A local United Nations official in Sri Lanka reportedly “laughed at” concerns expressed by Human Rights Watch over the invitation of Sri Lankan prime minister and accused war criminal as the ‘Chief Guest’ for an event last week, a move the group had called a "slap in the face for victims of human rights abuses and war crimes”.

Sri Lanka will continue to benefit from the GSP+ trade preferences from the European Union (EU) despite being in breach of many conventions. 

"The EU GSP+ scheme will be available for a period ahead until there is reclassification," Thorsten Bargfrede, the Deputy Head of the EU Delegation, reportedly said at a webinar titled 'GSP+ for Enhanced Market Access'. 

Sri Lankan MPs have signed a petition urging the President to pardon former MP, Duminda Silva, who is currently serving a sentence for murder. 

Sri Lankan police arrested 15 Tamil devotees last week, including a priest, who were worshipping at a temple in Puliyankulam, Vavuniya.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called featuring Sri

The Sri Lankan prime minister’s office has denied a meeting was scheduled to take place with visiting US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, contradicting a US State Department official’s comments just days earlier.

A large-scale excavation to recover weapons belonging to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Vavuniya turned up only a crowbar, used to crack coconuts, and an empty beer can.

21 containers filled with up to 260 tonnes of waste, initially shipped to Sri Lanka, were returned to England on last month after Sri Lankan officials claimed they were brought onto the island in violation of international laws governing the shipping of hazardous material.

Commenting on the passage of Sri Lanka’s 20^th Amendment (20A) to the constitution, the Deccan Herald writes that Sri Lanka has “taken a decisive step towards becoming a constitutional autocracy”.

As we mark 25 years since the Jaffna exodus, which led to over half a million Tamil men, women and children fleeing their homes, we look back at press coverage from the time.

Jaffna has been considered the cultural capital of Eelam Tamils for centuries, as well as being the crucible of the Tamil liberation movement and the armed struggle against Sri Lankan state operation which began in the 1970s following non-violent political campaigns.

On the day 25 years ago, over half a million Tamil men, women and children fled their homes in Jaffna as the Sri Lankan military launched a military offensive to capture the peninsula, under the leadership of then president Chandrika Kumaratunga.

The exodus was a colossal human tragedy, unprecedented in its proportions. Heeding the appeal of the LTTE cadres and realising the imminent danger to their lives from the invading enemy troops, the entire population of Valigamam - more than five hundred thousand people - stepped out onto the roads carrying their bare essentials and dragging along their children, the elderly and the sick. Everyone knew they would be safe if they could just crossover the Navatkuli bridge into Kaithaddy, Thenmarachchi. This realisation led to a headlong rush to cross the bridge before the enemy blocked the evacuation of the Jaffna population. 

The roads leading to Chavakachcheri were jam-packed with masses of desperate, frightened people. Bicycles - the only mode of transport - became a burden as the movement of the multitude ground to a halt with the cramming and congestion of people. The overcrowded processions of people extended for miles and it took several hours to move a few hundred yards. Adding to the tragedy, it started to rain. Teardrops from the weeping sky provided only a tiny relief to the many thirsty, dehydrated mouths. children cried with the agony of starvation as their parents watched helplessly. The elderly stumbled along the roads, often stopping to draw breath. Deprived of food and water and exposed to the weather, the sick became sicker. strained and stressed by the emotional and physical upheaval of the event, a pregnant woman lay down on the side of the road to deliver her baby, unattended in open air. Despite the physical hardships suffered by the people there was a sense of determination and urgency to escape from the clutches of an unpredictable and dangerous enemy who was nearing the gates to Jaffna.