Families of the disappeared in Kilinochchi continued their ongoing protest yesterday marking 618 days of demonstrations. 

Families, frustrated and angered by the lack of action on the issue and what they called false promises, criticised the leadership of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA). 

The UN Represenative in Sri Lanka Hanna Singer met with key political figures today as the political crisis, sparked by the appointment of Mahinda Rajapaksa as prime minister by the current president Maithripala Sirisena, continues. 

Meeting with Singer, Sirisena reportedly told her that all decisions were in accordance with the country's constitution and that the government was acting within a democratic framework. 

Writing in Al Jazeera, the Advocacy Director for the Washington DC-based People for Equality and Relief in Lanka (PEARL), and a Human Rights Fellow at the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership, Mario Arulthas, urged the international community to take urgent action to protect Tamils in Sri Lanka following the former president's return to power last week. 

"The Rajapaksa brothers have been plotting for a political comeback since their downfall in 2015. Tamil activists, who say they always knew Rajapaksas would one day return, are now revisiting their safety protocols, switching to secure messaging apps and sharing emergency contact details," Arulthas writes.

Read full article here. 

British parliamentarians today fielded questions to Foreign and Commonwealth Office ministers, including the Foreign Secretary, on the current political crisis in Sri Lanka, following the sacking of Ranil Wickremesinghe and the appointment of Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Former Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Theresa Villiers MP asked:

“In the light of recent worrying developments in Sri Lanka, will the Foreign Secretary urge the Government there to make good on their promises to deliver justice for the Tamil people and accountability for war crimes committed against them?”

Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific, Mark Field, responded:

The British government acknowledges concerns “about the safety of Prime Minister Wickremesinghe”, the UK’s Foreign Secretary said on Tuesday.

Answering questions in Parliament today, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said “I know that a number of Members are concerned about the safety of Prime Minister Wickremesinghe, and we are watching the situation with a great deal of concern.”

The war-crimes accused paramilitary leader Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan alias Karuna delivered a statement, purportedly on behalf of Tamils, on Saturday about the sudden swearing in of former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse as the Prime Minister.

"This decision is welcomed by the Sri Lankan Tamil community," he alleged in Tamil. He noted having predicted this change three months back, and that he and other members of the TMVP are currently engaged in discussion with Rajapaksa on ensuring a "radiant future for the people."

Following the appointment of Rajapaksa as PM of Sri Lanka Canada, alongside the European Union, UK, US and other European nations, has expressed concern over Sri Lanka.

In a press statement Global Affairs Canada said:

“Canada remains deeply concerned by the political situation in Sri Lanka. We reiterate our call for all parties to refrain from violence and respect due process and the rule of law”.

Another UNP MP has crossed over to the Rajapaksa faction and been awarded a ministerial portfolio.

Dunesh Gankanda, who has been caught in the public eye for racial abuse, physical assault and verbal assault, was sworn in as Minister for Environment by Mahinda Rajapaksa. 

The former UNP law maker, is reported to have used racist slurs against a counterpart’s Tamil stepson.

He was also arrested and released on bail after biting a person's nose, causing them to have corrective surgery.

See more here.

The ongoing political crisis in Colombo has demonstrated to Tamils that “Sinhala Buddhist majoritarian parties continue to demonstrate a lack of respect to constitutionalism,” said the Tamil Civil Society Forum (TCSF).

In a statement on Tuesday, the TCSF said that the appointment of Mahinda Rajapaksa as prime minister, illustrated that “time and again the Sinhala polity reminds us of the limits of liberal constitutional democratic solutions to our political aspirations”.

“The international community at least now must take our concerns seriously and readjust their policies towards Sri Lanka,” the statement added.

Several thousand UNP supporters staged a protest in Colombo today, demonstrating against the appointment of Mahinda Rajapaksa as Sri Lanka’s prime minister and calling for the reconvening of parliament.

Senior UNP leaders spoke at the rally, including Sajith Premadasa, who reportedly said he was “prepared to die for my country's freedom".