Sri Lanka’s Attorney General has announced that it will not proceed with charges against Sri Lankan Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda over the abduction and disappearance of 11 youths including Tamils.

The decision follows the President’s Commission on “Political Victimisation” call for pardoning 25 former military officials who have been implicated in serious human rights violations as well as the prosecution of those involved in these investigations.

Image courtesy of Action Contre la Faim (ACF) 

Today, French NGO, Action Contre la Faim (ACF) called for those responsible for the massacre of 17 aid workers to be prosecuted as "justice has still not been served" despite 15 years passing since their murder.  

An online rally, organised by the Tamil Refugee Council, against the Australian government’s handling of Tamil asylum seekers took place in Sydney on Monday. 

Speaking to the media, Government spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella maintained that Sri Lanka does not legally recognise the rights of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) community.

“As far as the Constitution of Sri Lanka goes it is not permitted. But there are discussions ongoing. This subject has been discussed over and over again. But right now it is not legalized,” he said. He further claimed that Sri Lanka’s police did not prosecute any LGBT activities.

ICRA Lanka, a credit rating agency and a subsidiary of Moody's Investors Service, has downgraded its GDP growth projection for Sri Lanka to 3.4% and for state revenue to weaken to 9.1% of the GDP as the country struggles in response to a third wave of the pandemic.

The report further warns that Sri Lanka’s trade would continue to deteriorate despite import restrictions due to rising commodity prices. The ICRA notes:

The Mannar Chancellors’ and Professors’ Union organised a protest in the district earlier yesterday demanding higher wages and an end to militarisation of free education through the Kotelawala National Defence University (KNDU) Bill. 

Former Sri Lankan Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, has filed a petition seeking to void the recommendations made against him by the President’s Commission on Political Victimisation.

^{File photograph: Eelam refugees in Tamil Nadu, 2012. Courtesy EC/ECHO Arjun Claire}

The Indian central government has appealed to the Madras High Court challenging the June 17, 2019 order which stated that the plea of 65 Eelam Tamils seeking Indian citizenship, some of whom are descendants of Malayaga Tamils, should be considered. 

German Tamils held a protest at Frankfurt Airport today to stop the deportation of torture survivor and asylum seeker Sasi K, after he was taken into immigration detention on Friday. 

The flight which was set to deport Sasi K. has been temporarily delayed by 1.5 hours. 

More than 20,000 Tamil war-affected families in Jaffna have been left out of a Sri Lankan government run housing scheme due to “allegations of administrative flaws” and “political influence”, according to the Sunday Times.

The families are from various Divisional Secretariats from across Jaffna, which has been under Sri Lankan military occupation since 1995, with the highest number of displaced families from Chavakachcheri, Tellipalai and Kopay.