Human rights violations continue to occur in the Tamil North-East with militarisation by Sri Lankan troops at its peak said co-spokesperson of the Tamil Civil Society Forum Father Elil Rajendram.

In an interview with Taylor Dibbert, Father Rajendram said that since Sri Lanka's new government came into power in January 2015, “Tamils speak about the “non-transition transition” while the Sinhalese people residing in the Sinhala-majority South claim it is a real transition”.

“Why I state that it is a non-transition transition is because militarization is at its peak,” he said.

“Abductions, arbitrary arrests and sexual violence perpetrated by the military have not decreased. Military involvement in the North and East is still strong. Most military camps have become permanent and Sinhala colonization is actually on the rise. Buddhist statues continue to be built in these locations.”

“However, as most human rights activists have noted, more space for public dissent is available now,” the spokesperson added.

Sri Lankan troops oversaw two charitable ceremonies last week, where school items were donated to Tamil children in the Kondavil region in Jaffna.

Sri Lanka's 551 Brigade troops were garlanded by Tamil schoolchildren from the Alvai Ambal Vidyalaya, as they organised a ceremony overseeing donations from the 'Old Anandians group of Southern Province' last Friday.

The Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a statement on Saturday commemorating the anniversary of Black July alongside "Canadians of Tamil descent" and the "Tamil community around the world".

Hundreds of Tamil Canadians gathered in Toronto on Saturday to commemorate thirty-three years since the Black July pogrom, where thousands of Tamils were massacred by Sinhala mobs.

An 8 year old boy has been found dead in a well in Vavuniya on Friday, reports Hiru News.

Whilst the human rights situation in Sri Lanka has improved, “much remains to be done” said the United Kingdom in a country update report, highlighting the challenges faced in the Tamil North-East.

In its report the UK highlighted that “much remains to be done for Sri Lanka to fulfil the commitments made in Resolution 30/1 at the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) in October 2015”.

“Challenges still remain, particularly in the north and the east,” continued the report.

Acknowledging Sri Lankan government announcements on the release of land occupied by the military, it went on to state “the UK has consistently called for land releases and demilitarisation of the north to be accelerated”.