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2010-09-28T20:58:00.000-07:00

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2010-09-27T10:39:00.000-07:00

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2010-05-25T14:44:00.000-07:00

Boston Globe: Probe War Crimes in Sri Lanka

2010-05-25T00:17:00.000-07:00

Noting that "outside world has received credible accounts of war crimes perpetrated on a large scale by Sri Lanka security forces as well as by the Tigers," during the military offensives by Colombo in the early months of 2009, Boston Globe, in Monday's editorial said that "President Obama, who has drawn criticism for soft-pedaling human rights concerns in Africa, the Middle East, and elsewhere, should insist that Sri Lanka’s government be held accountable for shelling civilians and hospitals and murdering fighters who surrendered on the battlefield."

Full text of the Boston Globe editiorial follows:

AT THIS time last May, the Sri Lankan government of President Mahinda Rajapaksa declared total victory over the secessionist Tamil Tigers. Since then, the outside world has received credible accounts of war crimes perpetrated on a large scale by Sri Lankan security forces as well as by the Tigers. Human rights groups are now calling on the United Nations to authorize an international investigation of humanitarian law violations in Sri Lanka. President Obama, who has drawn criticism for soft-pedaling human rights concerns in Africa, the Middle East, and elsewhere, should insist that Sri Lanka’s government be held accountable for shelling civilians and hospitals and murdering fighters who surrendered on the battlefield.

The case for an international inquiry is not based solely on an abstract ideal of justice. If there is impunity for the horrors inflicted on civilians in Sri Lanka, other states confronting civil wars or secessionist rebellions will assume there is no price to pay for copying the Sri Lankan blueprint. This is a formula for scorched-earth repression, banning the international press, denying all charges of misconduct, and pretending the killers can conduct a disinterested investigation of their killings.

Sri Lanka needs a peaceful way to move beyond its ethnic tensions. While the country’s Tamil minority has legitimate grievances, the tactics of the Tamil Tigers were often brutal. The Sri Lankan government showed a willingness to take draconian steps to defeat the separatists. Beyond serving the cause of justice, an international war crimes inquiry may also promote a reconciliation between the Rajapaksa government and the minority Tamils of that island nation.

Wife of victim in Channel-4 photo identifies husband

2010-05-24T23:54:00.000-07:00

The 7-year-old daughter of a 40-year-old victim of Vanni War identified her father from the photos released by Channel-4 last week and published in local papers in Jaffna. She and her mother, who lost her husband and a 2-year-old son, are now sheltered in an orphanage in Jaffna. A humanitarian activist who met the mother told TamilNet that the victim in the photo, kept naked inside a bunker by the Sri Lanka Army, was Harikrishanan Thuraichamy. He was reported missing since April 2009, when he went to Ananthapuram area promising his family to recover their belongings. He was a former LTTE member, but had left the movement and living with his family, according to his wife. Although some friends of Mr. Harikrishnan had told her that his body was seen among LTTE fighters killed, she has not seen any evidence and she still believes her husband is alive in SLA custody.
"I saw my husband’s photo revealed by Channel-4 in local dailies. My daughter identified it first. Although some told me earlier that my husband was killed and that they had seen his body among Tiger fighters massacred by the SLA, I could not believe it. I believe he is still alive in Sri Lanka Army custody," the wife who did not wished to be named, explained to a human rights activist.

Thuraichamy Harikrishanan is a native of Koomaangku’lam in Vavuniyaa and a long time member of the LTTE.

He was settled with his wife, two children and his old mother in Puththukkudiyiruppu of Mullaiththeevu district.

During the height of the war, they displaced from Puthukkudiyiruppu to Ananthapuram. One day, their two-year-old son Arutkeeran and 68-year-old mother, Soosaimuthtu Philomina, were killed in an indiscriminate air attack carreid out by the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF).
After the SLAF bombardment, they moved to Valaignarmadam.

One day in April 2009, her husband went to Ananthapuram area promising the family to secure their belongings. But, he was missing since then.

His wife, uprooted from Vanni and unable to cope with the losses, is living in a an orphanage in Jaffna in a physically weak condition, undergoing a psychological trauma.

"My daughter showed me my husband's photo in the newspaper and I believe he is alive and will come back one day," the woman who wishes to remain anonymous said.

Tamil Genocide & War Crime Verbal Evidence Is Revealed On Channel 4

2010-05-20T22:05:00.000-07:00

TAMIL GENOCIDE REPORTS BY CHANNEL 4

2010-05-20T21:59:00.000-07:00

Mass grave discovered in Naachchikkudaa, Mannaar

2010-05-20T21:50:00.001-07:00

De-mining workers of Danish De-mining Group (DDG) have discovered a mass grave in Naachchikkudaa area in Mannaar containing 75 to 100 skeletal remains while engaged in de-mining in the area, informed sources in Mannaar told TamilNet Wednesday. Sri Lanka Army (SLA) had not permitted resettlement in Naachchikkudaa earlier claiming that the area was infested with landmines and a great quantity of explosives lying buried at the height of the war had taken place in Naachchikkudaa. It is suspected that the skeletal remains discovered may have belonged to young men and women, the sources added.
The sources also revealed that the de-miners also found a lot of unexploded landmines and explosives in the area.

Though people have been permitted to resettle in many parts of Mannaar district Naachchikkuda is not one of them.

Even the de-mining activities are carried out under the strict supervision of the SLA in Naachchikkudaa.

SLA authorities have refused to release any information about the mass grave.

Meanwhile, on 08 October 2009, Parliamentary Group Leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), R. Sampathan said in Sri Lanka Parliament that, “The Sri Lanka government fears that, if the international community gets involved in the de-mining, they may stumble on to mass graves of Tamil victims killed during the last stages of fighting between the Sri Lanka military and the Tamil Tigers," accusing the Sri Lankan government of refusing to accept foreign assistance towards the de-mining.

Citing photo evidence, HRW calls for UN war crimes probes

2010-05-20T21:42:00.000-07:00

Citing photographic evidence in its possession of war crimes committed in Sri Lanka in early 2009, Human Rights Watch (HRW) Thursday joined a chorus of calls this week for an independent international investigation into violations of the laws of war during the closing months of Sri Lanka’s campaign against the Tamil Tigers. Calling on the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to promptly establish an international investigation to examine allegations of wartime abuse by both sides to the conflict, HRW said it has examined more than 200 photos taken on the front lines in early 2009 by a soldier from the Sri Lankan Army’s Air Mobile Brigade. The pictures include a series showing a captured long-standing LTTE Political Wing cadre being executed by Sri Lankan troops, probably after torture, as well as the possible rape or mutilation of LTTE women cadres.

The full text of a press statement by HRW follows:

Sri Lanka: New Evidence of Wartime Abuses

Government Inquiry Inadequate; UN Should Establish International Investigation
(New York, May 20, 2010) – New evidence of wartime abuses by Sri Lankan government forces and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during the armed conflicted that ended one year ago demonstrates the need for an independent international investigation into violations of the laws of war, Human Rights Watch said today. Recently Human Rights Watch research gathered photographic evidence and accounts by witnesses of atrocities by both sides during the final months of fighting.
On May 23, 2009, President Mahinda Rajapaksa promised United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon that the government would investigate allegations of laws-of-war violations. One year later, the government has still not undertaken any meaningful investigatory steps, Human Rights Watch said.

Last week, the government created a Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission with a mandate to examine the failure of the 2002 ceasefire and the “sequence of events” thereafter. It is not empowered to investigate allegations of violations of the laws of war such as those documented by Human Rights Watch.

“Yet another feckless commission is a grossly inadequate response to the numerous credible allegations of war crimes,” said Elaine Pearson, acting Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Damning new evidence of abuses shows why the UN should not let Sri Lanka sweep these abuses under the carpet.”

Human Rights Watch called on Secretary-General Ban to promptly establish an international investigation to examine allegations of wartime abuse by both sides to the conflict.

New Evidence of Wartime Violations

Human Rights Watch has examined more than 200 photos taken on the front lines in early 2009 by a soldier from the Sri Lankan Air Mobile Brigade. Among these are a series of five photos showing a man who appears to have been captured by the Sri Lankan army. An independent source identified the man by name and told Human Rights Watch that he was a long-term member of the LTTE’s political wing from Jaffna.

The first two photos show the man alive, with blood on his face and torso, tied to a palm tree. He is surrounded by several men wearing military fatigues, one brandishing a knife close to his face. In the next three photos, the man is lying – apparently dead – against a rock. His head is being held up, he is partly covered in the flag of Tamil Eelam, and there is more blood on his face and upper body.

A forensic expert who reviewed the photos told Human Rights Watch that the latter three photos show material on the man’s neck consistent in color with brain matter, “which would indicate an injury to the back of his head, as nothing is visible which would cause this on his face. This would indicate severe trauma to the back of the head consistent with something like a gunshot wound or massive blows to the back of the head with something such as a machete or ax.”

