• ANC invites TNA & GTF to centenury celebrations, Sri Lanka boycotts

    Jan 07

    Photograph Tamilnet

    Delegates from the TNA (Tamil National Alliance) and (Global Tamil Forum) arrived at the African National Congress' (ANC) centenary celebrations on Sunday, in Bloemfontein, South Africa, as Sri Lanka responded by deciding to boycott the event, reported Tamilnet.

    According to Sri Lanka's Sunday Times newspaper, Sri Lanka had refused the ANC's invitation on the grounds that inviting GTF gave a diaspora organisation official status, on par with the Sri Lankan government's delegation.

    While the ruling party has been engaged in a show of solidarity with struggling forces across the world, the South African State has joined hands with anti-people regimes as it did during the 2009 voting at the UNHRC, commented Tamilnet.

    See article by Tamilnet here.

    Reproduced in full below:

    Delegations from the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and the Global Tamil Forum (GTF) are amongst international attendees of the centenary celebrations of the African National Congress (ANC) on Sunday. Sri Lanka has refused to participate at the event in Bloemfontein because of the ANC’s invitation to the GTF, the Sunday Times reports. Dozens of heads of state and representatives of other governments, as well as large numbers of dignitaries from across Africa are joining over 100,000 politicians, members and supporters of the ANC in the historic celebration. In the meantime, a Tamil academic based in Colombo cautioned Eezham Tamils to be aware of the duality of South Africa. While the ruling party has been engaged in a show of solidarity with struggling forces across the world, the South African State has joined hands with anti-people regimes as it did during the 2009 voting at the UNHRC.

    Bloemfontein, 400 km south of Johannesburg, is where the ANC, Africa's oldest liberation movement, was born 100 years ago in a small village church.

    The TNA’s delegation includes leader R. Sampanthan, M.A. Sumanthiran, Selvam Adaikalanathan and Suresh Premachandran.

    The GTF’s 7-person delegation is lead by its President, Rev (Dr) S J Emmanuel, and includes representatives of its member organisations in the United States, Britain, Australia, Malaysia, and Germany.

    The two delegations are to hold talks on the sidelines of the event.

    The ANC wrote to the TNA and the member organisations of the GTF inviting them to join its historical celebrations.

    Sri Lanka has refused the ANC’s invitation because inviting the GTF thus giving the diaspora organisation official status and placing it on par with a government delegation was not acceptable, an External Affairs Ministry source told the Sri Lankan Sunday Times.

    Meanwhile, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas were amongst those who arrived in Bloemfontein Saturday.

    They, along with Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan and forty other national leaders, will join a mass rally to be addresssed on Sunday by South African President Jacob Zuma.

    Announcing the centenary celebrations, the ANC said:

    “For the ANC this event is important for numerous reasons, but key amongst those is the fact that in the 100 years of its existence we remain relevant to the situation in South Africa, the continent and the world. Secondly, the ANC continues to embody the ideals of a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic country.”

    “The prestige and importance of this event is evident given the international interest it has generated for historic and concurrent roles South Africa plays in the affairs of the region, the continent and the world.”

    On Saturday, British Prime Minister David Cameron hailed the ANC as “a beacon for the world in the fight against discrimination and the struggle for freedom from oppression.”

    “On behalf of the British people, I want to congratulate you and everyone involved with the African National Congress on this very special anniversary,” he wrote.

    “We will stand with you in the ongoing struggle for equality, democracy and prosperity for the people of South Africa, and for justice and freedom from tyranny around the world.”

    At the celebrations in Bloemfontein, 86-year-old ANC veteran Andrew Mlangeni, who was jailed alongside ANC icon Nelson Mandela, 93, by the Apartheid regime, told reporters: “I'm very happy and proud that we have achieved what we fought for: freedom.”

    “People of South Africa today are free and this is what we had been struggling for,” he said.

    Throughout decades of struggle against Apartheid, the ANC’s leaders were also deemed international terrorists - the United States only removed Mandela from its terrorist watch list in 2008 – but were undaunted.

    "We never saw ourselves as terrorists, we were satisfied in our minds that we were freedom fighters,” said Mac Maharaj, the current presidential spokesman and former head of the ANC’s armed wing, told AFP.

    But once in power, the party chose economic liberalism, creating a new generation of "black economic power" that has changed the face of the Africa’s biggest economy - South Africa's black middle class counts between two and three million people.

