Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

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'These four should be put in jail' - Ganesan accuses NPP of hypocrisy
Tamil Progressive Alliance (TPA) leader Mano Ganesan has accused the National People's Power (NPP) government of hypocrisy over the arrest of Tamil rapper Sangeethsan Ganeskumar under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), pointing to NPP politicians who had themselves circulated songs glorifying the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during election campaigns. Sangeethsan, known…

Indian Prime Minister to discuss solution to fishermen issue

Aug 19, 2014
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is holding a meeting tomorrow to explore a solution to the repeated arrests of Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy, according to reports.

A senior government official told PTI,
"The PMO has called a meeting tomorrow to deliberate on India-Sri Lanka fishermen issues like illegal poaching and welfare of Indian fishermen among others."
Frequent attacks on Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy has led to the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Jayalithaa writing several letters to the Prime Minister, expressing her concern and calling for a “strong and robust" response to the arrests.

The Prime Minister's announcement that he will discuss the issue comes as 11 fishermen associations in Tamil Nadu declared they would “lay siege” to Pamban road, which connects Ramneswaran to mainland India. The fishermen are protesting against the continued detention of Indians by the Sri Lankan government and demand that their boats, which the Sri Lankans are refusing to release, be given back to them.

See more from the Hindu here.

Suicide rate in Jaffna increases since end of armed conflict

Aug 19, 2014
The number of suicides in Jaffna has increased since the end of the armed conflict in May 2009, according to statistics compiled by the Professor of Psychiatry at Jaffna University.

Data gathered by Dr Daya Somasundaran showed that in 2009, when the armed conflict was at its peak, the suicide rate in the Northern Tamil peninsula was 15 per 100,000. However, since the armed hostilities ended, the suicide rate has risen sharply to 25 per 100,000 in 2011. The figure dipped slightly in 2012, but by 2013, was back at its highest level.

The New Indian Express that Dr Somasundaran said during the war there was “a strong social support system” as “under the Lankan military siege, civilians clung together”. Since the end of the fighting though, “social cohesion and social support systems began to wear thin as families got splintered.”

Somasundaran reportedly went on to add that collective rehabilitation was needed for the Tamil population, since they experienced the trauma of war as a collective. Acts such as mourning, he added, had to be done collectively.

LTTE groups' encouraging students to protest says Gotabhaya

Aug 19, 2014
Sri Lanka's Defence Minister Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said groups linked to the LTTE were attempting to "create further problems in Sri Lanka" and pose a potential terrorist threat, the Business Standard reports.

"Some of these groups are trying to reorganise within Sri Lanka and mobilise people to once again take up their extreme left wing causes. There is information that some of these groups have started to establish ties to LTTE-linked agents to create further problems in Sri Lanka," he was quoted as saying.

"Some of their activities include radicalising students and encouraging them to take to the streets in various protests. Though such activities are still in their early stages, they pose another serious national security concern that must remain a consideration," he added.

Government should not 'pander to multi-ethnic obscenities' to gain support - BBS

Aug 18, 2014
The BBS leader told the Sri Lankan president to ‘not pander to multi ethnic obscenities’ and understand ‘the roots of the country and the value of the nation and who it rightfully belongs to,’ to gain the support of nationalist organisations, reports Colombo Page.

Gnanasara Thera told press that if the President did not agree with a ‘comprehensive policy framework’ submitted by the BBS, the group with join other nationalist organisations and field its own candidate to protect the ‘sovereignty’ of the country.

International pressure for human rights probe harmful to Sri Lanka - GL Peiris

Aug 18, 2014
The Sri Lankan Minister of External Affairs said that international pressure on Sri Lanka to probe human rights violations and foreign funding for 'capacity building' were harmful to the country, reports Colombo Page.

"Because of the intensity of this pressure there is a disincentive to engage in earnest in a domestic process. Because of the conviction that far more is forthcoming by the application of pressure at an international level. And that is why this international pressure is not only not helpful, but is absolutely harmful," said GL Peiris at a Ministry of Defence seminar, on Monday, in Colombo.

Sri Lanka will deny visas to UN investigators says President

Aug 18, 2014
Sri Lanka will deny visas to investigators from the Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights due to conduct the UN inquiry into mass atrocities in Sri Lanka, the Sri Lankan President said on Tuesday.

“We will not allow them into the country,” said Mahinda Rajapaksa when speaking to the Foreign Correspondents Association, whilst adding that the domestic investigation panel had been strengthened to carry out its own investigation, reports Reuters.

Disregarding any future findings from the UN investigation, Rajapaksa, said,

“I don’t think anybody will take it [the UN investigation] seriously, other than the people who want it.”

Elderly Tamil woman found dead in Batticaloa

Aug 18, 2014

A 75-year old Tamil woman, who has been missing for nearly 2 weeks, was found dead on Monday morning, reports Battinews.

The decomposed body of Sinnathambi Pasupathu, who lived in Thikkodai, was found in shrub land near Vivekananthapuram, in the Vellaveli area of Batticaloa.

The cause of death is unknown.

Body of Kaaththankudi female discovered

Aug 18, 2014

The body of a 33-year old woman from Kaaththankudi, Batticaloa, was discovered on Sunday.

Mother of three, M Siththi Nazheeba, was found dead in a house in the town. The cause of death is not yet known.

Kaaththankudi police are carrying out an investigation, Battinews reports.

 

Historic mosque near Trinco destroyed, locals blame army

Aug 18, 2014
Muslims near a historic mosque by Trincomalee have accused the Sri Lankan army of demolishing the mosque, which was already in a dilapidated condition due to lack of renovation.

The mosque, now encompassed within the military's High Security Zone, is believed to be over 400 years old, say locals.

The army denies demolishing the mosque, which they say was destroyed due to heavy rains and winds.

When asked by the Eastern Province Chief Minister, Najeeb Abdul Majeed, if locals could pray in the mosque if it were rebuilt and renovated, the army reportedly told him they could not.

Government appoints 5th expert to commission after rejecting UN inquiry

Aug 18, 2014
The Sri Lankan government has appointed a 5th international expert to its commission on disappearances, a law expert from Pakistan, Ahmer B Soofi.

The news of the appointment, tweeted from the President's Twitter account, comes as the President also announced that international investigators with the OHCHR Investigation into Sri Lanka (OISL) Would be denied visas into the country. See more here.
Suicide rate in Jaffna increases since end of armed conflict
LTTE groups' encouraging students to protest says Gotabhaya
Government should not 'pander to multi-ethnic obscenities' to gain support - BBS
International pressure for human rights probe harmful to Sri Lanka - GL Peiris
Sri Lanka will deny visas to UN investigators says President
Elderly Tamil woman found dead in Batticaloa
Body of Kaaththankudi female discovered
Historic mosque near Trinco destroyed, locals blame army
Government appoints 5th expert to commission after rejecting UN inquiry
National security is stronger than ever' – Commander of the Army
Suicide rate in Jaffna increases since end of armed conflict
LTTE groups' encouraging students to protest says Gotabhaya
Government should not 'pander to multi-ethnic obscenities' to gain support - BBS
International pressure for human rights probe harmful to Sri Lanka - GL Peiris
Sri Lanka will deny visas to UN investigators says President
Elderly Tamil woman found dead in Batticaloa
Body of Kaaththankudi female discovered
Historic mosque near Trinco destroyed, locals blame army
Government appoints 5th expert to commission after rejecting UN inquiry
National security is stronger than ever' – Commander of the Army