While Human Rights Watch cannot conclusively determine that the man was summarily executed in custody, the available evidence indicates that a full investigation is warranted.

Several of the photos also show what appear to be dead women in LTTE uniforms with their shirts pulled up and their pants pulled down, raising concerns that they might have been sexually abused or their corpses mutilated. Again, such evidence is not conclusive but shows the need for an investigation.

The new accounts by witnesses described indiscriminate shelling of large gatherings of civilians during the last weeks of fighting, apparently by government forces. In addition to an incident on April 8, 2009, previously reported, witnesses told Human Rights Watch about three other incidents in late April and early May 2009 of government forces shelling civilians, mainly women and children, who were standing in food distribution lines. The witnesses also described LTTE recruitment of children and LTTE attacks on civilians attempting to escape the war zone.

Government’s Failure to Investigate Abuses

The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission created on May 17, 2010 is the latest in a long line of ad hoc bodies in Sri Lanka that seem designed to deflect international criticism rather than to uncover the facts. The mandated focus of the commission – on the failure of the 2002 ceasefire – is largely unrelated to the massive abuses by both government forces and the LTTE in the last months of hostilities. Nor does the commission appear to have been designed to uncover new information: the commission’s terms of reference do not provide for adequate victim and witness protection.

The government-appointed chairman of the commission, Chitta Ranjan de Silva, is a former attorney general who came under serious criticism for his office’s alleged interference in the work of the 2006 Presidential Commission of Inquiry. The attorney general’s role was one of the main reasons why a group of 10 international experts, the International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP), withdrew from monitoring the commission’s work. The IIGEP stated that it had “not been able to conclude…that the proceedings of the Commission have been transparent or have satisfied basic international norms and standards.”

“De Silva was the architect and enforcer of the attorney general’s conflict of interest role with respect to the 2006 commission,” said Arthur Dewey, former US assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration and member of the IIGEP. “Nothing good for human rights or reconciliation is likely to come from anything in which De Silva is involved.”

The government has also yet to publish the findings from a committee established in November 2009 to examine allegations of laws-of-war violations set out in a report produced last year by the US State Department, despite an April 2010 deadline.

Sri Lanka has a long history of establishing ad hoc commissions to deflect international criticism over its poor human rights record and widespread impunity, Human Rights Watch said. Since independence in 1948, Sri Lanka has established at least nine such commissions, none of which have produced any significant results.

On March 5, Secretary-General Ban told President Rajapaksa that he had decided to appoint a UN panel of experts to advise him on next steps for accountability in Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan government responded by attacking Ban for interfering in domestic affairs, calling the panel “unwarranted” and “uncalled for.” Two months later, Ban has yet to appoint any members to his panel.

“Ban’s inaction is sending a signal to abusers that simply announcing meaningless commissions and making loud noises can block all efforts for real justice,” Pearson said. “The only way to ensure accountability in Sri Lanka is to establish an independent international investigation.”

British MPs call for war crimes probes at Mu’l’livaaykkaal Remembrance

2010-05-20T21:33:00.000-07:00

Parliamentarians from all three main British political parties addressed a rally Tuesday at Westminster to commemorate the forty thousand Tamil civilians massacred last year by the Sri Lankan government forces during the closing months of the island’s civil war. Addressing 10,000 people who filled the permitted space in Parliament Square, MPs from the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties, which comprise Britain’s new ruling coalition, and the main opposition Labour party were united in their condemnation of the war crimes and the need for international action on Sri Lanka’s war crimes.
"There should be an international independent investigation into the war crime charges against the Government of Sri Lanka" said Lee Scott, Conservative MP (Ilford North). He pledged his unwavering support for the Tamil people.

"We have a new obligation as the parties in government, I promise that we will work with our friends in EU, Commonwealth and UN to bring peace and justice in Sri Lanka," said Simon Hughes Liberal Democrat MP (North Southwark and Bermondsey).

Mr. Hughes said this was the time for Tamils and their friends to stand together and take practical steps to advance their cause.

"The last year has proved to many people that the Sri-Lankan government is incapable of meeting the political needs of the Tamil people." Virendra Sharma, Labour MP (Ealing and Southall), and Chair of All-Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils (APPG-T) said.

Other Parliamentarians who addressed the rally included Tom Brake, Liberal Democrat MP (Carshalton and Wallington), Andrew George, Liberal Democrat MP (St Ives and the Isle of Scilly), Robert Halfon, Conservative MP (Harlow), John Mann, Labour MP (Bassetlaw), Keith Vaz, Labour MP (Leicester East), John McDonnell, Labour MP (Hayes and Harlington), and Barry Gardiner, Labour MP (Brent North).

Other parliamentarians joined the crowd briefly at various times during the 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. rally.

Amongst the other speakers to address the rally were James Allie, Liberal Democrat Councillor (Brent), Robert Evans, former Labour MEP, Julian Bell, Labour Coucillor (Ealing), Mr Gupta, General Secretary, Hindu Council UK and Graham Williamson of campaign group ‘Act Now’.

A survivor of the slaughter in Vanni, who escaped from Muliyavaikkal on May 18 last year, shared his experiences of losing his father and cousins, of seeing people blown up in front of his eyes.

“We took the injured to hospitals, and they [the Sri Lankan government] targeted the hospitals,” he said.

He spoke of the shortage of food, especially milk powder for the babies. He mentioned seeing people queuing up for food and milk powder, only to have the queues shelled and bombed. “As the little food and milk powder the people had was being handed out, [the government] killed those in the lines,” he said.

“We believed our people protesting overseas would save us, but it did not happen. All the world countries were against us,” he noted.

The event began with a moment of silence in the memory of all those who had died, followed by the floral tribute in front of a ‘40,000’ sign, commemorating the lives lost. It concluded with a candle light vigil and those presenting taking an oath to not rest until the Tamils who remain in the camps are freed and justice is achieved for those who died.

In bleak contrast to the 72-day protests at the same location last year, Tuesday’s gathering was far more sombre, recalling the atrocities that could not be averted by the international community and reflection on the ongoing sufferings of their kith and kin in Sri Lanka, a statement by the organizers said.

Representatives from British Tamils Forum (BTF) and Tamil Youth Organisation (TYO) handed a memorandum at the Houses of Parliament calling on the British Government to use her leverage on trade through permanent withdrawal of GSP+ and prevention of IMF loan to exert pressure on the Sri Lankan government to uphold international law.

“British Tamils called on Britain to use her standing in the commonwealth, European Union, the UN, as well as her influence on other powerful nations and to ensure an independent international inquiry into the war crimes committed against the Tamil people during the war is initiated to bring the perpetrators to justice,” a statement from the organizers said.

Tamils Need Justice and Protection
On the 1st anniversary of the massacre of nearly 40,000 Tamil people by the Sri Lankan state, we the Tamil people of the Diaspora and other peace loving people are gathered here today to remember those who died as well as those who had their lives shattered by the physical and mental scars inflicted upon them. Heavy weaponry was used by the military during the offensive on densely populated areas and designated “Safe Zones”. Cluster bombs and chemical weapons were also alleged to have been used in the onslaught.

We are here to remind the world that the perpetrators of these heinous crimes against humanity are still at large and are still charged with governance to continue with their genocidal programme against the Tamil people in Sri Lanka. Evidence gathered by International Crisis Group in a report released on 17 May 2010 provides reasonable grounds to believe that government security forces “repeatedly and intentionally” violated international law by attacking civilians, hospitals and humanitarian operations.

Today the Tamil people have been left totally defenceless and in danger of obliteration in their own homeland under the jack boot of the Sinhala armed forces of Sri Lanka. Over 80,000 Tamil people are still held in concentration camps guarded by the Sinhala armed forces. Over 11,000 Tamil youth are held in undisclosed torture camps with scant disregard to their human rights. Local media reports give gruesome accounts of the fate of these youth who are held without accountability.

The Sri Lankan government is continuing to decimate the Tamil homeland. The land and property belonging to the Tamil people are being plundered by Sinhala settlers with state patronage. The street names and sign boards are being changed from Tamil to Sinhala, Tamil historical and religious sites are being destroyed and replaced by Buddhist temples across the traditionally Tamil North and East regions. The Tamil people face existential threat of unprecedented proportions whilst the world media and international attention is kept away by the Sri Lankan state. The Tamils have become a community in danger in their own homeland.

“UN was paralysed when political and diplomatic intervention was required to protect Tamil civilians in the Sri Lankan government campaign to wipe out the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam,” Lord Patton, Chancellor of University of Oxford, commented in an article in Financial Times in reference to UN’s inability to uphold the principle of Responsibility to Protect (R2P) to prevent such atrocities.

Britain’s Responsibility to Protect
Owing to Britain’s political involvement in the history of the island, the Tamil people have reason to expect the British government to take decisive and effective measures to protect the Tamil community from total annihilation. The Sri Lankan government, embolden by its support from anti-Western alliances, continues to ignore with utter contempt all calls to respect international norms on human rights.