    "We are the oldest organisation in the continent," President Zuma told a cheering crowd after a walk-about Friday in Botshabelo around 25 miles from Bloemfontein.

    "Many organisations have been created, born, established along the way and many have perished, have died, have collapsed. Not the ANC."

  • Indian minister to arrive just before TNA-government talks

    India's External Affairs Minister, SM Krishna, is due to arrive on a four-day visit in the run up to the TNA-government talks, scheduled to take place from the 17th January to the 19th January.

    According to reports, arriving on the 16th January, Krishna will meet TNA leader, R Sampanthan on the day of his arrival and Mahinda Rajapaksa the following day, as well as members of civil society groups.

    The head of the Sri Lankan government's delegation, Nimal Siripala de Silva, recently told BBC Sinhala that Sri Lanka was not under any pressure from India regarding the talks.

    His remarks came after, in an apparent change of heart, the government stated that they were willing to discuss land and police powers, after vehemently refusing to even discuss the issue.

    In addition to the TNA-government talks, Krishna will discuss the Indian housing project and the attacks on fishermen.

  • Only 49,000 to go

    India's External Affairs Minister, SM Krishna, is believed to be inspecting India's housing project during his upcoming visit to Sri Lanka with trips to Jaffna and Kilinochchi.

    Handing over 1000 houses, constructed as a pilot project, Krishna is reported to be signing a memorandum of understanding regarding the building of the further 49,000 houses for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the North-East.

    The project, approved by the Indian cabinet in December 2011, is estimated to cost $260 million.

    According to The Hindu newspaper, the final project plan was redrafted to ensure funds for reconstruction will be transferred from the High Commission of India directy into the bank accounts of beneficiaries of the project. The newspaper also reports that UN agencies will be employed as project management consultants.

    In June 2010, India announced the construction of 50,000 houses to IDPs in the North-East, however progress has been negligble to date.

    Despite proposing other project, the promised houses have failed to materialise as the Sri Lankan government announced delays, with the Minister of Economic Development Basil Rajapakse announcing that “no new buildings should be constructed under donor-funded loan and/or grant project” in the Tamil areas later the same year.

    See related article:

    The state is the main obstacle to developing Tamil areas - TGView - 27 Dec 2010

  • Appeal to UN over missing activists
    Campaigners have written to the UN over the fate of two missing activists, who disappeared en route to a protest organised in Jaffna last month.

    The two activists, Lalith Kumar Weeraraj and Kugan Muruganathan were organising protests on behalf of families who have had relatives gone missing. Supporters maintain that Sri Lankan Security forces are responsible for their disappearances, due to the heavy militarisation that Jaffna is under and as one of the victims motorbikes were later spotted in a police compound.

    A spokesman for the group said,
    "We have written to all the authorities but so far they have not even responded to us. We still believe they are in military custody."
    Mr Murugunanthan’s wife made a passionate plea to authorities, saying,
    "Please allow me at least to talk to him."
    Mr Murugunanthan, a former member of the LTTE, is just one of over 5,000 cases of unresolved disappearances according to UN statistics. Following a recent spate of abductions, the number has now begun to rise yet again.

    According to a 1999 UN Study Sri Lanka then already had the world's second highest rate of disappearances - the overwhelming majority of victims since 1990 being Tamils.  In the decade since thousands more, again mainly Tamils, have vanished since being taken into government custody.

    See our earlier posts:

    The logic in Sri Lanka's disappearances (29 Dec 2010)

    Tamil protest against disappearances in Colombo (13 Dec 2011)

    Resurgence of ‘white van’ abductions (12 Dec 2011)

    Tamils protest in Jaffna against disappearances (11 Dec 2011)
  • Tamil-Canadian student makes headlines over climate change speech
    At last month’s International Climate Change Talks in South Africa, Tamil-Canadian student Anjali Appadurai made headlines when she delivered a powerful speech urging world leaders to take action over climate change.

    Her speech which has clocked up tens of thousands of views on YouTube, has won the praise of Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now!, and award winning author Naomi Klein who tweeted;
    “Anjali Appadurai is a hero, watch her brilliant speech that rocked the climate summit in Durban”

    Speaking on behalf of youth delegates at the conference, Ms Appadurai started her speech saying,
    “I speak for more than half the world’s population. We are the silent majority. You’ve given us a seat in this hall, but our interests are not on the table.

