(Image courtesy: Yarltheepan) The United National Party (UNP) has appointed self-proclaimed Ava gang senior member and former Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) member Arun Siddharthan as its Jaffna organiser ahead of Sri Lanka's presidential polls which are set to take place this year. Siddharthan was present alongside Ravi Karunanayake, the UNP's assistant leader, at the UNP's first election campaign event in Jaffna last week. During an interview with Ada Derana on 8 February 2019, Arun Siddharthan publicly admitted to being a member of the Ava gang. The ‘Ava’ gang, a crime syndicate with...
An event discussing Sri Lanka’s enduring ethnic and economic crisis took place at Harvard University earlier this month, with panellists painting a bleak picture of the path that lies ahead for the island.
Tamil residents of Kalmunai North have opposed a move by the Sri Lankan government to subjugate their division under the Kalmunai South Division, adding that Tamils in the region were assured a fully-fledged secretariat to address their community-specific needs. A protest was held by locals in front of the Kalmunai North Division to express their opposition to the move by Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Public Administration, Home Affairs, and Provincial Councils adding that it was racially motivated to annex their rights to a Tamil-dominated locality. Protestors also alleged that funds for the...
Sri Lanka’s Attorney General informed the Court of Appeal that it would submit a ‘comprehensive investigation report’ on all Maaveerar Naal commemorations that have been held to date in the North-East, amidst threats of legal action against any remembrance activity. Senior State Counsel Shaminda Wickrema appeared for the AG’s department after a retired Sri Lankan army intelligence officer filed a petition at the court seeking to block commemorations from taking place in November 2023. When the court took up the petition last week, Wickrema said his department “intends to present to the court...
British politicians called on the UK government to exert more pressure on Sri Lanka by referring them to the International Criminal Court, imposing targeted sanctions and to evaluate it's military co-operation over the island's longstanding history of human rights abuses. Opening last week's Westminster Hall debate, Elliot Colburn, the Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils (APPGT) and MP for Carshalton and Wallington explained that despite 15 years passing since the Mullivaikkal genocide, which saw the deaths of tens of thousands of Tamils at the hands of the Sri Lankan state, the situation on the island "remains precarious".
Former Sri Lankan minister, S.M. Chandrasena, who served in Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s cabinet, has cast blame for the island’s economic crisis on the defunct LTTE and the oppositional JVP. The statement comes as Sri Lanka’s former President has announced a new book which seeks to exonerate his conduct and cast blame on the international community for the overthrow of his government by mass protests. Chandrasena castigated the JVP for allegedly pointing fingers at others for the bankrupting of the country. In November 2023, Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court had ruled that the Rajapaksa brothers were...
The Trincomalee Pathirakali Ambal Temple chariot festival, held on March 23, 2024, witnessed an overwhelming turnout of devotees, marking yet another successful year for the event. The highlight of the event unfolded at 8:00 am when Amman graced the ceremonial Chariot, escorted by her sons Pillaiyaar and Murugan. As the Chariot traversed through the streets, devotees thronged alongside, fulfilling their vows. Musical and dance performances crowned the procession. The provision of numerous water pandals strategically set up along the route, ensured the safety and comfort of visitors and...
Residents of Palaly, Jaffna, engaged in a postcard campaign demanding the immediate release of their lands which have been under Sri Lankan military occupation for over 30 years. The campaign titled “Give us back our land” was organised by the Mannar Social Economic Development Organisation (MSEDO) in Maviddapuram, Palaly last week. The postcards are addressed to President Ranil Wickremesinghe and are an attempt to attract his attention to a longstanding issue faced by Tamils in the homeland. All of these lands, according to MSEDO are privately owned but currently held by the Sri Lankan army...
The root cause of Sri Lanka’s economic crisis is the inability to solve the ongoing ethnic issues, said Eelam People’s Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF) Leader and former parliamentarian Suresh Premachandran at a meeting in Vavuniya today. “Everyone says that once the economic issue is resolved, all other problems will be too,” said Premachandran. “But have they forgotten that the root cause of an economic problem is war and ethnic issues? The Sri Lankan government is said to have spent nearly USD 250 million on funding war crimes committed in the country. The cause of the economic issue...
Leader of the People’s Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) and Tamil member of parliament Dharmalingam Siddarthan told Tamils in Vavuniya that the 13th Amendment should be accepted as it is the “realistic” thing to do. “Everyone should unite and accept the 13th Amendment to the constitution as it is,” he told a gathering in Vavuniya. “Accepting it does not mean it is sufficient. Even though many of us continue to deny it, successive governments continue to withhold it.” He told the gathering that over 200,000 Tamils have fled their homeland and now reside in places around the world...