British Tamils want Britain to use her leverage on trade through permanent withdrawal of GSP+, prevention of IMF loan and her standing in the commonwealth, European Union, the UN, as well as her influence on other powerful nations to exert pressure on the Sri Lankan government to,
•Uphold international law and release all the people held in concentration camps across the island and resettle them in their places of origin

•End illegal, indefinite and arbitrary detention of more than 11,000 youths held in so-called rehabilitation centres and be given access to legal representation

•Allow unhindered access to the international media and aid agencies to the North & East of the island of Sri Lanka

•Halt all Sinhalisation of the Tamil areas, ethnic cleansing and decimation of the North & East

We want the British Government to ensure that,
•International aid is not diverted to purposes other than those for which it was entrusted to the Government of Sri Lanka

•The Tamil people are protected from ethnic cleansing and annihilation by the Sinhala State.

•An independent international inquiry into the war crimes committed against the Tamil people during the war is initiated and the perpetrators are brought to book.

| TS-Tamil Solidarity

2010-05-18T00:09:00.000-07:00

| TS-Tamil Solidarity

‘Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam’ (TGTE) to Get UN Recognition Either as a UN Non-Member State or as a UN Observer

2010-05-18T00:03:00.000-07:00

TGTE inaugurated in transnational way, Ramsey Clark stresses importance of history
87 of 115 representatives of the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE) already declared elected from 11 countries are meeting in three spots of the world, in the US city of Philadelphia, in London and in Geneva, in a 3 day inaugural session from 17 to 19 May. The Tamil Eelam flag was hoisted and a representative from each country addressed the public stating that the goal of the TGTE should be the formation of independent and sovereign state of Tamil Eelam in the North and East of the island of Sri Lanka. William Ramsey Clark, a former US Attorney General, was one of the keynote speakers of the inaugural event. He characterized the move to form the transnational government a “brave initiative to find the wisdom and the courage to achieve – as it was for many centuries – a free and independent Tamil Eelam.” …………..

Vanni ban leaves little to take

2010-05-17T23:48:00.000-07:00

A note at the bottom of a circular by Sri Lanka's Ministry of Defence listing the things that are not allowed to the Vanni sent to government officials in Vavuniya, reveals the extensive and arbitrary manner in which Colombo's economic embargo is imposed on the northern region.
"A person can/should be stopped from taking things with him on the advice of an authorised officer. Even permitted items can be stopped at the last moment on the basis of information received by the army about the future needs and plans of the terrorists. Soldiers at the checkpoint can decide whether a person should be stopped from passing through or whether to postpone the checking of his bags," the note says. "The list of banned and permitted items displayed here to the public and government departments is totally deceptive. In effect, an officer or soldier has the right and authority to stop anything from being taken to Vanni purely at their discretion," explained an official at the Vavuniya District secretariat Monday.

The special gazette notification (No. 867/12) listing the items banned was issued on 20 April 1995. There is neither a Tamil nor English translation available in Vavuniya, the border town from which people begin their hazardous journey to the Vanni.

Soldiers at the Piramanalankulam check point, which is the main entry point between the Vanni and the Sri Lanka army controlled part of the Vavuniya district, seized goods ranging from Nylon ropes to sanitary napkins from travellers and burnt these in the evenings on days when the public was allowed to pass through. The Vavuniya district judge M.Ilancheliyan gave a directive earlier this month that the practice was not legal even in the context of the sweeping and arbitrary powers granted to the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) under the Emergency Regulations and the special gazette notification of April 95.

S.Lanka slammed over civilian deaths

2010-05-17T23:38:00.000-07:00

COLOMBO (AFP) – The Sri Lankan government killed thousands of its civilians by shelling "no-fire zones" in the last months of the country's decades-long civil war that ended a year ago, an independent group said Monday.

The Brussels-based International Crisis Group urged the United Nations and Sri Lanka's aid donors to press for a war crimes investigation into the military offensive that finally crushed the separatist Tamil Tiger guerrillas
The ICG said the military encouraged hundreds of thousands of Tamil civilians to move into government-declared "no-fire zones" and then subjected them to "repeated and increasingly intense artillery and mortar barrages."

"This continued through May despite the government and security forces knowing the size and location of the civilian population and scale of civilian casualties," the ICG charged.

It repeated allegations that government troops also intentionally shelled hospitals as well as aid operations run by international relief agencies.

"The consequences of the security forces' shelling were made substantially worse by the government's obstruction of food and medical treatment for the civilian population," it added.
The report, released on Monday, said Sri Lanka's leaders must be held accountable for the civilian deaths, and it also blamed the Tamil Tigers for war atrocities.

"The substantial body of evidence collected by the Crisis Group since August 2009 offers a compelling case for investigation of the conduct of hostilities and the role of the military and political leadership on both sides," it said.

The ICG said it had collected eyewitness statements as well as hundreds of photographs, videos, satellite images, electronic communications and documents from multiple sources to support the charges

TGTE Elections in Canada - Candidates and their responses

2010-05-17T23:32:00.000-07:00

The election for the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam is to take place on Sunday, May 2, 2010, in Canada.

Tamilcanadian.com, in its continued effort to inform our readers, sent a questionnaire seeking responses on eight questions. The questions are outlined below. We received 6 responses from the candidates so far. We have included all six of the responses herein.

We note that while we attempt to inform our readers of the process, candidates, and their respective positions, we do not endorse any of the candidates. It is noteworthy, and disappointing, that all the candidates did not chose to submit responses and make their views known to the public.

Sri Lanka accused of war crimes in final onslaught

2010-05-17T23:21:00.000-07:00

An investigation into the last months of Sri Lanka's bloody civil war released yesterday claims that government forces were responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands more civilians than previously estimated, and targeted hospitals and humanitarian operations as part of their final onslaught on the rebel Tamil Tigers.
According to the International Crisis Group study, many thousands more people may have died in the operation than UN figures have suggested, with as many as 75,000 citizens unaccounted for, and almost all of the deaths in the so-called "No-Fire Zone" due to government fire.
The study also claims that the government shelled hospitals where it knew international NGO staff and civilians to be working or receiving treatment. "The Sri Lankan government committed war crimes with top government and military leaders potentially responsible," it says. "An international inquiry into alleged crimes is essential."

The Sri Lankan government has refused to comment on the report, the most comprehensive account of the violence that ended a year ago today. Senior officials have insisted in the past that there were no civilian casualties in the last months of the war.

At the weekend the Sunday Observer newspaper, widely considered a government mouthpiece, claimed that the report was part of a plot to promote former army head Sarath Fonseka at the expense of President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Fonseka was imprisoned after he lost the post-war election to Rajapaksa, accused of participating in political activity while still in uniform.
Yesterday the government gave details of its own proposed 'reconciliation commission', which would suggest methods for promoting national unity and determine compensation for those affected by the war with the Tamil Tigers, or Liberation Tamil Tigers of Eelam (LTTE).

The proposals stop short of any investigation into violations of humanitarian law. "The only chance of credible scrutiny is by outsiders," said Alan Keenan, Crisis Group's Sri Lanka project director. "There has never been a credible internal process."

Although the US Permanent Representative to the UN, Susan Rice, last week welcomed Sri Lanka's planned reconciliation commission, she cautioned that it did need "to probe violations of international standards during the final stages of the conflict", and there has long been scepticism about the Colombo government's willingness to sanction a full investigation. One foreign diplomat based in Colombo is quoted in the Crisis Group report as saying in November last year: "The regime isn't going to disembowel itself."

The long-running civil war in Sri Lanka reached its zenith in the early months of 2009, when the government pinned the rebels down in an ever-shrinking "No-Fire Zone" (NFZ) on the country's northern coast. The death toll has always been murky because reporters and independent observers were barred from the area. The UN put the toll before the final period of fighting at around 7,000, while Crisis Group points out that around 365,000 civilians were known to be alive in the NFZ in February last year – and only 290,000 survivors registered in government-run camps three months later.

Slim hopes of a UN-led inquiry now rest with the Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, since both the Security Council and Human Rights Council have declined opportunities to take Sri Lanka to task.

According to Crisis Group's president Louise Arbour, the lack of consequences for President Rajapaksa makes it more likely that other conflicts will be conducted in similar style in future, and provides no incentive for the draconian Sri Lankan regime to change its approach. "The means are so attractive," she said. "Why would you restrict yourself to doing it just once?"

Crisis Group also suggested that India and the United States failed to do enough to discourage Rajapaksa at the time of the conflict.