    What does it take to get a stake in this game? Lobbyists? Corporate influence? Money? You’ve been negotiating all my life. In that time, you’ve failed to meet pledges, you’ve missed targets, and you’ve broken promises. But you’ve heard this all before.”
    Ending her speech with a fiery “mic check”, she also managed to win the admiration of the the COP Chair of the session Artur Runge-Metzger, who said to applause,
    "I wonder why we let not speak 'half of the world's population' first in this conference, but only last”."

    Stepping up to the microphone Ms Appadurai delivered a rousing speech, proclaiming,
    “Respect the foundational principles of this convention. Respect the integral values of humanity. Respect the future of your descendants. Mandela said, "It always seems impossible, until it’s done."

    So, distinguished delegates and governments around the world, governments of the developed world, deep cuts now. Get it done.”
    The 21-year old Tamil Canadian student, who cites Arundhati Roy as one of her heroes, is currently a student at College of the Atlantic in Bar harbour, USA.

    See an interview with Ms Appadurai below.




  • Accountability is critical and obligatory - US State Dept

    Michael H. Posner, Department of State

    Responding to an online petition demanding support from the Obama adminstration into an "international investigation into war crimes and other human rights abuses committed in Sri Lanka", the US state Department, in a statement released Friday, stressed the needed for accountability, as a "critical component of reconciliation" and warned that that "international accountability mechanisms" may be used if the Sri Lankan government is "unable or unwilling to meet its obligations".

    The full statement  - 'Accountability for the Alleged Violations of International Humanitarian and Human Rights in Sri Lanka' - by Michael H. Posner, the Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor at the Department of State, has been reproduced below:

    "The United States shares your concern about accountability for the alleged violations of international humanitarian and human rights law that occurred during Sri Lanka's recent conflict and is committed to working with the government of Sri Lanka, the United Nations, and the international community to implement a just and equitable reconciliation process for all Sri Lankans.

    At the request of Congress, the Department of State prepared two reports in 2009 and 2010 on alleged violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law during Sri Lanka's recent conflict. These reports can be found at State.gov.

    As we noted in both reports, the United States takes these allegations very seriously. We believe individual accountability for such violations is a critical component of reconciliation, and meaningful steps in this regard will advance Sri Lanka's own efforts to heal after decades of conflict.

    In the September 2011 session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, we made clear our view that Sri Lanka must adopt measures necessary to achieve national and ethnic reconciliation.

    We expressed the need for Sri Lanka to quickly and credibly address allegations of violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law that occurred during the war, regardless of which side committed them.

    We have highlighted the need for Sri Lanka to take concrete steps, such as providing to family members an account of those missing and detained as well as promptly issuing death certificates for those killed in the conflict. We will continue to urge the government of Sri Lanka to work constructively on these issues with the United Nations and the international community.

    Finally, we hope the Government of Sri Lanka will address these reconciliation and accountability issues in a manner commensurate with its international obligations, and we will continue to reiterate to the government of Sri Lanka that, while domestic authorities have primary responsibility to ensure that those responsible for violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law are held accountable, international accountability mechanisms can become appropriate in circumstances in which a government is unable or unwilling to meet its obligations.

    Thank you continued interest in Sri Lanka."

  • Waiting for justice, indefinitely

    Photograph Tamilnet

    Almost seven years after the assassination of the Tamil journalist, Dharmaratnam Sivaram, known also as Taraki, the perpetrators and the commissioners of his murder, are yet to be brought to justice.

    The trial of the man accused of murdering Dharmaratnam Sivaram, scheduled to take place Thursday, was postponed after the State Counsel informed the court that six witnesses failed to attend, reported BBC Sinhala.

    The six, includes two policemen.

    The trial has been rescheduled for the 25th April.

    Sivaram, one of the founding editors of Tamilnet, was abducted on the 28th April 2005. His body was found the following day in a high security zone.

    The same year saw the murder of two further Tamil media workers - S. Suhirtharajan, Trincomalee correspondent for Sudar Oli, a Tamil daily and Mrs. Relanki Selvarajah, Tamil broadcaster.

    [more]

  • The 'evil spirits' of cricket

    Sri Lankan cricket fans will be relieved to know that the sport's governing body is no longer troubled by 'evil spirits'.

    The newly elected chief of Sri Lanka Cricket, Upali Dharmadasa, declared the body free of the ghoulish beings that had allegedly plagued it, after a special pooja (religious service) was conducted.

    The spirits are evil indeed.

    Recent times have seen allegations of corruptions, financial mis-management, systemic political interfering and the military take over of cricket stadia.

