• TNA accuses government of reneging on promises regarding demilitarisation

    Feb 16

    The Tamil National Alliance has demanded the return of Tamil land in the North-East, occupied by the military in so-called High Security Zones, by the start of the UN Human Rights Council session in March, as promised by the new government ahead of the presidential elections.

    “Before the election the new government pledged it will release land occupied by the military and the people will be resettled [in those land],” MP MA Sumanthiran said, according to the Uthayan.

    “However not an inch of land has been released, in Sampur, Keppapilavu, Mullikkulam, Paravippanjaan and Vali North, land which the government promised will be returned,” the MP charged.

    Mr Sumanthiran rejected the recent announcement of the release of 1,000 acres of land in Vali North and the building of a model village, implying the move was made to show progress ahead of Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera’s meeting with US Secretary of State John Kerry.

  • India will call on Sri Lanka to take tangible steps to reconcile Tamils says Alan Keenan
    The Sri Lanka analyst at the International Crisis Group (ICG) Alan Keenan, speaking to Duetsche Welle, said that India will call on President Maithripala Sirisena to “take tangible steps towards meaningful reconciliation with Tamils, particularly in the north and east of Sri Lanka.”

    Commenting on Sirisena’s trip to meet India, Mr Keenan, noting that the Northern Provincial Council (NPC), had “limited constitutional powers,” added that India would urge Sri Lanka’s new government to cooperate with the elected Northern Provincial Council, develop its powers and “provide relief to Tamils in the north and east, through the release of land occupied by the Sri Lankan military.”
  • Sri Lankan troops deployed to battle dengue fever

    The Sri Lankan government announced the country’s army, navy, air force and police are to be deployed across the island later this month, to inspect and clear buildings for potential mosquito breeding sites to tackle dengue fever.

  • Tamil Nadu Congress Committee backs NPC resolution calling for genocide investigation
    The Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) stated that it supports a resolution passed by the Sri Lankan Northern Provincial Council which called for an international inquiry into the crime of genocide against the Tamils.

    "By whatever name you call it..war crimes, human rights violations or genocide..the fact is that thousands of lives were lost in Sri Lanka and this should be probed," said TNCC President EVKS Elangovan, adding that his party supports a UN investigation into the mass atrocities.
  • Indian Prime Minister holds talks with Sri Lankan President in Delhi
    Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena called on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi to discuss bilateral relations today, as part of his first foreign visit since assuming office last month.

    The two met at Hyderabad House in Delhi, after Mr Sirisena met with India's Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj earlier in the day.

    Speaking at a joint press conference Sri Lanka’s president said that the two nations “were able to strengthen” their friendship and sign agreements “ on several subjects.”

    The Indian Premier, Narendra Modi, tweeted, “India and Sri Lanka are set to grow further."

    A series of agreements were signed by the two nations, including a landmark nuclear deal, which will see India help Sri Lanka build its nuclear energy infrastructure the Indian foreign ministry said.

    India will also look to play a part in Sri Lanka’s plan to establish 600 MW of nuclear capacity by 2030, reports Reuters.

    Other agreements surrounding the themes of cultural cooperation, university relations and agricultural cooperation were also signed, reports The Hindu.
  • Human Rights Council gives Sri Lanka 6 months to cooperate with UN inquiry
    15:24 GMT, last updated 17 Feb 14:14 GMT

    The UN Human Rights Council on Monday decided to give the new Sri Lankan government six months to cooperate with the UN inquiry into mass atrocities against the Tamil people, in order to ensure the submission of further information, stressing however, that the extension of time would be "for one time only".

    In a written letter to the Council, which was holding a preliminary meeting on Monday, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, requested member states to defer their consideration of the OHCHR Investigation on Sri Lanka (OISL) report, till the 30th session in September, to allow for cooperation from the Sri Lankan government in order to gather more information and ensure a "stronger and more comprehensive report".

    “There should be no misunderstanding,” Mr Zeid stressed, in a letter read to the Council, "I give my personal, absolute and unshakable commitment that the report will be published by September."

    "Like my predecessors, I believe that one of the most important duties of the High Commissioner for Human Rights is to act as a strong voice on behalf of victims. I want this report to have the maximum possible impact in ensuring a genuine and credible process of accountability and reconciliation in which the rights of victims to truth, justice and reparations are finally respected.”

  • Witnesses 'deeply disappointed' by UN inquiry delay says TAG
    The rights group, Tamils Against Genocide (TAG) said witnesses would be "deeply disappointed" by the UN Human Rights Council's decision on Monday to delay the publishing of the findings of a UN inquiry into mass atrocities against Tamils in Sri Lanka.

    "We are deeply disappointed on behalf of our witnesses, who came forward to submit their testimonies and evidence of war crimes to the UN inquiry at grave risk to themselves and families back home," Jan Jananayagam, the director of TAG, which has worked closely with Tamils who were witnesses and victims of mass atrocities during the end of the armed conflict told Tamil Guardian.

    "Hearing that the inquiry's findings will not be released at the Council's coming session is going to be extremely difficult for them to accept. In the interests of transparency, we stress that the evidence of mass atrocities should be published as soon as possible, regardless of any political changes."

