of missing persons and the enforced disappearances, etc. These concerns are raised by member states and also by a number of other members of the UNHRC. The experts of the mission who visited the country recently have also raised these issues”.

  • Rights group slam Sri Lanka’s rejection of UPR recommendations
    Several human rights organisations have reacted to Sri Lanka’s rejection of 100 UPR recommendations made by states at the United Nations and called for international independent investigations into massacres of aid workers and civilians.

    Highlighting in particular the cases of five students shot dead in Trincomalee beach in 2006, the father of one of the victims, 21-year-old Ragihar, Dr K Manoharan told reporters after the UPR, 
    "I want an international inquiry and international judgment, otherwise I am not satisfied".
    Yolanda Foster from Amnesty International added that,
    "The Trincomalee 5 case along with the ACF case [where 17 aid workers were executed] is sort of emblematic of a culture of impunity in Sri Lanka where security forces are given carte blanche to continue to commit violations because the state is failing to independently investigate and prosecute".
    The President of Action Contre la Faim (ACF), Benoit Miribel, president of the French group Action Contre la Faim, said the organisation’s 17 aid workers were shot in the back of the head in their Muttur in August 2006, commenting,
    "In reality, the investigation has been a succession of obstruction, interference, of politics in the judiciary and a lack of transparency and independence...Nothing has really happened during the last six years."
    Ian Seiderman, legal and policy director of the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), added to calls for an investigation after Sri Lanka’s UPR rejection, stating,
    "This really underscores the need for a proper full-scale international inquiry."
    Speaking to Public International Radio, Alan Keenan from the International Crisis Group also added that things “things are going from bad to worse in Sri Lanka, in a slow way the world doesn't quite understand”.

    In his interview he added that,
    "The basic picture is that after the end of the war the machinery of repression and intimidation -- all of that machinery used to win the war -- has continued to function. So you continue to have repression of the media, attacks on the independence of the judiciary, significant numbers of enforced disappearances. You continue to have the military effectively run the Tamil areas of the northeastern provinces. You continue to have large-scale corruption and you have impunity for the thousands of cases of extrajudicial killings, disappearances and, likely, war crimes over more than two decades of war."
    See his full interview here.

    He also stressed that the UPR played an important role in the run up to the next session of the UN Human Rights Council, saying,

    "The other reason this is an important event is that it comes four months before the next session of the Human Rights Council in March, 2013, where the lack of progress that Sri Lanka has made in implementing a resolution from March 2012 by the Human Rights Council will come up for discussion and debate. So it's the first salvo in a larger battle -- the battle to define and get international recognition of the situation in Sri Lanka.
    Unfortunately, the international community has not spoken out enough on this issue."
  • Ofcom rejects complaints against Channel 4 documentary on Sri Lanka

    The British broadcasting regulator Ofcom has cleared Channel 4’s documentary “Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields: War Crimes Unpunished” from allegations it was biased and misleading.

    In a bulletin, the watchdog outlined the allegations, and said it received “extremely detailed” complaints, disputing evidence presented by the programme makers and claiming the broadcaster “underplayed” the role of the LTTE.

    Ofcom had already cleared an earlier documentary, called “Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields”, last year, and said it only focused on new evidence that was presented by the complainants.

    The watchdog said in its summary that it “noted Channel 4’s concerns that two of the complainants (...) had a political interest in Sri Lanka and therefore they were not ‘neutral observers’ nor should the complaints be considered as 'genuine' viewer complaints under the Code.”

    Read the full ruling here.

  • Military service in diplomacy

    Three military generals have been approved to diplomatic appointments across the world, reports the Sunday Times.

    Major General Shavendra Silva, the current deputy permanant representative to the UN in New York, will be Sri Lanka's deputy ambassador to South Africa, Major General Jagath Alwis, who used to be in charge of the military side of the president's security, will be the deputy ambassador to Israel, and Major General Kamal Gunaratne, the current adjutant General at Army Headquarters, will be the new deputy ambassador to Brazil.

  • Indian Army chief to visit SL

    The head of the Indian Army, General Singh, is due to visit Sri Lanka in December, to discuss strengthening of defence cooperation, reports PTI.

    The discussions are expected to centre around training, military hardware and joint exercises, but comes amidst increasing outcry against such joint exercises fromTamil Nadu.

  • Sri Lanka rejects 100 UPR recommendations from fellow states
    The Sri Lankan Government has rejected 100 recommendations made by member states, during its Universal Periodic Review at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva earlier on Monday.

    Out of the 210 recommendations made, Sri Lanka has chosen to formally reject almost half of them, with 100 listed as not enjoying the support of Sri Lanka.

