Sri Lankan police arrested four Tamils this evening for distributing Mullivaikkal Kanji in Sampur, as part of commemorations of the 15th anniversary of the Tamil genocide.
Kamaleswaran Themila, Kamaleswaran Vijitha, Kalirajah Sujani and the Tamil National People's Front Muttur organiser, Hariharakumar, were arrested after they were threatened by a Sri Lankan police officer earlier today while they were preparing the kanji.
?????????????? ??????????? ????????? ????? ????? ????? ???????????????? ????? ??????? ???? ?????? ??????? ??? ??????? ???????? ?????? ??????? ??????????? ???????? ??????? ???????????? #police #arrest #trincomalee pic.twitter.com/nfEEKtdAWi
— Thavaseelan (@ShanmugamThava2) May 12, 2024
Video footage shows two Sri Lankan police officers dragging two of the women across the floor.
.jpg)
The arrests cames after police officers obtained a court order from Muttur Magistrate Court which prohibits the distribution of Mullivaikkal Kanji and any events planned to commemorate the Tamil genocide for the next 14 days.
The arrests and court orders come as the Tamil homeland commenced Tamil Genocide Remembrance Week today. Across the North-East, commemorative activities are taking place to remember the tens of thousands of Tamils who were slaughtered in Sri Lanka's genocidal offensive in 2009.
As part of the commemorations, Tamils across the North-East prepared and distributed kanji. Kanji - a porridge of rice and water - was the only food available to Tamils trapped in the Sri Lankan government-declared ‘No Fire Zones’ as food and medicines were heavily restricted from entering the Vanni during the final phase of the armed conflict.
.jpg)
Although the court order prohibits the individuals from participating in remembrance-related activities, it also states that the order "applies to all people" and that they should not gather at schools or temples and vehicular protests cannot be carried out either.
Each year, the Sri Lankan government find new ways to repress memorialisation activities in the North-East, particularly in the lead up to May 18, also known as Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day.