TGTE inaugurated in transnational way, Ramsey Clark stresses importance of history

2010-05-17T21:24:00.000-07:00

87 of 115 representatives of the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE) already declared elected from 11 countries are meeting in three spots of the world, in the US city of Philadelphia, in London and in Geneva, in a 3 day inaugural session from 17 to 19 May. The Tamil Eelam flag was hoisted and a representative from each country addressed the public stating that the goal of the TGTE should be the formation of independent and sovereign state of Tamil Eelam in the North and East of the island of Sri Lanka. William Ramsey Clark, a former US Attorney General, was one of the keynote speakers of the inaugural event. He characterized the move to form the transnational government a "brave initiative to find the wisdom and the courage to achieve - as it was for many centuries - a free and independent Tamil Eelam."

The 82-year-old Ramsey Clark, who was a prominent figure in the anti-Vietnam War moment, had functioned as the Election Commissioner of the TGTE elections in the USA.

"I need to tell you that your challenge is enormous […] Freedom is possible. But you have to work awfully hard at it. And you have to be right. You have to convince other people that you are right. […] You need to know your history. You need to persist your history and need to have your history understood that you were a uniquely different people than the Sinhalese on the same island," Clark said.

"Resolve your differences together openly and frankly wherever it occurs outright and quickly, and abide by the agreement
that you reach," Mr. Clark said elaborating how the American nation was made possible with unity as an unprecedented force to achieve independence. "To divide and conquer a dispersed people is an easy thing to do," he warned.

Francis Boyle, a professor of international law, Domach Wal Ruach, the secretary general of Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) USA and Janani Jananayagam, a British Tamil activist engaged in awareness campaign on Tamil genocide were the other speakers in the inauguration ceremony.
Congratulating the members of TGTE, Domach Wal Ruach of the SPLM-USA said: "Although results are not seen overnight, I think what you have done now is a step towards right direction. We have been there and we are getting close to it now. The struggle is not easy. There are setbacks. But, you have to be steadfast. You owe it to the young generation. They are coming to you. If you don't do it now, no-one else would do it and the entire generations would be
lost."
"I want to tell you that, through collective work, diaspora is one of the component. Our leader commanded the largest single rebel groups ever. And yet, we were not able to win, militarily," he said and added: "The most important organic guarantee that you could always have, is your diaspora." Explaining the history of the Sudanese struggle and how the SPLM organized the diapora in grass-root level.

He further claimed that the US had done magnificent help to Sudanese. "I don't think we could have done this without the United States of America," he told the TGTE members who were gathered at the Philadelphia National Constitution Centre (NCC): "They helped us so much. I want to thank them again once more. The peace agreement is still unimplemented, but we are hopeful that in January next year, we will be an independent state," he said. "That has cost us 2.5 millions of peoples lives, dead."

Professor N. Sriskandarajah, a member of the advisory panel, who invited the elected members of the TGTE for the inauguration meeting, had set the agenda for the session. In an invitation to the elected, Prof Sriskandarajah had outlined the following agenda in advance: "The elected body will be transformed into a Constituent Assembly, an Interim Chief Executive and a small executive committee to manage this process elected, important themes for the Constituent Assembly discussed, agreed on and teams created, and a number of working groups for important and immediate tasks also elected."

The main venue of the event was changed from London to Philadelphia in short notice. However, virtual participation through video conferencing from London and Geneva has worked satisfactory on Monday as it was a session of presentations.

"Despite the issues of sectarian politics involved in the pre-formation process of the democratic exercise and the conceptual concerns, the people have had their say in electing their representatives. The representatives have also clearly expressed what they stand for in their addresses. It is now up to the elected to prove their credibility in the formation process," commented a diaspora analyst, following the developments.

The inauguration commenced at 13:00 on Monday and is scheduled to conclude by 13:00 on Wednesday.

California street fair embraces Sri Lanka boycott message

2010-05-16T01:36:00.000-07:00

Members of the US-based Tamil political action group, USTPAC Boycott Campaign, joined the madness at the 11th annual How Weird Street Faire in San Francisco on Sunday, May 9th 2010 to publicize the group's mission to the attendees to event, organizers of the Tamil group said. Twenty-foot tall banners advertising the “No Blood for Panties” video series on boycotting apparel made in Sri Lanka adorned the backdrop of the catwalk, according to activists participating in the street fair.

The annual event, inspired in 2000 by a small group promoting world peace through technology, brought nearly 12,000 fans in a global celebration of art, music and international culture from vendors and non-profit organizations across the world.

This year’s theme was “Bollyweird: The cosmic Dance” and included ten music stages, a mock Hindu temple, fantastic costumes, food and other festivities spread across ten city blocks.

New this year was Fashion Alley that included a fashion runway featuring top local designers and models who introduced the concept of “conscious consumerism” and “designer activism”.

Models in lingerie and USTPAC's boycott message of “check the label“ were cheered on by an appreciative crowd and captured on numerous cameras, organizers said.

Protesters explained that textiles were the biggest export earner bringing foreign revenue to Sri Lanka and how that foreign exchange was being used by the government to maintain its military whose sole purpose is to oppress the Tamil people.

"Many at the Faire were shocked to hear about the human rights abuses, tens of thousands of internally displaced persons who still remain in internment camps even after the civil war ended a year ago and the war crimes that remain uninvestigated despite efforts by human rights organizations, the United Nations and the US State Department," spokesperson for the protesters said.

"Those who heard our story were sympathetic to our cause and extremely supportive of our campaign. They were willing to sign petitions and promised to boycott clothes made in Sri Lanka. Several models and colorfully attired attendees at the Faire asked to hold our boycott banners. Some even danced with them, adding to the attention they drew from the crowds," the spokesperson further said.

The open-minded ambiance of the Fair turned out to be an appropriate setting for the boycott campaign message, and the protesters were able to pass a serious message of boycotting clothes made in Sri Lanka to the attendees, USTPAC's spokespersons said

TamilNet: 14.05.10 Lest We Forget: Children affected by Genocidal War Crimes of Colombo

2010-05-14T23:15:00.000-07:00

TamilNet: 14.05.10 Lest We Forget: Children affected by Genocidal War Crimes of Colombo: "Lest We Forget: Children affected by Genocidal War Crimes of Colombo"

Thought crime, torture and kingly fiat

2010-05-14T23:07:00.000-07:00

Tissainayagam’s pardon is clearly an act of Sri Lanka’s international diplomacy, an act made possible by the complete absence of the rule of law as an operating principle in its legal system,” writes a columnist in the Tamil Guardian newspaper. “[While] the legal system’s ability to convict Tissainayagam on the basis of a confession obtained under torture on charges that amount to accusations ‘thought crime’ reveal that Sri Lanka has fully departed from the principles of the rule of law […] the Presidential pardon echoes medieval forms of justice dispensed as royal patronage and is in keeping with Sinhala leaders’ proclivity for styling themselves as mythical Sinhala rulers.”

The full text of the op-ed follows:

The detention, trial, imprisonment and subsequent pardon of the journalist Tissainayagam reveals that the rule of law no longer applies in Sri Lanka. Tissanayagam’s almost two and a half year ordeal by law sets out the extent to which the law in Sri Lanka has become an instrument of political and ethnic coercion rather than the guarantor of justice, rights and stability.

After months of mounting international pressure, it appears that Tissainayagam will finally be pardoned by Presidential decree - an outcome that does little to restore faith in the system whilst revealing that Sri Lanka’s legalised capacity for violence and coercion can only be restrained by international intervention.

The conditions of Tissainayagam’s detention as well as the charges that were laid against him violated all the fundamental principles that guarantee the law’s compliance with the principle of the rule of law. Despite all of this Sri Lanka’s legal system delivered a verdict of guilty and in accordance with its own distorted principles sentenced him to twenty years of imprisonment.

Kept in detention for months without charge Tissainayagam and the other Tamil journalists were subject to abuse including the extraction of forced confessions. They were denied proper access to defence and police officers supervised the few meetings the defendants were allowed with their lawyers.

Not only was Tissainayagam finally convicted and sentenced on the basis of a forced conviction, the charges of ‘inciting communal hatred’ were also a clear violation of universally applicable norms regarding the reasonable expression of political dissent.

He was charged on the basis of articles and editorials that appeared in the English language North East Herald that reported on Sri Lanka’s military campaign from a Tamil perspective as a fundamental threat to Tamil lives, security and integrity of the Tamil polity.

Although there was nothing in this that could reasonably be interpreted as inciting communal hatred, it was of course fundamentally at odds with the mainstream Sri Lankan media’s depiction of the war as an epic struggle against terrorism which would finally liberate the Sinhala motherland from the clutches of LTTE separatism.

The legal system’s ability to convict Tissainayagam on the basis of a confession obtained under torture on charges that amount to accusations ‘thought crime’ reveal that Sri Lanka has fully departed from the principles of the rule of law.

The Sri Lankan president’s reported decision to pardon him does not restore legality or a sense of fairness to the conduct of this case. A presidential pardon is not the same as a legal acquittal and Tissanayagam’s life and freedom has ultimately been decided by presidential whim rather than the normal operation of an impersonal but just set of legal mechanisms.

