A series of protests are currently underway across the North-East today as Tamils across the homeland commemorated the death of LTTE’s Lt Col Thileepan, despite a Sri Lankan court ban and intimidation from the security forces.

Politicians, including from the Tamil National People’s Front (TNPF) and the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), joined civil society members and others to commence a fast at the Chavakachcheri Shiva Temple this morning at 10.48 am - the exact time that Thileepan passed away in 1987.

Today marks 33 years since the death of Lt Col Thileepan, a political wing leader of the LTTE who fasted to death, in a protest appealing to the Indian government to honour pledges made to the Tamil people.

Thileepan began his fast on the September 15, 1987, with 100,000 people gathered around the historic Nallur Kandwaswamy Temple in Jaffna.

S P Balasubrahmanyam jots down lyrics while practising for Ulaga Manitham Thalaikal - 21st June 2007. Photograph: Oviar Pugazhenthi

Among the late, great S P Balasubrahmanyam's body of work, which spans over five decades and over 40,000 songs, were several enthusiastic contributions to the Tamil Eelam liberation struggle. Encompassing a variety of styles and speeds, Balasubrahmanyam frequently voiced the lyrics of Eelam revolutionary poets Puthuvai Ratnathurai, who was forcibly disappeared in May 2009, Kasi Ananthan and Joe Puradchi. We look back at a selection of SPB's Eelam liberation songs.

One day after a controversial draft of the 20^th amendment was tabled, a total of twelve petitions were filed in Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court challenging it, including by the Tamil National Alliance, (TNA) and Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB).

^{SPB looks across Eelam as he flies to Jaffna for the first time in 2016.}

As Tamils and music lovers around the world mourn the death of legendary South Indian musician S P Balasubrahmanyam, we look back at his support for Eelam Tamils and his famous 2016 concert in Jaffna.

Before he had visited the island, Balasubrahmanyam was already a household name. The renowned playback singer had already smashed records around the world and recorded dozens of songs praising the Tamil Eelam liberation movement. Given his long history of support for the Eelam struggle, there was a buzz when it was announced that he was to visit Jaffna in 2016 – the first time Balasubrahmanyam would come to the historic city. He was due to perform with another Kollywood celebrity Gangai Amaran, composer and brother of music director Ilayaraaja.

Following the banning of memorials for Lt. Col. Thileepan, who died whilst conducting a hunger strike for Tamil rights in 1987, PEARL () has voiced support for Tamil political parties who have vocally opposed the ban and the planned protests; whilst also condemning the repression that said ban entails.

<p>Point Pedro Magistrate Court has banned a hunger strike organised by Tamil political parties in protest over the ban on commemorating the anniversary of Lt Col Thileepan's fast unto death.&nbsp;</p> <p>Sri Lankan police filed a ban on the hunger strike which was organised in response to the extension of the ban ordered by Jaffna Magistrate Court on events attempting to commemorate Lt Col Thileepan</p>

The legendary South Indian musician S P Balasubrahmanyam has passed away aged 74.

A prolific playback and concert singer who also made his mark as a music director, actor, dubbing artist and film producer, Balasubrahmanyam also lent his voice to the Tamil Eelam liberation struggle, recording several revolutionary songs in the mid-2000s.

 

Ampitiye Sumanarathana, a monk notorious for previous assaults, threatened officials of the Department of Archaeology over a delay to demarcate an archaeological reservation land in Chenkalady on Monday.

Tamils across Europe have been marking the 11 day hunger strike by the LTTE’s Lt. Col. Thileepan in ceremonies at their homes, with many countries on the continent continuing to have tight restrictions in place due to the coronavirus pandemic.

As coronavirus infections begin to rise many governments have put restrictions on large gatherings in place. Tamil organisations across the continent however have called on the public to mark Thileepan’s sacrifice in their home or with socially distanced events.

Sri Lankan president Gotabaya Rajapaksa vowed to send in troops from the notorious Special Task Force if tea plantations continued to produce “garbage tea”, in a warning to factory owners on the island.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa to meet virtually for a bilateral summit on 26 September, for the first time since the Rajapaksa regime’s parliamentary election victory last month, where defence, security and other “international issues of mutual interest” are to be discussed.

Writing in Jacobin, Abarna Selvarajah and Brannavy Jeyasundara highlight the growing authoritarianism in Sri Lanka as President Gotabaya Rajapaksa plans to bring forwards a 20^th amendment to the constitution which will “expands the role of the presidential office and scales back constitutional checks and balances on executive powers”.