The prime minister of Sri Lanka, Ranil Wickremesinghe this week pledged an economic pact with India would be in force by the end of this year. Mr Wickremesinghe, who is currently on a three-day visit to New Delhi, met with his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi and the country's president. “Prime Minister Modi and I decided we must conclude it (the proposed technology and economic co-operation agreement) by the end of this year. This offers a strategic economic advantage to our country and the fastest-growing southern Indian States,” he was quoted by The Hindu as saying whilst speaking at an...
The spokesperson of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), M A Sumanthiran rebuffed criticims of the secrecy surrounding constitutional talks, saying, "there are reasons for the silence we keep". "We have the belief that our people would trust us. When the interim report is released, everything will be revealed. Until then, people should keep faith," he said at the weekend, speaking at an event in Karavetty. In a cryptic message, Mr Sumanthiran added: "At the steering committee meeting on the constitution, if the Tamil National alliance leader Mr R Sampanthan speaks, the prime minister, the...
The Tamil Civil Society Forum (TCSF) said that it appears that the Tamil people of the North-East are being left out of transitional justice processes, and not meaningfully consulted, at a press conference in Jaffna on Thursday, adding that this was also the case for the constitutional process. The group's spokespersons Father Elil Rajan and Guruparan Kumaravadivel pointed out that Resolution 30/1 adopted in September 2015, was a compromise in which the Tamils were told they would receive a hybrid justice mechanism, as opposed to the full form of international justice they were seeking. They...
The Tamil Civil Society Forum (TCSF) said that it appears that the Tamil people of the North-East are being left out of transitional justice processes, and not meaningfully consulted, at a press conference in Jaffna on Thursday, adding that this was also the case for the constitutional process. The group's spokespersons Father Elil Rajan and Guruparan Kumaravadivel pointed out that Resolution 30/1 adopted in September 2015, was a compromise in which the Tamils were told they would receive a hybrid justice mechanism, as opposed to the full form of international justice they were seeking. They...
The Sri Lankan army marked International Children’s Day on Saturday, by taking a group of Tamil schoolchildren on a tour of a military base in Jaffna earlier this month. Children of Nelliady pre-school were “fortunate to visit the Palaly airport thanks to the efforts of the troops under Security Force Headquarters - Jaffna (SF-J)” declared the Ministry of Defence website . They were also shown around the naval base in Kankesanthurai. Both of these regions have house restricted High Security Zones, where many Tamil homes and land remain occupied by the military. Troops in Kilinochchi also...
The threatening of a journalist inside a Sri Lankan police station on September 27, has been condemned by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), who urged authorities to investigate the incident. The journalist with Hiru TV, Ranjith Karunaweera was summoned by Sri Lankan police to Hasalaka station where he was met with over 20 local sand miners who threatened to kill him and used abusive language, the IFJ reported. The local sand miners had previously filed a complaint with the police over a news report by Mr Karunaweera regarding illegal sand mining in the region. “Such incidents...
The former Sri Lankan navy chief was on Wednesday summoned by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) over abductions that are believed to have taken place during his time in the job, the Daily Mirror reported. The abductions are reported to have taken place between 2006 - 2008 and included the disappearance of 11 people in 2008, the paper added. The navy is also reported to have been operating a secret navy unit at the time. Highlighting the sheer number of enforced disappearances in Sri Lanka and the lack of justice for such crimes, the UN Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary...
Sri Lanka's prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on Wednesday held discussions with India's external affairs minister, Sushma Swaraj as part of his three day visit to New Delhi. Mr Wickremesinghe is also expected to meet with his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi and the president, Pranab Mukherjee.