The brother of Visvalingam Gopithas, who died in a Sri Lankan prison yesterday, has accused the prison authorities of mistreating him, saying he did not receive adequate food and medical attention, reported the BBC.

Human rights organisations have condemned the appointment of a former Sri Lankan military commander as the acting operations manager of the Manus Island detention centre, where asylum seekers who arrive in mainland Australia are sent to.

Amnesty International India has labelled the ban on the documentary ‘No Fire Zone: The Killing Fields of Sri Lanka’ from theatrical release in India “an attack on freedom of speech” in a series of tweets yesterday.

The human rights organisation went on to slam the decision as one that as one that “hurts Indian democracy” and said,

An Australian company, specialising in the manufacture of solar panels, will set up a factory in Hambantota for $190mn.

Energy Puzzle Group will create 150 jobs in the hometown of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

In a damning report on Sri Lanka's progress towards accountability and reconciliation , officially released today, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) recommended “the establishment of an independent international inquiry mechanism, which would contribute to establishing the truth where domestic mechanisms have failed.”

See full report here.

The report highlighted unresolved issues including human rights violations of former combatants and detainees, attacks on religious minorities, human rights defenders and freedom of expression, and arbitrary killings, whilst also highlighting the need for further internationally assisted investigations into newly discovered mass graves.

Moving on to Sri Lanka's attempts of reconciliation and accountability, the report raised concerns over the limited and insincere implementations of the Lessons Learn and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) whilst also highlighting failed domestic processes for accountability and justice.

The report concluded by stating,

“In the absence of a credible national process, she believes the international community has a duty to take further steps, which will advance the right to truth for all in Sri Lanka and create further opportunities for justice, accountability and redress.”

“The High Commissioner reiterates her concern at the continuing trend of attacks on freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association, particularly against human rights defenders, journalists and families of victims, the rising levels of religious intolerance and continued militarisation, which continue to undermine the environment where accountability and reconciliation can be achieved."

See below for the list Human Rights Commissioner, Navi Pillay’s recommendations to the Sri Lankan government.

A British citizen who has been in a Sri Lankan prison since 2007 has been found dead, reported the Uthayan.

The Tamil political prisoner Visvalingam Gopithas, 43, was accused of supporting the LTTE financially and arrested on his arrival at Katunayake Airport in March 2007 and had been held without charge for 5 years, before his conviction in 2012. Mr Gopithas denied all charges.

According to the Uthayan, fellow inmates said his death was suspicious and demanded an investigation.

Gopithas was found dead in the bathroom of Section C in Welikada Prison, also known as Magazine Prison. Reports say he was previously attacked by Sinhalese prisoners in 2011, who stripped and tortured him, and survived a murder attempt in 2012.

Gopithas has spent more than 6 years languishing in a Sri Lankan prison, under the Prevention of Terrorism Act. In 2011, a spokesman for the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office said,

"FCO minister Alistair Burt raised Mr Gopithas's continued detention without charge with the Sri Lankan foreign minister, [G L] Peiris in June this year … [and] more broadly, the UK has regularly expressed its concern about legislation in Sri Lanka that allows for prolonged detention without charge."

Read more on his case in our report: British Tamils held in Sri Lanka without charge (18 September 2011)

(Edited 25 Feb 2014 at 20:30GMT to include details on conviction)

The Journalist Association for Social Change and Tamil Youths & Students Federation held a screening of the documentary ‘No Fire Zone: Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields’, after the film was banned for theatrical release by Indian authorities for fear it may “strain relations” with Sri Lanka.

Over 300 students, journalists and youth activists attended the screening in Chennai.
Speaking to the Tamil Guardian, one of the organisers said,

“This is the first step we have started, and we are going to educate the rural and village people about the genocide happened in Sri Lanka with the help of this video. We will screen the video every possible places and we will spread the awareness to the Tamil Nadu people.”

Addressing the crowd via Skype, film director Callum Macrae spoke on issues such as the need for an international investigation, noting that justice cannot be expected from Sri Lankan courts. He went on to stress that the war against the Tamil people was still continuing on the ground.

Tamil Nadu journalist Maga Tamizh Prabhagaran also spoke to the Tamil Guardian about the ban placed on ‘No Fire Zone’, stating,

“The footage of the 2009 war shocked communities around the world and struck fear into those who helped in the bloody war against Eelam Tamils.”

The conflict on the island of Sri Lanka continues today, stated Alan Keenan of the International Crisis Group and Callum Macrae, director of “No Fire Zone”, at a screening of the documentary in King’s College London earlier this week.

Hosted by the War Crimes Research Group at King’s College London, director Callum Macrae introduced the documentary, stressing the need for immediate action on the issue. He stated,

“This is not just an academic exercise on accountability - this is a live issue... The international community catastrophically failed, now they must do something at least to create justice.”

“A precondition for reconciliation is justice... The 9, 10 and 11 year old survivors, in 10 years time, if the international community fails to deliver justice, will get justice by their own hands.”

“What we see in Syria today perhaps wouldn't be happening quite as it did we had a clear commitment in Sri Lanka”.

“We don't have a body that will establish with any ease an international independent investigation... The UNHRC has no teeth. If it can't establish an investigation, then calling on a government that is quite possibly guilty itself, is not going to happen”, added Keenan.