Students of Jaffna University have been told to go home after notices were posted on the premises, saying that it will be closed until December 2, according to Colombo Gazette.
Speaking to Channel 4 News, Tamil torture victims recalled their experience at the hands of the Sri Lankan state and warned against sending Tamils back to the island.
Commenting on British Prime Minister David Cameron’s decision to attend CHOGM, one of the men, who could not be identified for security reasons said,
As part of an ‘Engage Sri Lanka’ campaign, the Sri Lankan government will hand out a 222 page book to brief journalists attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in Colombo.
The Channel 4 News Editor Ben de Pear,today provided a detailed response to Sri Lanka’s ‘Corrupted Journalism’ booklet, which looked to discredit the work of Channel 4 News.
In a statement released after watching the documentary No Fire Zone, British Premier, David Cameron reiterated the need for an independent investigation into the killing of Tamil civilians.
Tamil protestor Parameswaran, who has been hunger striking outside Number 10 Downing Street, has continued to call on British Prime Minister David Cameron to boycott the upcoming CHOGM, due to be held in Colombo later this month.
Speaking to the Tamil Guardian Parameswaran said,
"The main aim is to stop Cameron from participating in the CHOGM and call for him to boycott it."
Commenting on British Prime Minister David Cameron's decision to remain steadfast in attending CHOGM, Parameswaran said,
"Even after meeting with Tamil representatives, he has refused to listen to British Tamil voices."
If Number 10 is about to breathe a sigh of relief, they ought to know that their last ditch and very public efforts to engage with British Tamils have fallen far short of their placating intentions. Considering the Tamil community makes up over 100,000 of the British electorate, David Cameron was absolutely right to think he owed us an explanation. It’s just a shame that the explanation was far too little, too late.
Writing in the Tamil Guardian on Thursday, British Premier David Cameron set out his government’s rationale for rejecting the growing calls, both at home and abroad, for him to boycott the Commonwealth leaders’ summit in Sri Lanka next week. Whilst noting the Sri Lankan government’s “poor record on human rights and cruel treatment of the Tamils” – an understatement given the steadily mounting evidence – and the grave “allegations” of war crimes and sexual violence, Mr Cameron’s argument, in sum, is that to secure the “change” he wants to see, “the right thing to do is to engage” with Colombo.
We disagree. In fact, it is precisely Britain’s policy of essentially unconditional engagement that has enabled, and emboldened, President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s regime to thumb its nose at international demands for accountability and justice, and to intensify its repression of the Tamil people.
Britain’s Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Michael Fallon has told the House of Commons that there will be no British business representative at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Sri Lanka.
The Bishop of Mannar, Dr Rayappu Joseph, has called on the international community to boycott the forthcoming Commonwealth summit in Sri Lanka, saying that this would be the best way to send a message to the government.
Writing in the LabourList, Britain's largest weblog that supports the opposition party, Amy Lamé stated that British Prime Minister David Cameron and Foreign Secretary William Hague should cancel their trip to Colombo, for the upcoming CHOGM.
Extracts from the piece are reproduced below. See the full piece here.
"It’s not all cocktails in coconut shells in Sri Lanka. President Mahindra Rajapaksa is personally accused of war crimes. In his effort to finally crush the Tamil Tigers, the 26 year civil war ended with 40,000 dead civilians. 12,000 disappearances, more than any other country bar Iraq. This includes opponents of the government, journalists and activists. In its role as Commonwealth Chair Sri Lanka would be responsible for addressing the human rights of other member states. I could see the irony if it wasn’t so chilling and tragically sad."
"Nick Clegg has promised that during the Commonwealth summit the UK Government will be highlighting the abuses that have taken place, and continue to happen, in Sri Lanka. How? Polite conversation over canapés is not only not good enough, it’s downright shameful.