The Presidential pardon echoes medieval forms of justice dispensed as royal patronage and is in keeping with Sinhala leaders’ proclivity for styling themselves as mythical Sinhala rulers.

Rajapakse associates himself with the fabled Duttugemunu, his predecessor Chandrika chose to mark the Sinhala military’s capture of Jaffna in a ‘royal’ style ritual in which she received the Tamil city that was renamed in Sinhala as ‘Yappapatune’. Meanwhile Sri Lanka’s first executive president Jeyawardene penned a treatise entitled ‘Golden Chains’ in which he presented himself as the latest in a 2,000 year line of Sinhala chieftains.

Not only does the pardon fail to exonerate Tissanayagam of the chilling charges of ‘thought crime’, it also fails to address the sinister provision of Sri Lanka’s anti terrorism legislation that leaves Tamils at the mercy of an ethnically biased legal system.

In June 2009 a report by the Human Rights Institute of the International Bar Association found that Tamils were left ‘unprotected’ in Sri Lanka’s legal system as the legal aid system, funded by the UN, operated a policy of not providing assistance to cases involving terrorism legislation. This has left many Tamils incarcerated for years at a time without hope of legal redress.

In October 2009 for example a Colombo based human rights group found a twenty nine year old Tamil youth in Welikada prison who had been detained for fifteen years, since the age of fourteen, under the terrorism legislation. He had not been charged or brought before a court and had been deprived of fifteen years of his youth for no apparent reason except that he was Tamil. There are possibly countless others in a similar situation.

Tissainayagam’s freedom was finally assured by his international profile which led to sustained pressure on his behalf. Tellingly it was Sri Lanka’s external affairs minister, G. L Pieris, who announced the pardon to the gathered international media. The pardon is clearly an act of Sri Lanka’s international diplomacy, an act made possible by the complete absence of the rule of law as an operating principle in its legal system.

Sri Lanka may hope that pardoning Tissainayagam will ease the international pressure, perhaps reversing the European Union’s suspension of preferential tariffs on the island’s key export, garments. However, the international community can no longer afford to be bought off with such superficial gestures.

Royal pardons have no place in a state that must now grow up and become a stable, inclusive and constitutional democracy. Sri Lanka’s legal, administrative and constitutional systems require a radical overhaul. As the outcome of Tissainayagam’s legal ordeal demonstrates, the only way this can be achieved is through sustained and ongoing international intervention.

Al Jazeera English - CENTRAL/S. ASIA - 'Suicide blast' hits Sri Lanka camp

2010-05-11T20:14:00.000-07:00

Al Jazeera English - CENTRAL/S. ASIA - 'Suicide blast' hits Sri Lanka camp

Arbour to campaign for independent war-crimes inquiry in Sri Lanka

2010-05-11T19:53:00.000-07:00

Louise Arbour, president of the NGO International Crisis Group (ICG) and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "will examine these allegations [of war crimes in Sri Lanka] and make the case for an independent international inquiry as a necessary step in making Sri Lanka's tenuous and bitter peace more just and sustainable," said a note sent to the invitees for a conference on "War Crimes in Sri Lanka" to be held Monday at the premises of the event's joint sponsor, Chatham House, London.

17th May falls on the first anniversary of the end of fighting in Sri Lanka when the Liberation Tigers' military leadership fought to death in the battle fields in Mullaitheevu shores.

Nearly 40,000 civilians were killed during the last 5 months of fighting according a former UN spokesperson.
The Sri Lankan security forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) repeatedly violated international humanitarian law during the last five months of their 30-year civil war. Although both sides committed atrocities throughout the conflict, there are credible accusations that the scale and nature of violations grew much worse from January 2009 to the government's declaration of victory in May," the note to the invitees further said.
Arbour is intimately familiar with Sri Lanka's history, war and the human rights situation that has been deteriorating for several years.
"Weakness of the rule of law and prevalence of impunity is alarming in Sri Lanka where critical elements for the protection of Human Rights have been undermined or compromised despite the existence of much of the necessary human rights institutional infrastructure," Arbour said in concluding her five-day mission to Sri Lanka in October 2007.

During the same visit, highlighting the reluctance of Sri Lanka in ratifying the Rome Treaty, Arbour said, "[i]n light of the documented violations of international humanitarian law, Sri Lanka should seriously consider joining the 105 countries which have ratified the Rome Treaty creating the International Crime Court."

A day before the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement in Sri Lanka was terminated by Colombo on the 16th January 2008, Louise Arbour, reminded the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) of their obligations under international law to respect human rights. She warned that rights abuses “by any party could entail individual criminal responsibility under international criminal law, including by those in positions of command.”

Sri Lanka's diplomatic mission to the UN, rejected Arbour’s comments as “pathetically unenforceable threats,” and added that Sri Lanka “will not be deterred by thinly veiled threats attempting to undermine the morale of its military, deter its military campaigns and save separatist terrorism from elimination.”

Timed to coincide with the anniversary of the end of Sri Lanka's war, and the conclusion of parliamentary elections in Britain, ICG's conference comes in the wake of an announcement by Colombo that it is appointing a "Commission on Lessons Learned and Reconciliation," a tactic widely believed to be a subterfuge to deflect pressure from the international community for an independent investigation.

SL government stages hidden agenda in Jaffna peninsula – Suresh Premachandran MP

2010-05-10T22:26:00.001-07:00

Suresh Premachandran, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Jaffna district parliamentarian, accused Sri Lanka Government for purposely encouraging crimes in Jaffna peninsula such as abduction and killing for ransom, robbery, sexual abuse of lonely women so that it could continue to hold the peninsula in its authority, in a press meet held Monday at his Jaffna office. He further blamed the government for having abandoned the resettled civilians in Mullaiththeevu district who had been uprooted and detained during the war on Vanni.

Suresh Premachandran told the press that the government has no intention to withdraw its armed forces from Jaffna peninsula or to lift the various restrictions imposed on the people as it wants to hold on to the absolute power it enjoys in the place of its occupation.

He said that the government, with the help of Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Intelligence Wing and its soldiers, is carrying out criminal activities so as to create a situation where it can justify the presence of its armed forces in Jaffna peninsula to maintain law and order to the international countries and other people.

Commenting on the resettlement in Vanni, Suresh Premachadran accused the government for have taken the uprooted civilians to Mullaiththeevu for resettlement without any preparation and abandoned them there without offering assistance.

The resettled civilians have to manage on their own living under trees and tin sheets donated by India and other international countries, he said.

Even the school children have study under trees and temporary structures with tin sheets for roofs, he added.

SLA builds base on demolished LTTE War Heroes’ Resting Home in Uduppiddi

2010-05-10T22:19:00.000-07:00

More than 200 Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers are engaged in constructing a military base since Friday morning on the very place of E’l’aangku’lam Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) War Heroes Resting Home in Vadmaraadchi which had been razed to the ground by SLA 03 May night using heavy equipments, sources in Jaffna said. Defence Secretary Gothabaya who recently visited Jaffna is understood to have issued the orders to demolish the above War Heroes Resting Home and to build a military base on the ground where it had stood, the sources said.

The remnants of the tombstones and other debris are taken away to the seashore and dumped.

Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in Jaffna using bulldozers had completely demolished E’l’laangku’lam Liberation Tiger War Heroes’ Resting Homes in Uduppiddi in Vadmaraadchi Monday night, former Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian Sivajilingam said.

He told that local residents in Uduppiddi had conveyed the information by phone.

Colombo accelerates Sinhalicisation of Madu

2010-05-10T22:18:00.000-07:00

Colombo has launched a large scale Sinhala colonisation at Madu Road Junction, located on Mannaar-Madawachchi Road, which branches off the main route to Madu shrine, situated in the middle of traditional Tamil area, by officially claiming to "resettle" 80 Sinhalese families after renovating a Buddhist temple into a large Vihara at the junction. Categorising the Sinhalese settlers as "Internally Displaced Persons," the Sri Lankan Defence Ministry officials said the Sinhalese "IDPs" had met Resettlement Minister Milroy Fernando and G.A. Chandrasri, the former SLA commander of Jaffna, who is serving as the Northern Province Governor, with the Chief Incumbent Buddhist Monk of the Vihara. Caritas, a Catholic agency for justice, peace and development has been pressurised to construct the houses for the Sinhalese settlers.

Madu is the famous pilgrim centre of Tamil Catholics, where even the Sinhalese Catholics of the western coast, who were Tamils a century ago, flock in for festivals. It is the symbol of Tamil Catholicism in the island of Sri Lanka and is already a declared forest sanctuary.
The colonisation scheme was begun in 1970s with a hidden motive of transforming the area into a full-fledged Sinhala colony, by using the lands of a cashew farm between the Madu Shrine and the junction.

However, the "settlement" was later abandoned, fearing repercussions following large-scale massacre and arson committed by the Sri Lanka Army in December 1984 after a landmine blast.

