Events were held in Batticaloa today to remember Tamil journalist Subramaniyam Sugirdharajan 16 years on from his murder, as calls were renewed demanding justice for his murder.

At the Batticaloa Press Club, lamps were lit before a garlanded portrait of the slain journalist, whilst at Gandhi Park later in the day a march was held by the Eastern Journalists' Union.

The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames has unveiled a plaque commemorating the twinning with Jaffna in celebrations held to mark Tamil heritage month in London. 

 In an address to parliament, C.V. Wigneswaran, stressed that Sri Lanka current economic woes are driven by the government’s failure to meet the demands of the Tamil nation.

Chastising the attempt by Sri Lanka’s President to sweep over the underlying issues for Tamils, Wigneswaran states:

Responding to the Indian government’s decision to exclude Tamil Nadu’s submission for its 75^th annual Republic Day parade, Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister, M.K. Stalin maintained that this was “unacceptable”.

“Exclusion of the tableau of Tamil Nadu will deeply hurt the sentiments and patriotic feelings of the people of Tamil Nadu. That the committee chooses to ignore and reject all of these seven designs shown to it as per the modifications suggested by its members is unacceptable” Stalin wrote in an open letter that urged India’s Prime Minister to intervene.

As an economic crisis sends food and gas prices soaring in Sri Lanka, candles have become the latest commodity to be hit as shortages have begun to be reported in the southern capital of Colombo.

"Candles not available due to gas shortage" read a sign at St. Anthony's church in Colombo, the latest product to reportedly come in to short supply as the costs of basic goods continues to climb and shortages continue to grow.

According to Nikkei Asia, other goods in short supply include powdered milk.

The British government may continue to train Sri Lankan police, even after Police Scotland announced it would not extend its contract after March 2022 due to ongoing human rights concerns on the island.

Sri Lanka’s controversial ‘One Country, One Law’ Task Force and a think-tank under the defence ministry have forced the withdrawal of an Islamic text book, reportedly over concerns that “they might contain ideas of extremist ideology”.

According to a report in the Sunday Times the textbooks for Grade 6 schoolchildren “contained some objectionable words”.

As part of a three-day tour of Sri Lanka, British Minister for South Asia, Lord Tariq Ahmad, made a visit to the Buddhist Gangaramaya Temple in Colombo and tweeted that  “inclusivity of people of all faiths and beliefs defines the strength of a country’s human rights”.

Meeting with leader of the Tamil National Alliance, R. Sampanthan, and parliamentarian M.A Sumanthiran, British Minister for South Asia Tariq Ahmad spoke on the need to address long-term Tamil concerns including ensuring Sri Lanka meets commitments under UN Human Rights Councils Resolution 46/1.

Last week several refugee supporters, including myself, were arrested after dropping a banner off the rooftop of the Park Hotel in Naarm/Melbourne in protest of the plight of approximately 30 refugees who had been imprisoned onshore.