    Reassuring any fans that maybe harbouring a degree of cynicism, Dharmadasa said, "I am a businessman and I know the effects of these evil spirits".

  • British Tamil hotelier shot in Trincomalee

    A British Tamil business man, Kandiah Rajagopal, who owned a hotel in Trincomalee, was shot and injured off Vihara Road, near a Sri Lankan army base, on Tuesday.

    The shooting, having occurred despite the overbearing military presence in the North-East, is the latest in a string of attacks on foreign nationals.

    The shooting of Rajagopal, a hotelier, comes as several other hotel owners, including foreign investers, have accused the government of arbitarily demolishing hotels in the Unawatuna region, reported the British newspaper, The Telegraph - 'Sri Lankan government accused over bulldozed hotels'.

    According to the newspaper, hotel owners and human rights groups have alleged that the targetting of these privately owned, smaller hotels, was a ploy to push tourists towards larger resorts.

    See Army to build a 5-star hotel (06 Nov 2011)

  • Exam excellence defies oppression

    Facing the pervasive climate of fear and militarisation with resilience and defiance, Tamil students in the North-East have exceled at recent national exams.

    Topping the national GCE mathematics examination in Sri Lanka, Kamalavasan, from Uduppitti American Mission College, achieved 3 As (3.1167 z points). 

    The second highest grade nationally in Science was achieved by another Tamil student - Sanjayan.

    Their success has been praised by the Tamil nation the world over, from their home towns, to their peers across the diaspora.

    [more]

  • Ministry of Defence to oversee acquired businesses
    After the appointment of “Competent Authorities” to handle the running of 37 enterprises taken over by the government, it has now been announced that the Defence and Urban Development Ministry will oversee five of these institutions.

    The move comes as the government appointed several different ministries to oversee the running of the “Competent Authorities” and the enterprises they are now running.

    The other enterprises will be handled by other ministries, namely the Ministry of Economic Development, the Ministry of Productivity Promotion and the Ministry of Finance and Planning.

    The “Competent Authorities” themselves include several government District Secretaries and include a team of Ministers for “assistance” and a further team of “officials” to monitor operations.

    The controversial bill, called the Revival of Underperforming Enterprises and Underutilized Assets Act, allowed the government to take over 37 enterprises, an act the the Economist Intelligence Unit said would “raise significant concerns amongst foreign investors”.

    International credit rating agency, Moody's Investors Service, also slammed the bill, as "credit negative" and a move that will "increase investor uncertainty".

    See our earlier post:

    ‘Competent authorities’ for takeover appointed (25 Nov 2011)
  • Diaspora groups pledge to continue fight for justice in 2012

    Tamil diaspora organisations across the world pledged "renewed commitment to work together to bring justice and peace" to Tamils in Sri Lanka, in a statement released to coincide with the new year.

    Reiterating their united stance against the "pogroms, war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide" faced by the Tamil nation at the hands of the Sri Lankan government, they resolved to continue the campaign for an independent, international investigation into crimes committed during the armed conflict.

    The full list of signatories included: Australian Tamil Congress, British Tamil Conservatives, British Tamil Forum, Canadian Tamil Congress, Center for War Victims & Human Rights (Canada), Global Tamil Forum, Ilankai Tamil Sangam (USA), Maison du Tamil Eelam (France), National Council of Canadian Tamils, Norwegian Council of Eelam Tamils, Swedish Tamils Forum, Tamils For Labour, Tamils For Obama, Tamil Forum Malaysia, Thamil Creative Writers Association (Canada), Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam, United States Tamil Political Action Council and USA
    World Thamil Organization.

    The statement published on http://www.tamilcanadian.com/article/6203, has been reproduced below:

    "On this New Year’s Day, January 1, 2012, the Tamil organizations around the world pledge their renewed commitment to work together to bring justice and peace to our Tamil people living in the island of Sri Lanka. We also pledge to lend our support and assistance to any organizations or entities that work for the rights of the Tamils living in the island.

    With our strong, diverse backgrounds, we are united in voicing for our people who have been oppressed by the Government of Sri Lanka for decades, and subjected to pogroms, war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.

    We pledge to garner the support of the International Community and the United Nations institutions to set up independent international investigations for the grave crimes committed against our people and bring prosecutions against alleged perpetrators.

    At this propitious time of year, we call for a peaceful and prosperous world with equality and freedom for all."

     

  • ‘Political pressure’ leads to uncontested cricket board elections
    Elections for the Sri Lankan Cricket board ended farcically, after all opponents bar one withdrew from the first elections held for seven years.

