• Body of male found in Vavuniya pond

    May 26

    A young male was discovered dead in a Vavuniya pond this morning, reported Uthayan.

    Investigations are being carried out by Vavuniya police.

  • Modi tells Rajapaksa to go 'beyond' 13th Amendment
    Newly sworn-in Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called on the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa to do more to 'meet aspirations' of the Tamils and to go 'beyond' the 13th Amendment, during a meeting in New Delhi on Tuesday.

    Indian Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh told reporters at a press conference, 
    "In his meeting with the Sri Lankan  president, the Prime Minister noted that India valued its relations with the country. He requested the Sri Lankan Government to expedite the process of national reconciliation in a manner that meets the aspirations of the Tamil community for a life of equality, justice, peace and dignity in a united Sri Lanka."
    She went on to quote Prime Minister Modi telling Rajapaksa,
    "Early and full implementation of the 13th Amendment and going beyond would contribute to this process."
  • Jayalalithaa to boycott Modi's swearing-in ceremony
    09:59 BST

    The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, is to boycott the swearing in ceremony of the Prime Minister designate, Narendra Modi, due to take place later today, in protest against the presence of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Indian newspapers report. (See NDTV, Times of India, and The Hindu).

    According to the papers, she will not be sending a party representative of her party, AIADMK either.

    Jayalalithaa's counterparts in     Karnataka and Kerala, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, and Chief Minister Oommen Chandy respectively, will also be absent citing prior engagements, the Deccan Chronicle reported.

  • Moviestar Rajinikanth will not attend Modi's swearing-in ceremony - NDTV
    The widely popular moviestar, Rajinikanth will not be attending Narendra Modi's swearing in ceremony, reports NDTV.

    Whilst the actor said he will be on a film set in Hyderabad, his decision comes amidst increasing criticism and protests over the presence of the Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa at the ceremony.

    In the run up to the election, Mr Modi met with Rajinikanth in his home in Chennai.

  • Vaiko protests Rajapaksa's visit, detained
    10:30 BST

    Photographs @MDMKIW

    The leader of the MDMK, Vaiko, was detained after holding a black flag protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, against the visit of Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa at the swearing-in ceremony of Narendra Modi, reports PTI.

    Addressing fellow protesters today, Vaiko said Rajapaksa's presence would "pollute the sanctity" of the swearing-in ceremony. Vaiko was subsequently detained for 'defying prohibitory orders'.


  • In Memoriam - Songs from the Purananuru - Song 112
    During this month of May, as Tamils remember their loved ones that were killed as the armed conflict ended in 2009, we publish selected Poems from the classical Tamil anthology, the Purananuru (the 400 Puram poems) as we have done in previous years.

    Song 112 - Pari’s daughters sing (on the death of Pari)
    Tinai - Potuviyal (General heroism)
  • Profiles of May 2009: Theeban

    The following account is written by a second generation Tamil from London who was involved in organising the prolonged protest on Parliament Square in Westminster during April and May 2009, the bloody end of Sri Lanka's armed conflict. Theeban (not his real name), then in his early twenties, was studying at a London university. Names have been changed in order to protect the identity of individuals not already within the public domain.

    I went into university that Sunday morning, April 5th 2009, for what was supposed to be the first day of revision for my finals a month or so later, and read the news. The last areas held by the LTTE that weren’t in a safe zone had been captured by the Sri Lankan military and the Tamil fighters were now trapped in the safe zone, alongside the civilians.

    I knew then I wasn’t going to get any revision done. I think a lot of people at the time, including myself, were just waiting for the moment the LTTE would launch a counter-offensive. I guess, that’s when I first realised that there’s not going to be the miraculous military recovery as we had expected.

  • Army conducts workshop for Kilinochchi schoolchildren
    The Sri Lankan Army held a workshop for schoolchildren in Kilinochchi on Saturday, to “enlighten students” on telecommunication, according to their website.

    Troops from the 9 Sri Lanka Signal Corps organised the event, which was attended by senior military commanders, including Major General Sudantha Ranasinghe, Commander of the Sri Lankan Security Forces in Kilinochchi.


    Schoolchildren stand as the Major General enters the venue...

