More than a decade after Sri Lanka’s civil war ended in 2009, the country still maintains one of the world’s largest standing armies. This enduring militarisation cannot be explained by conventional security needs or fiscal prudence. Sri Lanka is an island with no land borders and faces no significant external military threat, yet its Army remains bloated. Why?
Fr Marcus Adigalar, Chairperson of the Mannar Citizens’ Committee, has issued a strong warning to the Sri Lankan government, cautioning that large-scale protests will erupt if authorities fail to intervene and uphold the fundamental rights of local Tamil communities.
Amid the many protests that have taken place in Colombo denouncing Israel’s genocide in Gaza, one placard stood out this month. It read “From Chemmani to Gaza – the earth remembers what states bury.”
The United Kingdom has announced a package of trade reforms that will further liberalise garment imports from Sri Lanka under the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS), sparking concern from rights advocates over the continued absence of any human rights conditions tied to such trade preferences.
A blood donation drive was held at Jaffna Hindu College on 13 July in memory of Sanjeevan, a former student who was killed by the Sri Lankan military on 13 July 2000 in Kaladdy. This year marks the 25th anniversary of his death.
Speaking in Parliament this week, Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) MP Shanakiyan Rasamanickam issued a call for the immediate establishment of an international investigation mechanism into human rights violations in Sri Lanka, warning that domestic structures were neither impartial nor capable of delivering justice.
The White House has recommended ending US funding for nearly two dozen programmes that support war crimes investigations and accountability efforts globally, including in Sri Lanka, according to a report in Reuters last month.