    The only post that was contested was for that of assistant treasurer.

    Mohan de Silva, one of the candidates for vice-president, told reporters that along with other opposition candidates,
    "We were carrying out a successful campaign in the beginning until we came under political pressure."
    He went on to say,
    "Most of our member clubs and associations brought to our notice that there was undue pressure put on them to change the delegates [who would vote]." 
    "This is not an election held for a government institution. This is an independent institution. So it becomes a farce. Therefore all of us decided this election is not conducted in a free and fair manner."
    "We had a lot of hope that we are returning to democracy with the election. But all that hope is shattered."
    Businessman Upali Dharmadasa, who was president of Sri lanka Cricket (SLC) from 1996-1998, was re-elected to the post on Tuesday after the other candidate Thilanga Sumathipala withdrew at the last minute.

    A source told AFP that,
    "Thilanga was hoping to lead SLC, but he did not have the blessings of the government and without that he did not want to be a candidate."
    Sri Lanka Cricket has been under pressure from the International Cricket Council to hold elections, after issuing a directive calling for all national boards to have held independent elections free from political interference, before June 2012.

    Since 2004, Sri Lanka Cricket has been run by nine interim committees, all of which have been government appointed.

    The board has been facing a series of crises, with SLC carrying almost $70 million of debt, following the construction of two brand new stadiums, including the Mahinda Rajapakse International Cricket Stadium in Hambantota. All cricket stadia are now being maintained by the country’s expanding military.

    Allegations of corruption and financial mismanagement also added strain to the team, which left players and staff without salaries for almost 9 months, before the International Cricket Council stepped in and offered to pay 45%.

    The cricket team also faced a series of intense protests during their tour of England in 2011, with activists calling for a sports boycott of the cricket team attracting the attention of former England Cricket captain Mike Atherton.

    The drama has led to the Sri Lankan Cricket team suffering from a loss of form, having lost the World Cup to India in March and losing subsequent Test and One Day series to England, Australia and Pakistan. The team won their first and only Test match of 2011 against South Africa last week.

    See our earlier posts:

    Why cricket can do nothing for peace in Sri Lanka ...     (18 July 2011)

    A force for good or ill? Cricket and Sri Lanka today (08 July 2011)

    Atherton: Jayasuriya call-up is cynical, political and nothing to do with cricket     (24 June 2011)

    Ruling party MP rejoins Sri Lanka cricket team     (20 June 2011)

    The link between Sport and Politics (20 June 2011)

    Cricket and the military (13 June 2011)
  • Reaching for the stars...

    Sri Lanka will today sign an agreement to build the tallest tower in South Asia.

    The Lotus Tower Building will be 350 metres tall and situated in the heart of Colombo. The tower will provide ‘facilities for 50 television services, 50 broadcasting services and ten telecommunication providers’.

    It will be 11 storeys high and a revolving restaurant will take up the fourth floor.

    Construction will be managed by a government-owned company, run by the Telecommunication Regulatory Commission.

    The proposed tower will be financed by Chinese state-owned Exim Bank, which will provide a $100 million loan.


  • More rape incidents of tourists emerge
    Following an “attempted rape” of a 23-year old Swedish tourist in Negombo, further details of rape and sexual harassment of foreign tourists in Sri Lanka in the last few months have been revealed by the Sunday Times.

    According to an eyewitness, during the murder of 32-year old British tourist, Shaikah Zaman, his Russian girlfriend was also raped, with the eyewitness commenting the attackers,
    "stripped and raped her mercilessly although she was bleeding from her head. Later I saw Zaman [British tourist] lying on the lawn next to the restaurant but did not know whether he was dead or alive.”
    Just 2 weeks earlier, two Italian tourists in Negombo were also assaulted as they walked towards their hotel. Meanwhile in Mihintale last month, local men had sexually assaulted and attempted to drag a New Zealander woman into a public toilet, while her husband was away.

    Also within the last 2 months, a South African national was raped in a hotel room, by a room boy in Kalptiiya. No arrests have been made concerning the case so far.

    Tourist Police Director SSP Ranjth Padmasiri attempted to place the blame on the lack of staff, commenting,
    “One of our main problems is that we do not have enough personnel to deploy at tourist haunts and only handle direct complaints.”
    However, the problem lies much deeper, with a Tourist Police Officer himself standing accused of raping a local 28-year old mother of two, after she was arrested by the police force.


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