The British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka,  Sarah Hulton OBE and the Deputy Commissioner Tom Burn yesterday met Gotabaya Rajapaksa despite concerns over his human rights record.

Rajapaksa tweeted that the visit was to “convey good wishes on behalf of the British Government” for his election victory. 

Several Kollywood celebrities sent birthday messages to mark the 65th birthday of the LTTE leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran today. Birthday wishes were sent on social media accounts from the likes of Indian actors Sibiraj Sathyaraj, G.V Prakash and film composer D.Imman.  

The Hindu said it welcomed India’s recent message to Sri Lanka’s newly elected president, which called on Colombo to meet Tamil aspirations. 

“It is particularly welcome that India has conveyed its expectations that the process of national reconciliation would be taken forward by the new regime, with a solution for the Tamil population based on equality, justice, peace and dignity at the core of it,” said The Hindu editorial last week.

British Tamil businesses have begun preparing to commemorate Maaveerar Naal by flying Tamil Eelam flags at stores across the UK.

See a selection of photos from British Tamil businesses below. 

Authorities at the University of Jaffna have declared the university premises “out of bounds” as Tamil students were preparing to commemorate Maaveerar Naal tomorrow.

Stones inscribed with the names of 25,000 Tamil liberation fighters were erected in Jaffna earlier today, as Tamils in the homeland and around the world prepare to mark Maaveerar Naal.

The University of Jaffna administration has sent round a circular, banning all Maaveerar Naal commemorations, a day before events are set to take place across the Tamil homeland and diaspora.

Maaveerar Naal - or Heroes’ Day - which is marked on November 27th, has been peacefully commemorated by students and staff of the university for several years. 

Sri Lankan president Gotabaya Rajapaksa addressed the Tamil diaspora when questioned about war crimes committed by troops under his command, stating that they should “forget about these things”.

Sri Lanka will review the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Resolution that it co-sponsored in 2015, Colombo Gazette reported. 

Newly appointed Foreign Minister, Dinesh Gunawardena, said that the new government will review Resolution 30/1 entitled ‘Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka.’ 

Students at the University of Jaffna marked the birthday of LTTE leader Veluppillai Prabhakaran in secret at midnight.

Sri Lankan police questioned the management of a Vavuniya-based Tamil newspaper and demanded details of all reporters be handed over, allegedly responding to an anonymous complaint about the publication of LTTE-related photographs in the paper.

The Sri Lankan army continued with its militarisation of the North-East, by organising a seminar for students in Muttur last week.

The seminar was reportedly a part of the military’s ongoing ‘community project’.