Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

A newly published study has identified the earliest scientifically confirmed evidence of prehistoric human settlement on Velanai Island in the Jaffna Peninsula, dating back around 3,460 years and overturning an erroneous long-held Sri Lankan assumption that the region was largely uninhabited until much later. The study, published in the Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology and led by…

Switzerland’s draconian counter-terrorism bill will repress Tamil activists - Phoenix

Swiss Tamil activist group, “Phoenix - the Next Generation”, has spoken out against Switzerland’s proposed “Police Measures to Counter Terrorism” (PMT) which they warn will repress Tamil activists.

Sri Lankan police refuse to accept complaint after Pillaiyar statue from Mullaitivu temple stolen

A Pillaiyar statue was stolen from a Sivan temple in Moongilaru, Mullaitivu last Thursday, just days after Sri Lankan police officers detained and threatened the temple's priests last week. Puthukkudiyiruppu police refused to accept a complaint from temple administration, who insisted that the police officers were complicit in the theft.

Sivakumaran remembered in Germany

German Tamils commemorated the 47th anniversary of Ponnuthurai Sivakumaran’s passing  on June 5. Remembrances took place in Berlin, in front of Freie Universitat Berlin and in Johannez Rau Platz, Dusseldorf. 

Murdered journalists were ‘third class’ claims Sri Lankan official

A senior Sri Lankan official sparked outrage after he claimed that the dozens of journalists who had been murdered on the island were “third class ones”, in comments made to reporters at a press briefing last week.

Daughter of Biloela refugee family hospitalised

The three-year-old daughter of a Tamil refugee family, Tharnicaa, was medically evacuated to a hospital in Perth, Australia, after being denied treatment by detention centre staff at Christmas Island.

Jaffna Teaching Hospital makes urgent request for medical equipment

As COVID-19 infections surge in Sri Lanka, Jaffna Teach Hospital has issued an urgent request for Medical Equipment noting the need to establish High Dependency Units (HDUs) for the management of seriously ill coronavirus patients.

Tamil mother dies after searching for forcibly disappeared son for 12 years

A Tamil mother, who has spent over a decade searching for her forcibly disappeared son, has died from cancer today. 

Thevakiamma, has been demanding to know the whereabouts of her son, Senchudar, who was forcibly disappeared in Mullivaikkal in 2009. 

The Vavuniya Association of Disappeared Persons expressed their condolences and highlighted that Thevakiamma had been denied justice and died before getting answers regarding the whereabouts of her forcibly disappeared son. 

German Tamils protest against planned deportations

Tamils in Germany protested against the planned deportation of Tamil refugees to Sri Lanka, despite ongoing reports of torture and human rights abuses. 

Over the last few days, 14 Tamil refugees have been in arrested and detained at a detention centre in Pforzheim. Today, over 50 Tamils protested outside the detention centre, calling for the Tamils to be released and the deportations to be stopped. 

Sivakumaran commemoration disrupted by Sri Lankan police

Valikamam Pradeshiya Sabha chairman, Thiyagarajah Nirosh, was blocked from commemorating Ponnuthurai Sivakumaran, the first Tamil to die in the armed struggle for liberation. 

Nirosh was lighting a flame in memory of Sivakumaran before being disrupted by Sri Lankan police who claimed that due to a travel ban in the area, they were not allowed to pay their respects. The police stated that only 'essential' services were allowed to take place. 

Sri Lankan police forcibly quarantine and remove Muslim worshippers from prayers in Jaffna

14 people who were praying at a mosque in Jaffna on Friday, were forcibly removed by police officers and ordered to quarantine, who stated the travel ban must still be adhered to.