    A selection of recommendations rejected by Sri Lanka have been published below. See the full list here.
    • Fully implement the recommendations of the LLRC, in particular steps to ensure independent and effective investigations into all allegations of serious human rights violations, in the context of Sri Lanka’s civil war and its aftermath  (Austria)
    • Rapidly implement the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (France);
    • Continue implementing the recommendations of the LLRC report and the report of the Panel of Expert in accordance with the Human Rights Council Resolution 19/2 (Germany);
    • Implement the constructive recommendations of the LLRC, including the removal of the military from civilian functions, creation of mechanisms to address cases of the missing and detained, issuance of death certificates, land reform; devolution of power; and disarming paramilitaries (USA);
    • Guarantee access to the North and the East of the country to international and local humanitarian organizations specialized on family tracing and reunification programs (Uruguay);
    • Expedite implementation of reconciliation measures in the North. This would include removing oversight of humanitarian and NGO activities from the purview of Ministry of Defense to a civilian body,  reducing the intrusiveness of military presence on civilian life in the North and setting a specific date for free and fair Northern Provincial Council elections (Canada );
    • Adopt a national policy to provide human rights defenders with protection and ensure investigation and punishment  of threats or attacks against them (Czech Republic);
    • Fully cooperate with United Nations Human Rights mechanisms (Burkina Faso)
    • Enact the legislation to ensure the Right to Information and bring it in line with international human rights standards (Norway)
    • Invite the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (France, Uruguay)
    • Accept the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances request for visit (Chile)
    • Create a reliable investigation commission consisting of professional and independent investigators to identify, arrest and prosecute the perpetrators of the Muttur murders (France)
  • Karunanidhi calls for UN referendum

    The leader of the DMK, M Karunanidhi has called on India to urge the UN to hold a referendum in the Northeast of Sri Lanka, to determine the political future of its people, reported The Hindu.

    When asked about reporters about Delhi’s reluctance to get involved in the affairs of a sovereign country, Karunanidhi said that this is why the resolution passed the TESO conference was not in support of an independent Tamil Eelam.

    “We want only a referendum and believe that it will benefit Sri Lankan Tamils and secure their rights,” he said.
    Karunanidhi said a referendum would put an end to "tears and blood” shed by Tamils and that India should use its influence to garner support across the world.

    In a letter to the UN Deputy General Secretary Jan Eliasson, Mr. Karunanidhi staid that steps to protect the lives and rights of Tamils needed to be taken as “there was no movement towards a mutually acceptable political solution and there were government-sponsored demographic manipulations aimed at eliminating Tamils from their homeland.”

    His son and DMK treasurer MK Stalin and parliamentary party leader TR Baalu met Mr Eliasson, who promised to look into the Tamil issue.

    Karunanidhi said his son and other senior party leaders would participate in a conference to be held in London next week, to work towards mobilising support for a referendum.

    When questioned about military training provided by India to Sri Lanka, he said that this is unacceptable.

    "According to information I received, (they) - the Centre - said (they) won't give them training in Tamil Nadu and it will be done somewhere else. I say, Tamil Nadu is also India,” he said.

  • Gota visits South Africa, ahead of India

    Sri Lanka's defence secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa recently undertook a 'secret' official visit to South Africa, reports The Sri Lankan Guardian.

    Citing a 'reliable source' in Sri Lanka's External Affairs ministry, the news site stated that Gotabhaya arrived on the 27th October, accompanied by Vinayagamoorthi Muralidaran, Nimal Siripala de Silva, Anura Prayadarshana Yapa, Neomal Perera, Faizer Musthapa and Janaka Bandara.

    The visit was supposedly time to take place before his visit to India.

    More details are said to follow.

  • Rajapaksa pledges non-interference

    Referring to the parliamentary impeachment motion against the Chief Justice, President Mahinda Rajapaksa claimed that the government has no intention of interfering with the judiciary or its independence.

    Addressing an event held for senior journalists, Rajapaska ensured that all professions be it judiciary or journalism, would be able to act without any interference.

    See here and here for more examples of the government's version of non-interference.

  • Navy accused of attacking Indian fishermen and damaging boats
    The Sri Lankan Navy has been accused of assaulting and damaging 30 boats of Indian fishermen from Tamil Nadu on Sunday.

    Around 2,000 fishermen in more than 600 boats were fishing in the Palk Straits before being attacked by the Sri Lankan Navy, reported ColomboPage.

    Attacks on Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy have been frequently occurring, with Tamil Nadu fishermen describing them as “commonplace” last month.

    The attack comes as five Indian fishermen who were arrested by Sri Lankan forces in November last year were moved to Colombo’s Welikada prison ahead of their hearing.

    The men stand accused of smuggling an unknown “packet”, into Sri Lanka, and have been held in Jaffna prison since their arrest.

    Earlier this week India’s External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid urged his Sri Lankan counterpart GL Peiris to address their case.

    See our earlier post: 'Expeditiously' address fishermen issue says India (03 November 2012)
  • US concerned about impeachment

    The US Department of Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs have issued a press statement expressing concern about impeachment proceedings against the Sri Lankan Chief Justice.

    The statement as reproduced in full:

    “The United States is concerned by actions taken to impeach Sri Lankan Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake. We also note with concern recent threats to Sri Lankan judicial officials, including the assault last month on a judge who had publicly criticized government pressure on members of the judiciary. We urge the Government of Sri Lanka to avoid any action that would impede the efficacy and independence of Sri Lanka’s judiciary.”

    “The United States, along with our partners in the international community, continues to urge Sri Lanka to address outstanding issues of the rule of law, democratic governance, accountability and reconciliation.”

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