The geographical contiguity of Tamil Catholics along the western coast of Sri Lanka from Mannaar to Colombo has been already Sinhalacised in the Chilaapam (Chilaw) - Colombo sector through carefully planned social engineering, an act of cultural and demographic genocide similar to de-linking the contiguity of the Northern and Eastern provinces along the eastern coast.

Ko’ndachchi-Chilaavaththu’rai, Thalaimannaar Pier and Madu in Mannaar district are being particularly targeted for Sinhala-Buddhist colonies by Colombo's Defence and Resettlement ministries.

Colombo accelerates Sinhalicisation of Madu

2010-05-10T22:14:00.001-07:00

Colombo has launched a large scale Sinhala colonisation at Madu Road Junction, located on Mannaar-Madawachchi Road, which branches off the main route to Madu shrine, situated in the middle of traditional Tamil area, by officially claiming to "resettle" 80 Sinhalese families after renovating a Buddhist temple into a large Vihara at the junction. Categorising the Sinhalese settlers as "Internally Displaced Persons," the Sri Lankan Defence Ministry officials said the Sinhalese "IDPs" had met Resettlement Minister Milroy Fernando and G.A. Chandrasri, the former SLA commander of Jaffna, who is serving as the Northern Province Governor, with the Chief Incumbent Buddhist Monk of the Vihara. Caritas, a Catholic agency for justice, peace and development has been pressurised to construct the houses for the Sinhalese settlers.

Madu is the famous pilgrim centre of Tamil Catholics, where even the Sinhalese Catholics of the western coast, who were Tamils a century ago, flock in for festivals. It is the symbol of Tamil Catholicism in the island of Sri Lanka and is already a declared forest sanctuary.

The colonisation scheme was begun in 1970s with a hidden motive of transforming the area into a full-fledged Sinhala colony, by using the lands of a cashew farm between the Madu Shrine and the junction.

However, the "settlement" was later abandoned, fearing repercussions following large-scale massacre and arson committed by the Sri Lanka Army in December 1984 after a landmine blast.

The geographical contiguity of Tamil Catholics along the western coast of Sri Lanka from Mannaar to Colombo has been already Sinhalacised in the Chilaapam (Chilaw) - Colombo sector through carefully planned social engineering, an act of cultural and demographic genocide similar to de-linking the contiguity of the Northern and Eastern provinces along the eastern coast.

Ko’ndachchi-Chilaavaththu’rai, Thalaimannaar Pier and Madu in Mannaar district are being particularly targeted for Sinhala-Buddhist colonies by Colombo's Defence and Resettlement ministries.

Video that reveals truth of Sri Lankan 'war crimes'

2010-05-10T16:32:00.000-07:00

Phone video smuggled to Europe bolsters claims that Sri Lankan soldiers murdered Tamil prisoners
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Reuters

Sri Lankan Army commandoes

More pictures

The naked man, his hands bound behind his back, is pushed to the ground. Then a man in military uniform delivers a forceful kick to the back of the prisoner's head with the heel of his boot. As the prisoner slumps forward, another soldier points his automatic weapon and fires a single shot. The man's body jolts. "It's like he jumped," laughs one of the giggling soldiers.

As gunfire rattles, the camera pans left to reveal a further seven bloodstained bodies, all handcuffed and bound, and – with one exception – similarly naked, strewn on the ground. The camera then pans right again, as another naked man is forced to the ground and shot in the back of the head. This time the body falls backwards.

These scenes, captured on video, allegedly show extra-judicial killings of Tamils by Sri Lankan troops earlier this year in the bitter and bloody endgame of the country's civil war. As government forces made a decisive thrust into the stronghold of rebel forces to end the decades-long conflict, a Sri Lankan soldier apparently took this footage, which was then smuggled out of the country by activists. It may constitute the first hard evidence for those who believe war crimes were committed in the effort to crush the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The significance of this footage – particularly shocking for the seemingly casual way in which the killings were carried out – is even greater given the way that journalists and independent observers were prevented by the government from reaching the war zone. The UN has estimated that 10,000 civilians were killed in what was, in effect, a war with no outside witnesses.

Last night the Sri Lankan army dismissed the footage as the latest in a series of fabrications designed to damage the country's image. But campaigners and Tamil politicians said it was vital that a full inquiry be carried out into the alleged killings. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has voiced his support for an investigation into possible war crimes if convincing evidence emerged.

So too has Amnesty International's Asia-Pacific director, Sam Zarifi, who said: "We have received consistent reports that violations of the laws of war, as well as international human rights law, were committed by both sides in the conflict and we call once again for an international, independent and credible investigation into what took place during the final days of the conflict."

The footage was obtained by Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka (JDS), an organisation made up of several dozen Sri Lankan journalists who have fled into exile in recent years as the intimidation and killing of media professionals has soared. The group, whose members now live mostly in Europe, said the film was taken by a Sri Lankan soldier in January using his mobile phone as the army was battling to take the LTTE's de facto capital, Kilinochchi.

A spokesman for the group, who asked not be identified, said: "It was as if someone was filming it for fun. This was being circulated by the soldiers. It has been going round for a while. It was taken as if it was a souvenir." He said rumours of such footage had existed for a long time but that this was the first time such film had entered "the mainstream".There is no way to confirm the authenticity of the footage, first broadcast by Channel 4 News. Likewise, there is no way of proving that the people apparently shot dead are Tamils, as the JDS has claimed. But this is not the first time that images from the war zone, captured on mobile phones, have been circulated within Sri Lanka.

Earlier this year a man in the eastern city of Trincomalee showed The Independent pictures of a naked, dead woman. He said the woman was apparently an LTTE fighter, killed as government troops advanced on rebel positions to the north.

Nor is it the first time that the army has been accused of carrying out summary justice. In May, when the rebels' final position in the north-east was overrun by government soldiers and the LTTE's leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, was killed, it emerged that two other leading rebels had been shot dead while trying to surrender. Tamils living outside Sri Lanka said the two men were carrying a white flag when they were shot by troops. A senior government official admitted that the two men had been trying to give themselves up for several days. At the time, the EU called for an inquiry into possible human rights abuses committed during the final months of the war.

A spokesman for the UN High Commissioner of Human Rights (UNHCR) said: "If it can be verified, this footage could be evidence of the sort of war crimes we fear were committed by both sides. We have repeatedly said there should be an investigations into the closing stages of the conflict. There needs to be some sort of accountability."

The final assault on the LTTE ended a war that had raged for almost three decades and cost at least 70,000 lives. The LTTE, fighting for a Tamil homeland, had long waged a brutal insurgency and used suicide bombers to attack both civilian and military targets. Since the war ended, the popularity of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, whose brother heads the powerful defence ministry, has soared among the country's Sinhala majority.

The resulting peace has also seen a 25 per cent increase in the number of visitors to Sri Lanka, lured by its beaches, tropical forests and gently paced culture. Already about 100,000 visitors from the UK travel to the island each year, according to the Sri Lankan tourist board, and officials are hopeful that the tourist numbers will increase further.

When he announced an end to the war, the president said that Sinhala, Tamils and Muslims must live as "equals". Yet some Tamils say the government has done little to placate its population or to offer them a political "settlement". This summer, in local elections held in the north, the government's party won in the city of Jaffna, but in Vavuniya victory went to the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), which has previously voiced some support for the LTTE.

Yesterday Sri Lankan opposition MPs urged the government to release nearly 300,000 war refugees held in state-run camps, saying the detentions brought discredit to the country.

"These camps stand as a symbol of shame and disgrace to our proud Sri Lankan history," said Mano Ganesan, an opposition MP and leader of a group calling itself Parliamentarians for Human Rights. "They are like prisons. People are kept against their will and that's illegal."

Game of smoke and mirrors, HRW blasts Sri Lanka's new commission

2010-05-09T19:47:00.000-07:00

Commenting on Sri Lanka's announcement that it is appointing a laws-of-war commission, Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch said, "[e]very time the international community raises the issue of accountability, Sri Lanka establishes a commission that takes a long time to achieve nothing. Ban should put an end to this game of smoke and mirrors and begin a process that would ensure justice for all the victims of Sri Lanka's war," adding, "Secretary-General Ban should not let Sri Lanka bully and manipulate him into abandoning justice for Sri Lanka's war victims," Adams said. "It is time for him to demonstrate that he is squarely on the side of the victims of Sri Lanka's long war."

Full text of HRW's statement:

Sri Lanka: Government Proposal Won’t Address War Crimes

The Sri Lankan government's suggestion that a newly announced commission will provide accountability for laws-of-war violations during the armed conflict with the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) is yet another attempt to deflect an independent international investigation, Human Rights Watch said today. Human Rights Watch urged United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to take steps to ensure accountability through an independent international investigation into the alleged laws-of-war violations.