    ... and takes his seat alongside other senior military figures at the front of the hall.

  • Rajapaksa announces social media to come under government watch
    Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa declared that social media on the island is to come under closer scrutiny from the government, whilst speaking in Shangai last week.

    Rajapaksa had told the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) that,
  • Rajapaksa orders release Indian fishermen ahead of controversial visit
    The Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has ordered the release of Indian fishermen detained within Sri Lankan jails, ahead of his attendance at the swearing in ceremony of the Indian Prime Minister designate, Narendra Modi.

    "As a goodwill measure on the occasion of @narendramodi's swearing-in, President instructs officials to release Indian fishermen in custody," Rajapaksa's official twitter account tweeted this morning.

    According to the Indian news channel, NDTV, the move is being seen as an attempt to counter the controversy and back lash in Tamil Nadu over Rajapaksa's invitation.

    Welcoming the decision, Mr. Modi later tweeted: "I welcome the step by Sri Lanka & Pakistan to release our fishermen. I welcome our fishermen brothers back home!"

  • Namal Rajapaksa oversees Sinhala settlements in Vavuniya
    The President's son, Namal Rajapaksa, was in Vavuniya today, overseeing the development of recently built Sinhala settlements.

    Sinhalese name board of Namalgama village in Vavuniya

    The state's settlement of 2500 Sinhala families from the island's South into Vavuniya, a region within the Tamil areas of the North and East of the island, began in February last year and was inaugurated by Namal Rajapaksa.


  • TNA calls on Modi to act on injustices faced by Tamils in North-East
    The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) called on India's Prime Minister designate Narendra Modi to take action against the continuing injustices faced by Tamils in the North-East, in a letter today, addressed to Mr. Modi.

    Highlighting the Sri Lankan government's on-going crimes against the Tamil people, including forced displacement, state sponsored resettlement of Sinhala families into the North-East, destruction of religious and cultural sites, impeding the functioning of the Northern Provincial Council, militarisation of the North-East, and the lack of equality before the law afforded to Tamils, Mr. Sampanthan said     "these actions of the Sri Lankan government undermine all efforts towards reconciliation, permanent peace and harmony, and further create an environment that could promote hostility".

    He added: "These actions of the Sri Lankan government are clearly indicative of a lack of genuine commitment on the part of the Sri Lankan government to evolve an acceptable political solution."

  • Congress sides with Tamil Nadu over Modi's Rajapaksa invite
    The Indian National Congress has stated that the sentiments of the people of Tamil Nadu should be taken care of, over the increasingly controversial issue of Indian Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi inviting Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa to his swearing-in ceremony later this month.
  • Sri Lanka's proscriptions do not constrain your freedoms, Australian govt tells diaspora groups
    The Australian government reassured Tamil diaspora groups based in the country that Sri Lanka's listings of Tamil diaspora groups as terrorists "do not constrain the freedom of these groups and individuals to express their views and to operate in the Australia in accordance with Australian law" and criticised the move as not conducive towards reconciliation.

    "I can assure you the Australian government strongly supports the right to freedom of expression and we do not consider targeting these Tamil diaspora organisations and individuals is conducive to reconciliation in Sri Lanka," Australia's Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Senator Brett Mason said in a letter addressed to one of the groups proscribed, Australian Tamil Congress (ATC).

    Noting also the proscription of the Tamil Youth Organisation and individuals residing in Australia, Senator Mason, went on to say:
    "Senior Australian officials have directly registered with the Sri Lankan government Australia's concerns on this issue and sought clarification from Sri Lankan counterparts, including on practical implications of the listings."

  • TNA 'unequivocally condemns' proscription of Tamil diaspora groups
    The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) said it ‘unequivocally condemns’ the Sri Lankan government's proscription of several Tamil diaspora groups as terrorist organisations, in a statement signed by party leader, R. Sampanthan.
    “We note with serious concern that this regressive step taken by the government is consistent with many other measures that it continues to take in the North and the East that are against the spirit of reconciliation. These measures include the military occupation of private lands, and the arbitrary arrest, detention and ‘rehabilitation’ of Tamil youth under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA),” the TNA said.
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