Three Tamil political prisoners hunger striking at the Anuradhapura prison have been rushed to hospital today following severe deteriorations in their health. The detainees have been fasting for 13 days in protest at the Sri Lankan attorney-general department’s attempts to move their cases from Vavuniya to Anuradhapuram. The three detainees decided to abstain from drinking water from this morning, leading to a rapid decline in their health. They were admitted to the Anuradhapura general hospital by the prison administration on Sunday evening. The current protest is the 11th time the detainees...
The Sri Lankan army declared open a newly constructed canteen at its 59 Division headquarters in Mullaitivu last month.
The Sri Lankan government on Friday adopted santions against the Democratic People's Rupublic of North Korea, as outlined in the UN Security Council resolution. The regulations were issued by the country's foreign minister Tilak Marapana. "All Security Council member countries are bound to implement the SC's resolutions and so, Sri Lanka made it effective locally to implement the UN sanctions on the DPRK as per the resolution," Mr Marapana was quoted by Ceylon Today as saying. The sanctions prevent Sri Lanka engaging in activities with North Korea, namely from receiving or providing financial...
Three political prisoners detained at Anuradhapura prison have urged the government to charge or release them. The men, who have been accused by the Sri Lankan authorities of links to the LTTE, have been on hunger strike since September 23. Reiterating their demands on Sunday, the men have threatened to stop taking fluids as well.
Swiss police on Saturday shot dead an asylum seeker from Sri Lanka during an altercation in the refugee detention centre. The 38 year old asylum seeker is reported to have been armed with a knife. Police were called after he charged at two other asylum seekers. The incident occurred in Brissago, Switzerland. “To guarantee the safety of all those present, a cantonal police officer fired his gun and seriously injured the aggressor,” Ticino police were quoted by Reuters as saying in a statement.
A video has emerged of an Assistant Superintendent of Police assaulting an arrested protester in Hambantota on Friday. The National Police Commission on Saturday announced it had launched an investigation into the alleged assault. See video here .
The British minister for Asia and the Pacific met with the Sri Lankan government-appointed governor of the Northern Province during his trip to Jaffna on Friday. The minister, Mark Field, and governor, Reginald Cooray, are reported to have discussed the current situation in the Northern Province and steps needed to achieve reconciliation. The governor requested the UK’s assistance in creating job opportunities for the youth in the North by increasing investments in the province. Mr Cooray pointed out his efforts to build a multicultural school to accommodate students from all three of the...
The Northern Provincial Council has urged the Sri Lankan government to intervene in the case of Tamil political prisoners hunger striking in Anuradhapuram prison. Following a resolution passed at the 107th sitting of the council on Friday, the council chair C. V. K. Sivagnanam wrote to the Sri Lankan President, Prime Minister and Minister of Resettlement and Prison Reforms. The NPC urged the government to cancel the transfer of the political prisoners’ cases to Anuradhapuram courts which the detainees have been hunger striking against. The NPC requested that the trials be allowed to continue...
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on truth , justice, reparations and guarantees of no recurrence Pablo de Greiff is to carry out an official visit to Sri Lanka, from 10 to 23 October 2017. In a statement released by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human RIghts (OHCHR) today, Mr de Greiff said, “My visit aims to review the progress made thus far, to identify obstacles and bottlenecks in the implementation of the transitional justice and reform process and to discuss opportunities with the Government and Sri Lankan society to overcome these.” Mr De Greiff’s visit will comprise...
The UK’s Foreign Office Minister for Asia and the Pacific visited Jaffna today, as part of an official visit to the island.