The British authorities plan to deport a three year old autistic child born in the UK, along with his Tamil parents and siblings who are all suffering mental health problems on the 26^th of September 2013.

Commenting on the recent Northern Provincial elections, the United States Embassy in Colombo reiterated the need for the abolishment of violence and intimidation to ensure effective administration.

In a statement released today, the British Tamils Forum (BTF), outlined the need of the international community to work with the Tamil People in the North-East to safeguard their human, political and cultural rights.

Commenting on the resolve of the Tamil people the statement read,

“The Tamil people’s overwhelming support for Tamil rule in the election is made all the more remarkable by the widespread violence, intimidation and misinformation they faced in the run-up to and on the day of the election. The fact that Sri Lanka’s ruling alliance received such a drubbing in the election – despite the threats and bribes it offered the Tamil people – is testament to the courage and overwhelming conviction of the Tamil people. Furthermore, the shocking reports of intimidation during this election – often in full view of election monitors and the media – should serve as a reminder to the global Tamil community that it is their duty to speak up and tell the world about the injustices and persecution faced by their kin in the island of Sri Lanka.”

“Given the increasingly perilous position of the Tamil people in Northern and Eastern Sri Lanka, it is more important than ever that the international community works with the Tamil people, and the Tamil- mandated TNA, to safeguard their human, political and cultural rights – including their right to self- determination – and to protect them from the genocide perpetrated by the Sri Lankan state. British Tamils Forum stands shoulder to shoulder with any individual or organisation that works towards these aims.”

“Canada is deeply concerned by continuing reports of violence against electoral candidates and an election observer in the lead-up to the three provincial council elections that will take place in Sri Lanka on September 21.

“Such acts of intimidation are completely unacceptable, and the perpetrators of these crimes must be brought to justice.

The highly controversial Northern-Provincial Elections took place today, after a week that saw the attack of an electoral candidate’s residence, the death of a TNA campaigner and several other draconian measures .

Sources suggest that over 60% of eligible voters took part in all districts of the Northern Province. The district of Jaffna had the lowest turn-out of 60%.

The past week saw citizens of the North subject to heightening intimidation and misinformation.

Less than two days before the Northern Provincial Council election, one of the most vocal and outspoken candidates of the Tamil National Alliance’s electoral campaign Ananthi Sasitharan narrowly escaped an attack at her home.

Consequently, an election monitor, who rushed to the scene after receiving a call from Ananthi, was brutally attacked.

Full Coverage: SL army attack Ananthy Sasitharan's home   (20 September 2013)

Fake prints of the Uthayan newspaper were distributed around the Northern Province, exhibited fictitious calls from the TNA that urged voters to boycott the elections. The forged paper went as far as alleging that TNA candidate, Ananthi Sasitharan, had pledged a new alliance to the ruling party, the UPFA.

Copy of fake Uthayan Newspaper- Courtesy www.Seithy.com

Sugash Kanagaratnam, an election monitor with the Colombo based monitoring group, People's Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL), made a statement this morning, regarding the incident last night when the Sri Lankan army and paramilitary beseiged the house of the TNA candidate and activist, Ananthy Sasitharan, and attacked TNA supporters and election monitoring staff who had gathered there.

Twenty-eight old Kanagaratnam, who is currently admitted Jaffna Teaching Hospital, where he is receiving treatment for his injuries, is also an Attorney-at-Law.

Speaking this morning from his hospital bed, Kanagaratnam said:

"I received a call from one of Ananthy Sasitharan's (TNA Candidate for Northern Provincial Council and Convenor of the Disappeared families Forum) staff late in the night on the 19th of Sepetmber 2013 seeking to make a complaint that her house was being surrounded by Sri Lankan Army and paramilitary personnel.

I left with a friend to Ananthy's house in Tholpuram, Sulipuram and found out that Ananthy had been moved to a different place because of the threat of violence.

At around 12.40 about 12-15 army personnel in uniform and two in civil [uniform] entered Ananthy's house with weapons. They broke open the doors and got about five of us to come out of the house and forced us to kneel down in a nearby field used for banana cultivation. The army personnel pointed guns from the behind and even loaded them.

I instantly remembered the scenes from the Channel 4 'Killing Fields' documentary and thought that we all were going to be murdered. They wanted to give us the worst possible fear of death.

For some reason they dropped that idea and started assaulting us. All this while I clearly told them in very simple English that I was a lawyer doing election work for a local election monitoring group (PAFFREL).

They kept beating us repeatedly with wooden poles saying "You all speak Tamil Nationalism? You all want the Northern Provincial Council. Take this" in broken Tamil.