  • Batticaloa mothers demand Sri Lanka govt releases detained children

    Tamil mothers and relatives of the disappeared held a demonstration in Batticaloa on Monday, calling on the Sri Lankan government to release their children from custody.


    Holding photographs and clothing of their missing children and husbands, women from across the region, came together to hold a seven hour fast in Kaanthippoongavil, Batticaloa town.

  • Tamil Nadu political parties welcome NPC resolution, call on India to take action
    Political leaders across Tamil Nadu, welcoming a recent Northern Provincial Council resolution in Sri Lanka calling on the UN inquiry to investigate genocide of the Tamil people, called on the Indian central government to endorse the resolution and take action to address the grievances of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka.

    The Hindu retrieved reactions of figureheads from a plethora of political parties in Tamil Nadu.

    Speaking to The Hindu, the Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam (DMK) treasurer ML Stalin said, India must pass an internal resolution acknowledging the Tamil genocide in Sri Lanka.

    India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) representative in Tamil Nadu, S Ramadoss, called on the Delhi to take action and facilitate a referendum living across the world for an independent state of Tamil Eelam.

    The general secretary of the Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) G Vaiko, highlighting that militarisation of the North-East continued under Sri Lankka’s new government, said the NPC resolution proved the new Sirisena government would not be able to meet the needs of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka.
  • Wigneswaran calls for further devolved power to address issues in Northern Province

    Noting that the elected leaders of the Northern Province had no control over their own offices, the Chief Minister of the Northern Provincial Council  CV Wigneswaran called on the government to hand over authority and power to the provincial administration during a Provincial Council meeting on Monday.

    Over 100,000 war widows remain in the North-East of Sri Lanka said Mr Wigneswaran addressing a meeting of the Special Coordinating Committee for the Northern Province, in Jaffna.

    The meeting was chaired by the Central Public Administration and Good Governance Minister Karu Jayasuriya, reports the New Indian Express.
  • Tamil protesters sign petition demanding release of political prisoners and disappeared

    Families of the disappeared participated in a protest demanding the release of detained political prisoners and investigation into the disappeared, on Friday outside the Jaffna Central Bus Station.

    As part of a petition organised, families member signed their names on a banner that outlined key demands of finding the disappeared and releasing all detained political prisoners.
  • Tamil diaspora orgs urge UN human rights chief to release Sri Lanka inquiry report

    A coalition of 15 key Tamil diaspora organisations worldwide have urged the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights,  Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, to ensure the report on the UN inquiry into mass atrocities against Tamils in Sri Lanka is released next month as originally intended in a resolution adopted by the UN Human Rights Council in March 2014.

    In a letter sent to Mr Zeid on Sunday, the organisations - Australian Tamil Congress (ATC), British Tamil Conservatives (BTC), British Tamil Forum (BTF), Centre for War Victims and Human Rights (Canada), Federation of Tamil Sangams of North America, Global Tamil Forum (GTF), Ilankai Tamil Sangam (ITS), New Zealand Tamil Society (NZTS), People for Equality and Relief in Lanka (PEARL), South Africa Tamil Federation, Swedish Tamil Forum, Tamils Against Genocide (TAG), Tamils for Labour, US Tamil Political Action Council (USTPAC) and World Thamil Organization (WTO) - endorsed the Northern Provincial Council's resolution on genocide and its call to ensure the report is released next month.

    "Our organisations representing the 1-million strong Tamil Diaspora forced out of Sri Lanka due to the conflict, and having lost tens of thousands of relatives, fully endorse the call by the Northern Provincial Council, and urge you to release the OISL report in March 2015 as originally mandated," the coalition said, adding, "President Sirisena’s election and short tenure do not negate the need for a timely release."

  • Sri Lankan president arrives in India for official visit
  • India must support UN investigation adoption says DMK chief

    Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been urged to back a resolution at the UN Human Rights Council, which will support the adoption of a report on mass atrocities in Sri Lanka, said Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) M Karunanidhi.

    “Now that the Sri Lankan Provincial Government has passed a resolution calling for an international probe into genocide, I request you to kindly consider moving a suitable resolution in the UNHRC,” said Mr Karunanidhi earlier this week.

    "The community of the Tamils anxiously expect the Indian government to support the adoption of the report in the UNHRC," he added.

    Mr Karunanidhi’s comments come as Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena arrived in India on his first official visit of the country. Since Mr Sirisena took office in January though, efforts taken towards appeasing Tamil demands have failed to materialise said Mr Karunanidhi.

    "What is now happening in Sri Lanka has upset the Tamils. The promises and announcements are too many and what has been achieved is either nil or very little," Mr Karunanidhi said. “What can be done in a couple of days has not been done and there are no positive signals towards what should be done within a timeframe.”

  • Domestic investigation unacceptable regardless of when OISL report is released says TNA
    A domestic investigation cannot be accepted regardless  of when the release of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights report into Sri Lanka’s atrocities (OISL) occurs, the Tamil National Alliance said on Sunday.

    Commenting on Sri Lanka’s requests to delay the OISL report to allow for a domestic initiative, TNA MP M Sumanthiran, said,
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