Tamil Genocide Education Week passes into law

by Viruben
May 12, 2021

Ontario’s legislature has given royal assent to Bill 104, bringing into effect Tamil Genocide Education Week, which establishes May 12-18th as a week in which Ontarians “are encouraged to educate themselves about, and to maintain their awareness of, the Tamil genocide and other genocides that have occurred in world history.”

Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Elizabeth Dowdeswell, signed the Royal Assent officially bringing the bill into effect.

The bill came about as a result of the tireless activism of Canadian Tamil activist organisations such as the Canadian Tamil Youth Alliance; the National Council of Canadian Tamil (NCCT); Tamil Youth Organization (TYO); the Canadian Tamil Academy (CTA); Arivaham Canada, Mississauga Tamil Association (MTA); Brampton Tamil Association (BTA); Markham Tamil Organization (MTO); Scarborough Tamil Association (STA); Ottawa Tamil Association (OTA); and Quebec Tamil Development Association (QTDA).

Sri Lanka Foreign Ministry has condemned the passage of the bill claiming it was based on a “flawed premise, unfounded assumptions, and blatant lies”. On Monday, Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena met with the Canadian High Commissioner David McKinnon to express his displeasure over the passage of the bill.

Responding to criticism launched again the measure, Patrick Brown, Mayor of Brampton and Leader of the Opposition, slammed the Sri Lankan High Commission for its “ongoing denial of the Tamil genocide & their organised propaganda”.

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