The announcement of a commission on "lessons learnt and reconciliation" came after a months-long campaign by the Sri Lankan government to prevent Ban from establishing a panel of experts to advise him on accountability in Sri Lanka. In May 2009, after the war ended, President Mahinda Rajapaksa signed a joint communiqué with Ban promising that "the government will take measures to address allegations related to violations of international humanitarian and human-rights law." But no substantive steps have been taken.

"Every time the international community raises the issue of accountability, Sri Lanka establishes a commission that takes a long time to achieve nothing," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "Ban should put an end to this game of smoke and mirrors and begin a process that would ensure justice for all the victims of Sri Lanka's war."

The government has yet to publish the findings from a committee established in November 2009 to examine allegations of laws-of-war violations, despite an April 2010 deadline. When the committee was announced, Human Rights Watch warned that it was just a smokescreen to avoid accountability.

According to conservative UN estimates, 7,000 civilians were killed and more than 13,000 injured from January to May, 2009. Other estimates suggest that as many as 20,000 were killed. Government officials, including the president, have repeatedly insisted that no violations by government forces took place, and the government has taken no meaningful steps to ensure accountability.

On May 6, 2010, the Sri Lankan government announced that it will establish a commission to report on the lessons learned from the conflict and reconciliation efforts. In a statement posted on the government's website, the government announced that "there will be the [sic] search for any violations of internationally accepted norms of conduct in such conflict situations, and the circumstances that may have led to such actions, and identify any persons or groups responsible for such acts." The statement said nothing about holding such persons accountable under Sri Lankan criminal law or what other steps would be taken against those found to have been acting in violation of Sri Lankan or international law.

According to the government statement, the committee will consist of seven Sri Lankans, located in Sri Lanka and abroad, but will have no international involvement.

"Genuine government efforts with broad participation to promote reconciliation should be supported," Adams said. "But this cannot succeed without genuine and good faith efforts at accountability."

Sri Lanka has a long history of establishing ad hoc commissions to deflect international criticism over its poor human rights record and widespread impunity, Human Rights Watch said. Since independence in 1948, Sri Lanka has established at least 10 such commissions, none of which have produced any significant results.

The Presidential Commission of Inquiry appointed in November 2006 to investigate serious cases of alleged human rights abuses by both sides was a complete failure. A group of international experts, appointed to ensure the investigation was being conducted according to international norms and standards, resigned in 2008 because it had "not been able to conclude...that the proceedings of the Commission have been transparent or have satisfied basic international norms and standards."

In June 2009, Rajapaksa dissolved the Presidential Commission of Inquiry, even though it had conducted investigations in just 7 of its 16 mandated major human rights cases. The president has not published its report.

This week's announcement of a new commission came after weeks of attempts by the Sri Lankan government to prevent Ban from establishing a panel of experts. After Ban informed Rajapaksa on March 5 that the secretary-general intended to establish an expert panel to advise him on accountability in Sri Lanka, the Sri Lankan government fiercely protested the decision, denouncing it as "uncalled for" and "unwarranted."

Ban has yet to appoint any members to the panel or announce its terms of reference.

"Secretary-General Ban should not let Sri Lanka bully and manipulate him into abandoning justice for Sri Lanka's war victims," Adams said. "It is time for him to demonstrate that he is squarely on the side of the victims of Sri Lanka's long war."

'Long live human dignity; shame on international community'

2010-05-09T18:56:00.001-07:00

While the so-called international community is "exposed of its shameful conning," thousands of Tamil civilians and combatants are laying down their lives to "uphold Tamil dignity, and human dignity," says a Tamil academic in Colombo. Those who blame the LTTE for bringing in the disaster know well that Colombo always had the option to negotiate or to come out with a political solution convincing Tamils not to continue the conflict. But Colombo’s aim is not power sharing but genocide and subjugation of Tamils by forcing war on them. "The only way now for the IC to come out of the colossus shame is direct intervention and recognition of the justification for Tamil Eelam," the academic said.

Further comments from the academic:

"Mahinda Rajapaksa’s untruthfulness to the world on the use of heavy weapons, the number of Tamil civilians involved in the tragedy and the number of them get killed are too well known. Yet the IC shamefully allows them, allows the imprisonment and inhuman humiliation of civilians and in future plans to leave everything in the hands of Colombo.

"Tamils don’t expect any sense of shame or any justice coming either from Colombo or New Delhi, the partners of the war. The world knows Sonia’s statement a week ago that the war was over by the efforts of her government and Pranab Mukherjee’s statement a couple of months back, putting the number of civilians at 70,000. They will never be bothered about shame.

"China, Russia and Vietnam, by sitting on UN, act on behalf of Colombo and New Delhi, to prevent international action and to keep the Tamil question to rot at the backyard of the war partners. The Indian Establishment is particularly adamant in preventing all international efforts. It could have acted long back had it really cared for its natural allies in the island and even now it doesn’t need any ‘invitation’ from any one, if it wants to do any justice to Tamils. It has to only come out of its ‘bias’.

"But the Co- Chairs and especially the US among them, which is directly involved in the crisis by setting its course diplomatically, has undeniable responsibility. What is the effect or credibility of the recent White House statements is a question widely asked in the Tamil circles now.

"Colombo has neither stopped war nor stopped using heavy weapons and there was no UN to receive the injured and the captured civilians. Only the LTTE responded to the White House statement.

"Caring for Colombo’s meaningless sovereignty and waiting for unwilling India’s consent will bring in only disastrous effects on the credibility of the West and on the reliability of the global order it envisages.

"It is clear that the LTTE is prepared to meet the White House demands within the means of Tamil dignity and if the US statements are going to mean only a conning, they are prepared to die fighting but not without upholding Tamil dignity.

"The ball is in the court of the White House.

"With the dignity and self-respect upheld, the Tamils can always rebuild their struggle. But the shameful ones will never find credibility again."

Germany elects first representative for TGTE

2010-05-09T18:53:00.000-07:00

Vithiya Jeyasangar B.Eng was elected Sunday as the representative for Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE) from Berlin in Germany. The elections for remaining constituencies, except one constituency where 2 representatives are elected uncontested, will take place on 16 May.

Vithiya Jeyasangar B.Eng.Mrs Vithya Jeyasangar received 441 of 630 votes polled in Constituency 1 (Berlin, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Sachsen-Anhalt, Sachsen, Thüringen).

Seven candidates have been nominated in Constituency 3 (Nordrhein-Westfalen), where elections will take place to elect 4 representatives.

Six candidates are contesting in Southern region (Baden-Württemberg, Bayern, Hessen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland) where 3 candidates will be elected.

Two representatives are elected uncontested in Constituency 2 (Bremen, Hamburg, Niedersachsen, Schleswig-Holstein).

TGTE member from New Zealand speaks on Vaddukkoaddai Resolution

2010-05-09T18:48:00.000-07:00

Mr. S.J.V. Chelvanayakam, in his last ever speech in the Sri Lankan parliament on 19 November 1976 said: “Our Party is moving with the idea of establishing a separate state. It is not an easy matter to get a separate State; it is a difficult matter. We know it is difficult. But either we get out of the power of the Sinhala masses or we perish. That is certain. Therefore, we will try and get this separation.” Citing the speech Mr. A. Theva Rajan, member of the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam, from New Zealand, said that the relevance of Vaddukkoaddai Resolution today is unique in historical terms as "the reign of Percival Rajapakse" fully demonstrated to the world that the Tamils are facing a genocidal onslaught. "Rajapakse brothers made the Tamil genocide open, indelible and internationally recorded,” he said.

Mr. A. Theva Rajan with New Zealand parliamentarians [L-R] Mr. Keith Locke, MP (Green Party Leader), Ms. Carol Bemaunt, MP Labour Party and Mr. Rajen Prasad MP (Labour Party) during the announcement by the TGTE election commission in Auckland.
Professor K.S.Naguleswaran (Kailasapillai Sivapatham Naguleswaran) [right] representing Wellington for TGTE. Seen with him is Fr. G. Burns. According to Mr. Theva Rajan, in the 1977 general election the entire country voted on the Vaddukkoaddai Resolution and not just the Tamils. Because, responding to the TULF manifesto based on the VR, even the United National Party made promises of redress. But after coming to power getting 5 / 6 majority with Tamil, Muslim, Malay and Burger support, the Sinhala leadership enacted only ethnic pogroms on Tamils, Theva Rajan said.

Mr Theva Rajan and Prof. K.S. Naguleswaran were elected uncontested from New Zealand for the TGTE, representing the constituencies Auckland and Wellington respectively.

Coming from Puloali West in Jaffna, Theva Rajan, 76 years old, is a scholar in his own right contributed to Tamil studies for more than half a century. He retired early from public service to become a trade unionist and freelance journalist in Tamil and English.

Theva Rajan was one of the first to study the Brahmi inscriptions of Sri Lanka, bringing out the Tamil personal names and the other Dravidian elements in them to the attention of scholars in India and Sri Lanka. In the early 1970s, associated with the Jaffna Archaeological Society, he brought to light a megalithic urn burial in Vallipuram. His research presentations and publications were on wide-ranging topics: Murukan cult among the Sinhalese, Tamil language rights in Sri Lanka, public servants and legal remedies, human rights, children’s literature and many others.

