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Sri Lankan foreign minister Vijitha Herath announced that he met Canada’s High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Isabelle Catherine Martin, where he pressed Ottawa to clamp down on Tamil political expression and activities linked to Tamil self-determination.
In a statement posted online, Herath said he asked the High Commissioner to “convey to the Canadian Government the need to prevent activities that promote separatist ideologies in Sri Lanka, including the recognition of LTTE insignia, and activities aimed at fostering divisions among the ethnic communities in Sri Lanka”.
He claimed that Tamil diaspora organising in Canada undermines what he described as government efforts to promote “national unity” within the island.
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According to Herath, the High Commissioner responded by stating that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam remain a banned organisation in Canada and that the Canadian federal government “does not recognise such insignia associated with the LTTE or separatist ideologies”. He added that Canada had reaffirmed its commitment to “the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Sri Lanka”.
The exchange comes just days after the City of Brampton recognised Tamil Eelam National Flag day on November 21st and as Tamil organisations across Canada continue to commemorate the sacrifices of fallen fighters and assert the political rights of the Tamil nation of the North-East, despite ongoing pressure from the Sinhala-dominated government in Colombo.
