Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

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Residents of Kepapilavu in Mullaitivu District launched a hunger strike on Wednesday, demanding the release of 171 acres of ancestral land that remain under the occupation of the Sri Lankan military more than 17 years after the end of the armed conflict. The protest was held outside the Sri Lanka Army's 59 Division headquarters, where demonstrators reiterated their longstanding demand for…

Rajapaksa son questioned over Rs. 19 million investment probe

Picture : AdaDerana 

Rohitha Rajapaksa, the son of former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa, was questioned for nearly six hours by the Central Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) on Thursday as part of an investigation into the source of funds allegedly used to invest Rs. 19 million in two private companies.

Three thousand years deep - Evidence uncovers Velanai's ancient seafarers

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.

Rights group flags 184 Sri Lankan prison deaths to visiting UN delegation

The Committee for Protecting Rights of Prisoners has formally raised concerns with a visiting United Nations delegation over custodial deaths, prison overcrowding, alleged torture and deteriorating detention conditions in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lankan army moves to cement occupation of farm in Valikamam

The Sri Lankan military has erected a signboard designating a military-run agricultural farm on privately owned land inside the Valikamam North High Security Zone (HSZ), entrenching its presence even as landowners campaign for the return of their property.

Sri Lanka Muslim Congress leader Hakeem rejects Katchatheevu handover calls in Tamil Nadu

Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) leader and Member of Parliament Rauff Hakeem has said that the sovereignty of Katchatheevu is already settled under international law and bilateral agreements, warning that attempts to reopen the issue are not a practical solution to the long-running dispute between fishermen on both sides of the Palk Strait.

Vijay looks back on Eelam solidarity, but not forward

The Tamil Nadu chief minister, Vijay, made a brief reference to Eelam Tamils during a speech in the state legislative assembly on Tuesday, recalling his participation in a 2008 hunger strike in support of Tamils during the final stages of the armed conflict, in remarks that looked back to his own activism rather than to the realities facing Tamils in the North-East today.

Chemmani mass grave excavations halted again at 412 remains

Excavation work at the Chemmani mass grave, the largest uncovered on the island, has once again been temporarily halted, with officials planning to resume around 15 July.

Chemmani toll rises to 412, but the work of identifying the dead has not begun

Thirteen more skeletal remains were exhumed from the Chemmani mass grave on Monday and a further seven newly identified, bringing the total identified at the site to 412, of which 390 have now been exhumed, as the excavation, the largest at any mass grave on the island, entered its 31st day.

US courts Colombo on trade and the Indian Ocean

The United States Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, S. Paul Kapur, met the Sri Lankan president Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the Presidential Secretariat during a three-day visit to the island, in talks centred on trade, investment and security cooperation.

‘Before we too pass away’ - Tamil families appeal to UN over Chemmani mass graves

The Association for Relatives of the Enforced Disappeared in the North-East (ARED) has appealed to the United Nations to ensure an international investigation into enforced disappearances and mass graves across the Tamil homeland, including the ongoing excavations at Chemmani, where more than 380 human skeletal remains have been uncovered.