• Army to publish 'new report' into war crimes allegations

    Nov 30

    Sri Lanka's armed forces announced the release of a new report, by the country's security forces, as a response to the report by the UN panel of experts.

    Army Commander Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya said.

    “As a response to specific paragraphs that made allegations against the military during humanitarian operations in the Darusman report, we all in the tri-services are now giving final touches to the compilation of a new report that will be shortly submitted to the international community,”

    “The Security Forces conducted the humanitarian operations, with a zero casualty policy,” Jayasuriya added, while addressing military personell at Sapugaskanda Defence Services Command & Staff College (DSCSC) recently.

  • At the mercy of the King

    Mahinda Rajapaksa granted presidential "permission" for displaced Tamils from Talaimannar to return to their lands, following a dispute over the lands.

    Displaced Tamils from the Talaimannar area had been evicted from their homes by Sri Lankan security authorities who accused the 550 displaced families of "squatting on State land".

    In an article, entitled "MR intervenes to resettle evicted IDPs", the pro-government newspaper, The Island, stated that the matter was only settled after the Industry and Commerce Minister, Rishard Bathiudeen, raised the issue with Rajapaksa.

    According to The Island, "those evicted had been given permission to return to their land as President Rajapaksa had intervened."

    See related articles:

    Takers, keepers (23 Sep 2011)

    Government uses lifting of emergency to facilitate land grab (11 Sep 2011)

    IDPs branded 'squatters on state land' (09 Sep 2011)

  • Sri Lanka’s first motorway in the South
    President Mahinda Rajapakse unveiled Sri Lanka’s first motorway on Sunday, linking Colombo to the Southern city of Galle.

    Rajapakse hailed the construction a "revolution" and declared,

    "Separatist tendencies will fade away when we have better road connectivity."

    He went on to say that the expressway would be further extended to the Mattala International Airport and reach his hometown of Hambantota.

    While Rajapakse claimed that it was constructed “in line with the best global practices”, the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport Sri Lanka complained that all the lanes ae narrower than the international norm, and the breakdown lane is considerably narrower (1.75m as opposed to 2.5m), which means the door on the driver's side cannot be opened once the car has stopped.

    The 96-kilometre (60-mile) four-lane road cost $700 million to build, three times over the original budget.

    Sri Lanka financed the project by borrowing $178 million from the Asian Development Bank and sought $317 million from the Japan International Cooperation Agency, after initially facing funding shortfalls. The road was built by Chinese and Japanese constructors.

    The work has been completed three years behind schedule and had several problems, with two interlinking bridges collapsing, killing a pedestrian during the construction.

  • Akashi pushes for accountability
    Japan, one of Sri Lanka's largest donors, has reiterated the importance of accountability in Sri Lanka during talks with President Mahinda Rajapakse and called for a probe into human rights abuses in the country.
    80-year-old senior Japanese diplomat Yasushi Akashi, who was the Japanese special envoy to Sri Lanka, told reporters,
    "Japan hopes that the Sri Lankan government will make the (LLRC) report public in due course and takes steps to implement recommendations by the commission."
    Akashi met with Rajapakse on Monday, during a four-day visit to the island, where he said he emphasised the "vital need to improve the human rights situation in this country."

    He also mentioned that despite the end of the fighting, there was a "perception of insecurity" and spoke of “disappearances" in Tamil areas, military occupation of private property and heavy presence of soldiers in the island's northeast.
    "We have no means to verify if these statements are true but I must say that there is a certain degree of common thread running through these comments."
    However, he stopped short of calling for an international investigation into human rights abuses and said “accountability should be addressed by a national body."

    Japan has been a long-time donor of Sri Lanka, with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) recently providing at least $317 million to help construct Sri Lanka’s first motorway. Akashi himself was a key figure in raising $4.5 billion for peace-building in Sri Lanka in 2003.
  • Tamil defiance in the Eelam homeland

    Photographs www.pathivu.com

    Tamil defiance continues with the news outlet Pathivu publishing photographs of further Remembrance Day commorations amidst militarisation in the Eelam homeland.

    Photographs www.pathivu.com
  • World Bank approves $100 million loan

    The World Bank announced on Tuesday its approval of a credit worth $100 million to fund the transformation of Sri Lanka’s education system.

    In a statement the World Bank said the Ministry of Education will use the funds to implement its ‘Transforming the School Education System' (TSEP) programme, a scheme that will support ‘several innovative initiatives to enhance learning out comes and improve the orientation of the education system to the economic development and social needs of the country.’

    “The program will help the country develop a foundation for the skills needed for the global economy of the future, and the ethics and values required for good citizenship in a modern democracy,” said
    Dr Harsha Aturupane, the task team leader of the operation.

    Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan parliament today passed its second reading of the budget, before the final vote on Dec 21.

    The budget, which includes $2 billion for defence expenditure, was passed by 151 MPs, with 60 MPs opposing it.

    The Tamil National Alliance and the United National Party opposed the budget.

    See our previous article:

    2012 budget fosters militarisation (21 Nov 2011)

  • And still we will go on, as yet more youth come forward' - TYO-UK

    Members of the Tamil Youth Organisation (TYO-UK) addressed crowds across multiple events held in the UK for Remembrance Day.

    See here for TYO's 2011 Remembrance Day address. Extracts reproduced below:

    "From Egypt and Libya, to those being killed on the streets of Syria, the youth have always and will always be the vanguard of any nation's struggle for freedom.

    Our struggle is no different.

    From Sivakumar, the Jaffna student who committed suicide to escape torture in police custody in 1974, to Thileepan who fasted unto his death in 1987, to the valiant sacrifice of our heroes.

    The Tamil youth of every generation have protested against the Sinhala-Buddhist chauvinism they faced, and campaigned for the freedom of our people. The youth displayed a resolve like no other to struggle for what is right and just.

    And we - Eelam's youth of today - who have now been entrusted with this incredible honour, possess that very same resolve."

    "In countries across the world, the Tamil youth, as a combined global force have worked tirelessly on similar campaigns and protest events. And still we will go on as yet more youth come forward."

    "Our nation's freedom, our nation's security, our nation's very existence, lie in independence. Eelam is the only answer to truly lasting peace. This conviction is not the words of young blood, thirsty for war. 

    "On this day of all days, we the Tamil nation know full well the price of a struggle for freedom.

    "Our conviction is based on a reasoned analysis of events, both past and present - a genocide of our nation took place; it continues to take place; and in over 60 years, not one single olive branch or move towards equality has occurred, to give us even an inkling of hope that the future will be any different to the past."

    "On this day we - Eelam's youth - say to you: it is this on-going genocide of our nation, that makes us yearn for an independent, sovereign state of Tamil Eelam.

    "We, the youth, are not here to wait for tomorrow. We are our nation's today."

    "Eelam's struggle for peace goes on."

    [more]

  • British Tamils commemorate Remembrance Day

    Tens of thousands of British Tamils attended Eelam Remembrance Day events held across the capital and the UK, honouring the sacrifice of those who gave their lives for to the struggle for Tamil Eelam - the nation's heroes.

    In a spectacular display of national pride, venues were decorated lavishly in red and yellow. Bunting was strung along the entrance, with large replicas of the Eelam homeland and flags of red and yellow, Eelam's national colours, welcoming the crowds in.

    Every event commenced with the hoisting of the British flag and the Tamil Eelam flag. Crowds rose to stand as the Eelam flag was raised up high. Photographs of heroes were arranged immaculately at venues, and honoured with the Gloriosa lily - Eelam's national flower.

    [more]

  • Jaffna uni students detail their defiant act of remembrance

    Photographs www.pathivu.com
     

    Following initial reports of Jaffna uni students lighting of a flare to mark Remembrance Day, further details have emerged of how they defied the Sri Lankan state's systematic clamp down.
     
    According to the Tamil news website Pathivu, in a simple but profound act of defiance, students lit candles and oil lamps in their hostels. Others drew maps of Eelam, pictures of the heroes and paid tribute with candles. 

    Sri Lankan military officers on high alert during at this time of year, became agitated on seeing the endless displays of lamps in bedrooms. Students said the officers were seen to be going from one room to the next demanding the lamps be extinguished.

    Students described how after the flare was set off, military officers rushed into the university, vandalising the students' cars and bikes in rage. 
     

    Speaking on condition of anonymity, one student said, 

    "we will never forget Maaveerar Naal and no matter what obstacles come our way, we will always remember the fallen and pay due respect to them. They may have silenced the Tamil people on the military front but they can’t silence our thoughts and actions".

    A Jaffna university lecturer, commented that the marking of Remembrance Day has angered the Sri Lankan government, and the government will take its revenge.

     The lecturer, pointed out that the students had remembered Eelam's heroes in a dignified manner, without any violence, and this sends a clear message to the Sri Lankan government that these students will follow in the footsteps of their heroes.

    Detailing the intense level of militarisation, one student said,

    "four wheelers are patrolling the area around the uni and the hostels have been rounded up.

    "We fear that revenge attacks are likely to be made on the students and we want the human rights organisations and the diaspora community to be aware of this."

    A local resident who lives by the university hostels stated, he had seen the army hiding in neighbouring houses and frequently roamed threateningly by the entrance of the men's hostel, armed with wooden sticks and iron rods.


