Tamil National People's Front MP Selvarajah Kajendren told Sri Lanka’s parliament that Tamil university students were threatened and forced to pray at the Buddhist temple in the faculty of Engineering in Kilinochchi.

Speaking in parliament, the lawmaker spoke on the incident and called for those responsible to be held accountable.

The Northern Province Fishermen’s Association has expressed concerns over the return of Indian trawlers and fisherfolk from Tamil Nadu, as the 61-day annual fishing ban comes to an end on June 15^th and the ongoing issues over the Palk Strait remain unaddressed. 

“We are willing to engage in a conversation with the Indian fishermen,” N.M Alam, Secretary to the association told reporters in Mannar, but warned that the continued infringement was impacting on their livelihoods.

Students, staff and lecturers from the Jaffna University faculty paid their respects to Pon. Sivakumaran, the first Tamil to die in the liberation struggle 50 years ago. 

Sri Lanka’s controversial truth and reconciliation mechanism, the Interim Secretariat for the Truth and Reconciliation Mechanism (ISTRM), which has been roundly criticized by international experts and Tamil civil society, met with Sri Lankan police officers and air force officers in the Puttalam district to gather their feedback on the proposed reconciliation legislation. 

The Sri Lankan police reportedly forced Tamil officers who were deployed in Kankesanthurai on routine duty to take part in Vesak observances at an illegally constructed temple within the military-controlled high-security zone (HSZ) in Jaffna.  

Sri Lanka’s President Ranil Wickremesinghe reportedly said the Tamil people “do not have the unity, capacity and background to field a common candidate” for the upcoming Sri Lankan presidential polls, which are scheduled to be held later this year. 

Wickremesinghe met Tamil parliamentarian C.V. Wigneswaran at his home in Jaffna, where he reportedly made the remarks last month.

Today marks 50 years since the death of Ponnuthurai Sivakumaran, the first Tamil to die in the liberation struggle. 

Following the 15th anniversary of the Mullivaikkal genocide, Sri Lanka’s UN Resident Coordinator, Marc-André Franche, undertook a tour of the North-East and visited the Kokkuthoduvai mass grave in Mullaitivu. He was accompanied by Mullaitivu District's Families of the Disappeared President, Mariyasures Iswari, and lawyer K. Ganeswaran.

The visit follows Franche's meeting with Mullaitivu District Secretary, A. Uma Maheswaran, where they discussed the challenges facing those in Mullaitivu. 

A family of six Eelam Tamil have fled Mannar to arrive at Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, where they are being held at the Police Station and having their statements recorded by the Indian police. 

It is learnt that the family undertook a journey by boat to arrive in Rameswaram on Tuesday (4). The family of six includes three children along with their parents. The family is seeking asylum in Tamil Nadu over the economic hardships that they are facing in Sri Lanka. 

Marking 50 years since the death of Pon. Sivakumaran, the first Tamil martyr to die in the liberation struggle, several Tamil political leaders and politicians paid tribute to him in Urumbarai, Jaffna.