• 13th Amendment must be repealed demands Buddhist monastery

    Jun 06
    The Sri Lankan government should abolish the 13th Amendment, said, a committee member of one of the two major Buddhist monasteries, the Asgiriya Chapter, reports Ceylon Today.
  • Internationally guaranteed justice and political solution needed in Sri Lanka says GTF
    Work towards representing the Tamil community would not stop until there are international guarantees that the root causes of the conflict in Sri Lanka were addressed, concluded the spokesman of the Global Tamil Forum in a statement to The Island.
  • Court case of disappeared postponed again

    A court case regarding the disappearance of Ezhilan, the missing husband TNA councillor Ananthy Sasitharan, and 5 other men who surrendered to the Sri Lankan Army, has been postponed yet again after the government lawyer had failed to appear at the session.

  • Army ‘discovers’ Buddhist archaeological site in North

  • JVP slams Rajapaksa for releasing Indian fishermen

    The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) has condemned the release of Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan government at their central committee meeting this week, reported Colombo Gazette.

  • Over 18,000 cases submitted for disappearances commission

    A much criticised Sri Lankan government commission into disappearances has received over 18,000 submissions regarding missing people, in just three hearings across the North-East of the island.

  • Student Uprising Day marked by Tamil Eelam FA in Sweden

    The death of Pon Sivakumaran, marked as Student Uprising Day, was commemorated in Sweden by the members of the Tamil Eelam Football Association.

    The team was attending celebrations of the Swedish National Day, where the Global Tamil Youth League hosted an exhibition, bringing awareness about the ongoing genocide in Sri Lanka.
  • Sexual Violence in Conflict: Sri Lanka - long history of rape by state security forces
    Next week, the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict is due to take place in London, co-hosted by the UK's Foreign Secretary, William Hague and the Special Envoy for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Angelina Jolie.

    In the run up to the ESVC summit, we revisit the mounting evidence which documents the widespread, systematic and on-going use of sexual violence     by Sri Lanka's military against Tamils, that occurs with absolute impunity.

    See our full feature: 'Sexual Violence in Conflict: Sri Lanka'

    Krishanthy Kumaraswamy,
    18y, gang raped and killed by soldiers on     7 August 1996
     

    The use of rape and sexual violence by Sri Lankan armed forces against Tamils, far from being a feature of the last stages of the armed conflict, has been prominent through out the thirty year period of armed conflict, as well previously.

    Cases reported before 2009, include the rape of Tamil civilians in the North-East, paramilitary run prostitution rackets in camps and the use of sexual violence as torture in military-run detention facilities.

    The incidence of rape by security forces has always remained vastly under reported. In 1996, Amnesty International, in its report, 'Sri Lanka: Wavering Commitment to Human Rights', noted:
    “Amnesty International has documented several cases of rape by members of the security forces. Because many women are reluctant to give testimony about their treatment by the security forces, Amnesty International believes that these testimonies represent only a fraction of a widespread pattern of human rights violations. In those cases reported to Amnesty International, the authorities took some initial action against the alleged perpetrators. However, the organization does not know of any member of the security forces who has been brought to justice on charges of rape.”

  • Remembering Sivakumaran 40 years on

    Four decades on, the sacrifice of Ponnuthurai Sivakumaran on 5th June 1974- the first Tamil student to take his own life in the Tamil struggle against oppression by the Sri Lankan state - remains as relevant now as ever before.

    In 1974, years of discrimination and oppression of the Tamil nation reached a new stage when the World Tamil Research Conference of 1974, an acclaimed event that appreciated and furthered Tamil culture, was marred by the brutality of Sri Lankan security forces. The Sri Lankan state was angered after organisers defied Sri Lankan government calls to hold the event in Colombo, and held it in Jaffna between the 3rd - 6th January instead. The violence unleashed by the state’s forces at the event, left nine people dead.

  • Sápmi defeats Tamil Eelam in closely contested match


    The Tamil Eelam football team managed to net their first goals of the 2014 World Football Cup tournament, but succumbed to a 4-2 defeat to hosts Sápmi.

    A minute of silence was held before the match, in remembrance of the death of Pon Sivakumaran 40 years ago, while he was detained by Sri Lankan security sources.

    Taking on the host nation in a placement match this morning, the Leopards came in searching for their first goal of the tournament. The highly rated Sápmi team, which has the distinction of having had former Norwegian internationals play on their squad , were clear favourites and were always going to be tough to score against.
  • Families of the disappeared protest in Mullaitivu
    Photographs @GGPonnambalam
  • Jayalalithaa's use of the word genocide 'very wrong' says SL Cabinet
    Sri Lanka's Cabinet spokesperson, Keheliya Rambukwella condemned the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa's use of the word 'genocide' to describe the end of the armed conflict in Sri Lanka as "very wrong", reports ColomboPage.

    "She has used the word genocide. This is very wrong. We believe that it is creating a wrong image of us in the democratic world," Minister Rambukwella told a press briefing today, stating that Sri Lanka will be making a formal objection to New Delhi over her remark.

    "It is very much in keeping with the character of this politician to make wild allegations against Sri Lanka," he added.

  • Sri Lanka releases Tamil Nadu fishermen amidst condemnation from Jayalalithaa
    The 29 Tamil Nadu fishermen, arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy last week, were released today, amidst strong condemnation from Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, reports ColomboPage.

    In a letter to the Indian Prime Minister, Jayalalithaa called for a "strong and robust" response.
  • Struggling farmers in North neglected by state - TNA MP

    The Sri Lankan government is not providing help for disadvantaged farmers in the North, TNA MP Selvam Adaikalanathan said in Parliament on Tuesday.

    In addition to being affected by natural disasters, farmers in the North face several difficulties, including loan burdens and inflated resource costs.

  • No case for closing Achuveli and Thikkam army camps - SL army

    An army camp in Achuveli will not be closed under any circumstances, due to its importance in preventing the return of the LTTE, military spokesperson Ruwan Wanigasooriya told press on Thursday.

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