     

  • Cross-party group for Tamils marks Remembrance Day - UK

    A cross-party group of British MPs sympathetic to the Tamil struggle, the All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils (APPG-T), marked the Eelam nation's Remembrance Day.

    In a statement, the APPG-T chair, Conservative MP Lee Scott  said,

    "I join the thousands of British Tamils who are remembering the death of their loved ones today. Today, 27th of November, is an important day in the British Tamil calendar.

    Remembrance events are taking place in various venues in London. I am very mindful of the long wait of the Tamil community's quest for justice - they cannot wait any longer.

    In the summer this year, our Foreign Minister said that all options remain open for the international community if the Government of Sri Lanka fails to address the accountability issues, cited in the UN special panel report, in a credible manner and in line with internationally acceptable standards..

    In the coming weeks I will be working with Labour and Liberal Democrat colleagues in Parliament to ensure our Government act on our Foreign Minister's words. Justice will prevail and everybody will be able to live freely in peace and harmony.

    My thoughts and prayers today are with all Tamils who are mourning the death of their loved ones. I will not rest until justice is done and the perpetrators of war crimes in Sri Lanka are held accountable for their actions."

     

  • Tamils in New Zealand observe Remembrance Day

    Eelam Tamils in Auckland, New Zealand marked 'Maaverar Thinam 2011' on 27th November, Eelam's Remembrance Day.

    The event, organised by the Tamil Youth Organisation (NZ), was very well attended, with the venue - Mt Roskill Intermediate Hall - exceeding capacity.

    As with similar remembrance events held across the world, the commemorations began with the hoisting of Eelam's flag and the New Zealand flag, accompanied by their respective anthems.

    Following the traditional acts of commemoration,Mr Prabhaharan from Australian Tamil Radio was invited by TYO NZ as a guest speaker who gave the opening speech.

    Performances by young Kiwi Tamils, included songs, poems and a drama that paid tribute to our heroes.

    The event was concluded with the Uruthi Piiramanam (resolution) and an address by the TYO coordinator.
  • Tamil prisoners launch hunger strike
    At least 65 Tamil prisoners have gone in hunger strike in Anuradhapura after being assaulted by Sinhala prison guards on Sunday, a day that the Tamil nation remembered their fallen heroes.

    Former Jaffna district parliamentarian MK Sivajilingam told the BBC that most of the victims of the assault were disabled and that the guards went on to destroy a Hindu temple inside the prison.

    The prisoners are demanding better protection from authorities after the attack, which led to 5 of the injured being admitted to hospital. TamilNet reported that the guards stripped their victims naked and beat them as a “Heroes Day present”.

    The JVP-associated We Are Sri Lankans organisation was denied access to the prison, along with a team of lawyers for the victims.

  • Rajapaksa's double standards

    Speaking on International Day of Solidarity with the Palestian people, Mahinda Rajapaksa supported the Palestinian peoples' struggle for statehood, highlighting their 'inalienable right' to do so.

    “On this solemn occasion to commemorate the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, I wish to reaffirm, on behalf of my government and the people of Sri Lanka, our sincere support for the just struggle of the Palestinian people to achieve their inalienable rights, including the right to statehood,”

    See here for full address.

  • Dole drops plans for controversial banana plantation
    US company Dole, the world’s largest fruit and vegetable producer has dropped plans for a vast banana plantation in a Sri Lankan national park.
    Dole planned to team up with Sri Lankan company Letsgrow Ltd to establish the plantation in Somawathiya National Park.
    Letsgrow Ltd is owned by cricketers Pramodya Wicramasinghe and Muttiah Muralitharan.
    The land in question was acquired by the company from the Sri Lankan Army.
    Dole said in a statement to the BBC it had vacated the site and had ‘ceased all commercial operations’.
    The national park is inhabited by an endangered subspecies of the Asian Elephant, along with many other rare species.
    The plans were severely criticised by environmental activists on the island.
  • Prison guards attack Tamil detainees over Heroes’ Day

    Tamil prisoners have been attacked by guards in a prison in Anuradhapuram, The Island reports.

    According to the Commissioner General of Prisons, P.W. Kodippilli, prison officials received information the inmates were planning to commemorate fallen Tamil soldiers on Heroes’ Day.

    A search operation was launched by guards, which resulted in clashes with the Tamil prisoners.

    A Sri Lankan NGO has accused prison guards of violently attacking 65 Tamil inmates.

    Committee member of the WESL (We are Sri Lankans), Udul Premaratne, said drunk officials assaulted the Tamils for 30 minutes, after stripping them naked.

    Kodippilli has denied the accusations and accused the inmates of attempting to mislead everyone by blaming the guards for starting the violence.

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