• War-period pass system reintroduced for Tamil fishermen

    Apr 02

    The system requiring Tamil fishermen in the north to acquire passes from military personal before setting out to sea will be reintroduced, reported the Uthayan.

  • Proscription of diaspora orgs is to demoralise Tamils in homeland - K. Guruparan
    Sharing the concerns raised by Tamil diaspora activists over the Sri Lankan state's proscription of 15 Tamil diaspora organisations, Kumaravadivel Guruparan, a lecturer of law at the University of Jaffna, and member of the Tamil Civil Society Forum, told Tamil Guardian, "the overarching goal was to demoralise Tamils in the homeland, given that the diaspora is considered by Tamils in the homeland as a source of strength."

    Stating that the most immediate goal was to delegitimise the involvement of Tamil diaspora organisations in OHCHR's remote inquiry however, Mr. Guruparan said, "this proscription will make it difficult for the OHCHR to engage with these organisations". 

  • Diaspora groups reject SL ban, vow to continue struggle
    07:12 GMT, updated 23:01 GMT (TGTE, TYO)

    Tamil diaspora groups, accused of being "LTTE fronts" by the Sri Lankan government and due to be proscribed, condemned the move as an attempt to criminalise and terrorise Tamils overseas, and vowed to continue to struggle for the Tamil people's liberation from Sri Lankan state repression.

    Speaking to Tamil Guardian, representatives of the Australian Tamil Congress (ATC), Canadian Tamil Congress, National Council of Canadian Tamils, Tamil Coordinating Committee UK, British Tamils Forum, and the Global Tamil Forum, said the move was an attempt to silence Tamil voices outside the island, and force the homeland to distance itself from the diaspora, for fear of reprisal.

  • Sri Lanka aims to cut us off from the diaspora - TNA's Shivajilingham
    The TNA member and Northern Provincial Council member M.K. Shivajilingham condemned the Sri Lankan government's move to proscribe 15 Tamil diaspora organisations as a deliberate attempt to divide the diaspora and the homeland.

    "The Sri Lankan government is trying to cut us off from the diaspora, especially trying to stop political parties, such as the TNA and the TNPF, from engaging with diaspora organisations," Mr. Shivajilingham told the Tamil Guardian.
  • Australia gives patrol vessel to SL Navy to stop asylum seekers
    The Australian government today, delivered a patrol vessel to help Sri Lanka to stop people from leaving the North-East to seek asylum in Australia.

    A spokesman from the Australian Navy, said,
    “The fully furbished Australian Bay-class patrol vessel will substantially augment the SLN’s capacity as ti is able to cover a large area of Indian Ocean and serve Sri Lanka’s Search and Rescue Area more effectively. The event symbolises the commitment of key partners in enhancing maritime security in the region and the bilateral cooperation that exists between the two governments on combating people smuggling.”
  • Diaspora ban worsens climate for journalists, NGOs and others working with Tamil groups, says Amnesty
    Amnesty International’s representative to the United Nations in Geneva, Peter Splinter, stressed that Sri Lanka’s latest legislation to ban several diaspora organisations, would worsen the climate for NGO staff, journalists and others interacting with Tamil groups.

    Expressing concern over the likely use of the Sri Lankan Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), to enforce the new legislation, Mr. Splinter said to CNN,
    “The consequence of that is that anyone dealing with those organisations will be subject to accusations of cooperating with terrorism—that brings them within the parameters of a rather draconian piece of legislation, the Prevention of Terrorism Act.”
  • India ‘betrayed Tamils’ say Tamil Nadu students

    Students in Chennai held a protest this weekend, criticising India for their stance on Sri Lanka and calling for economic sanctions to be put in place.

    Organised by the Tamil Youth and Students Federation, over 150 people gathered in Chennai, calling on India to impose economic sanctions on Sri Lanka.

  • APPGT deplores diaspora ban, calls on international community to condemn Sri Lanka's actions
    The All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils (APPGT), a cross-party group of parliamentarians said it deplored the Sri Lankan government’s proscription of Tamil diaspora groups, in a statement issued Wednesday, and called on the international community to condemn the Sri Lankan government’s attempt “to restrict the Human Rights of people and the organisations that they wish to proscribe.”

  • Ban Ki-moon calls on Sri Lanka to cooperate with OHCHR

    UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called on Sri Lanka to “constructively engage and cooperate” with the Office of the High Commissioner on the implementation of the resolution passed by the Human Rights Council last week.

    Speaking at the daily briefing of the UN, deputy spokesperson for the Secretary General Farhan Haq said that Ban Ki-moon welcomes the “determination” shown by High Commissioner Navi Pillay to advance accountability.

  • Buddhist monks charged with attacking church acquitted

    The general secretary of the Bodu Bala Sena, a Buddhist organisation thought to be close to Defence Secretary gotabhaya Rajapaksa, has been acquitted of attacking a church in 2008.

  • Supporting separatism is supporting terrorist ideology - Sri Lanka's HC to Australia
    Defending the Sri Lankan government's proscription of 15 Tamil diaspora organisations, Sri Lanka's High commissioner to Australia, Thisara Samarasinghe, said that "any organisation that acknowledges separatism or do not reject separatism in Sri Lanka is supporting terrorist ideology.”

    Speaking to SBS Australia, Samarasinghe said,
    “I’m not here to share my information with you, that is important. And certain action which we have shared with relevant authorities is there to justify that Sri Lankan government has enough credible evidence to suggest that,” 

  • Diaspora orgs proscription should not be used to stifle free speech and legitimate criticism, UK tells Sri Lanka
    The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has raised the proscription of Tamil diaspora organisations with the Sri Lankan government, "making clear that proscription should not be used to prevent or stifle free speech and legitimate criticism", a spokesperson for the FCO told Tamil Guardian today.

    Highlighting the FCO's good relations with Tamil diaspora organisations, the spokesperson confirmed that the UK would continue this engagement.

    "The UK government has good relations with a wide range of NGOs and civil society organisations with an interest in Sri Lanka including the Global Tamil Forum and British Tamils Forum both of whom publicly state that they work through democratic means," he said, adding,     "the UK will continue to engage with organisations focused on achieving a lasting and equitable peace in Sri Lanka through non-violent means."

  • UN resolution the first step on rocky path to accountability

    The resolution adopted in the UN Human Rights council is the first step in the rocky path towards accountability, writes the exiled Tamil journalist, J.S. Tissainayagam in the Asian Correspondent on Monday. Full text of his opinion reproduced below.

    The Sri Lanka resolution adopted by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Thursday establishes an international investigation mechanism to probe alleged war crimes of the past as well as monitor ongoing human rights violations in the country. While politicians worldwide spoke of the passing of the resolution in terms of victory and defeat, for those working for justice and accountability in the country it was a day of sober reflection on the work ahead. While the resolution partly fulfils the demand for justice and accountability, its weaknesses could also be a cause for serious setbacks.

  • Another step in a long and arduous path towards justice

    The Tamil Students Initiative (TSI) recognises the resolution passed by the United Nations Human Rights Council as a small but important step in the ongoing struggle for justice for the Tamil people in Sri Lanka.

  • India's abstention is a betrayal to Tamils - Bishop of Mannar

    India's decision to abstain from voting on the resolution at the UN Human Rights Council last week was a betrayal said the Bishop of Mannar, Rayappu Joseph, reports Uthayan.

    Accusing the Indian government of wanting to avoid unearthing their own involvement and complicity in the Sri Lankan government's genocide of the Tamil people, the Bishop called on India to work with the UN to help seek justice for the Tamils.

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