Since 1960s Theva Rajan was associated with the organization of a number of societies such as the committee for the installation of the statue of Arumuga Navalar in 1969, society remembering a Tamil scholar Sathaavathaanam Kathiraivet Pillai and Fr. Thaninayagam Foundation.

Settled in New Zealand in the late 1990s, he is active in working on human rights and on cultural affairs of the diaspora, caring especially the third generation.

Professor K S Naguleswaran, born in Kantharmadam in Jaffna is an old student of Jaffna Hindu College. After graduating from the University of Ceylon, he did his doctoral studies at the University of Birmingham. Now retired after serving as an Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Canterbury, Professor Naguleswaran has told media that it was his early experience of the 1958 pogrom that made him to realise the importance of Human Rights, good governance and democracy.

Following is the full text of an article written by A. Theva Rajan:

HISTORICAL UNIQUENESS OF THE VADDUKKODDAI RESOLUTION

The Vddukkoddai Resolution of 14 May 1976 consists of 13 preambles tracing aspects of the history of the Tamils and their political agitations and experiences.

Preamble 5 is more marked in that it identifies specific areas of deprivals and oppression of the Tamils.

Of these 5(e) is very important in that it embodies the fundamental rights deprived to the Tamils. It says:

“denying to the Tamils equality of opportunity in the spheres of employment, education, land alienation and economic life in general and starving Tamil areas of large scale industries and development schemes thereby seriously endangering their very existence in Ceylon.”

5 (g) deals with state terrorism against Tamil public and 5 (h) deals with state terrorism against Tamil youth.

Emphasizing that the democratic rights of Tamils are being trampled the resolution adds:

“this convention resolves that restoration and reconstitution of the free, sovereign, secular, socialist State of Tamil Eelam, based on the right of self determination inherent to every nation, has become inevitable in order to safeguard the very existence of the Tamil Nation in this country.”

In the General Election that ensued in 1977 the Tamil United Liberation Front made the Vaddukkoddai resolution as the basis of their Manifesto. Ten (10) items under the sub title, The Tamil Nation Under Sinhala Domination, outlines in detail the alienation of Tamils, in their fundamental rights and participatory democracy. The TULF called for a mandate from the Tamil people to carry forward their agenda. The TULF said it:

“.. seeks in the General Election the mandate of the Tamil Nation to establish an independent sovereign, secular, socialist State of Tamil Eelam that includes all the geographically contiguous areas that have been the traditional homeland of the Tamil speaking people in the country.”

The Tamils mandated the Vaddukkoddai resolution at the 1977 General Election with over 75% support. Incidentally, the United National Party in its Election Manifesto for the same elections sought the support of the entire Nation for a mandate to rectify the grievances of the Tamils. The UNP Manifesto said :

“…(that) the United National Party accepts the position that there are numerous problems confronting the Tamil-speaking people. The lack of a solution to their problems had made the Tamil-speaking people support even a movement for the creation of a separate State. In the interest of national integration and unity so necessary for the economic development of the whole country, the Party feels such problems should be solved without loss of time. The Party, when it comes to power, will take all possible steps to remedy their grievances in such fields as – 1) Education : (2) Colonization.(3) Use of the Tamil language : (4) Employment in the Public and Semi Public Corporations.”

The people, Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, Malays and Burghers voted overwhelmingly for the Party and the UNP secured 5/6th majority in Parliament while the TULF was privileged to be the main opposition Party securing the position of the Leader of the Opposition to its leader.

It has to be underlined here that the entire country voted on the Vaddukkoddai resolution mandating the immediate redress for the Tamil grievances.

Events that followed reaffirmed that the mention about Tamil grievances was only like shedding crocodile tears - the usual trump card to secure Tamil votes at the Elections.

Soon afterwards, in August 1978,J.R. Jayawardene, the Prime Minister then, thundered in Parliament “ If you want war let there be war; if you want peace let there be peace.”

It is a repetition of the history of Sinhala leadership.

Even begging for support to entrench them in power and then to cut under the feet of the Tamils. This is the unaltered long dark history of Sinhala politicians. The 1977 and 1983 State oriented pogroms are indelible chapters in the bloody history of Sinhala political leadership.

All that happened under Presidents Jayawardene, Premadasa and Chandrika are dark pages of the history of Sri Lanka’s racist politics.

The reign of Percival Rajapakse fully demonstrated to the world that the Tamils are facing a genocidal onslaught.

Rajapakse brothers made the Tamil genocide open, indelible and internationally recorded.

The late Mr.S.J.V. Chelvanayakam, the internationally revered leader of the Tamils in his last ever speech in Parliament made on 19 November 1976 left this message to the Sinhalese, the Tamils and the Nation and the international community in unambiguous terms.

“Our Party is moving with the idea of establishing a separate state. It is not an easy matter to get a separate State; it is a difficult matter. We know it is difficult. But either we get out of the power of the Sinhala masses or we perish. That is certain. Therefore, we will try and get this separation.” (Parliament Hansard Vol. 1977, column 1965 – 19 November 1976)

In the background of all these developments there can be no doubt that the Vaddukkoddai resolution is unique in historical terms.

2010-05-09T18:46:00.000-07:00

Unite Irish Tamils together!!

Discuss and share links of Tamil Entertainments, Politics, News, Need, Buy and Sells and etc etc for Local and International.

We are Irish Tamils!!! And we are Proud to be One!

With glowing hearts

Tamil Exiles from Ireland

Sri Lanka joins international issues in British parties’ focus

2010-05-05T18:24:00.000-07:00

Sri Lanka’s ethnic crisis is among international issues that have drawn comment by all three main political parties in Britain ahead of the general election on Thursday. The main opposition Conservative party insisted Sri Lanka “take immediate steps to address the concerns of the Tamil people” and emphasised the importance of “meaningful political reform” for lasting peace. The Liberal Democrats, the second largest opposition party, demanded an end to Sri Lanka’s “land-grabbing” and called for the formation of “an independent body to end all fraudulent claims to land.” The ruling Labour party, which raised warcrimes probes in its manifesto, said its 13-year government “had consistently sought to help Sri Lanka achieve a lasting solution and is committed to an inclusive political process.”

The British election is being hard fought, with many polls showing a close, if volatile, race between the three parties, with some analysts even suggesting none of them would be able to secure an outright majority in Parliament.

The texts of statements issued by the parties follow:

Liberal Democrats

“Liberal Democrats believe it is critical that Sri Lanka should not return to the civil war that plagued the country for 25 years and we strongly support British and international efforts to develop infrastructure and improve the standard of life of Sri Lankans. We believe that reconciliation between the Sinhalese and Tamil communities will be vital to future economic growth and long-term prosperity. We believe both the UK and the EU have an important role to play in supporting and encouraging this process. Liberal Democrats have expressed concern at the continued holding of an estimated 100,000 Tamils in internally displaced persons camps over 10 months since last year’s conflict ended, and has urged the UK government to put pressure on the Sri Lankan government to release them as soon as possible. We also support an investigation into any allegation of war crimes by Sri Lankan armed forces and have called for an end to land-grabbing through the formation of an independent body to end all fraudulent claims to land. President Rajapaksa’s Government must stop abusing the political and judicial system, both in terms of their Sinhalese political opponents and in terms of genuine engagement with democratically elected representatives of the Tamil community. The democratic aspirations of the Tamil people cannot continue to be ignored.”

Conservatives

Statement by Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague:

“We welcome the prospect of a future in which Sri Lanka is free from the instability and suffering which has blighted its shores for decades. However we are acutely aware that peace still needs to be won and must be secured if it is to be lasting. For this reason we strongly urge the Sri Lankan government to resolve the difficult political issues that remain and take immediate steps to address the concerns of the Tamil people and those of other minority groups. Meaningful political reform and reconciliation should be an urgent priority but this reform will only hold legitimacy if the democratic aspirations of all Sri Lankans, regardless of ethnicity, can be fulfilled. We believe all communities – Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims - should play a part in the future of the country if peace is to be secured in the long-term.”

Labour

Statement by Foreign Secretary David Miliband:

“The UK has consistently sought to help Sri Lanka achieve a lasting solution to hostilities and is committed to an inclusive political process which includes Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim communities. As Foreign Secretary I visited Sri Lanka at the height of the closing days of war to press for an urgent humanitarian ceasefire because this issue is of utmost importance to me. All of us will be relieved that the long and brutal civil war is at last over. Sri Lanka has now an historic opportunity to ensure a lasting peace. Over the last 5 years we have provided over £41 million in assistance to fight poverty and conflict prevention projects. For the thriving Sri Lankan community in the UK, Labour will continue to promote values we share in common. We urge you to use your vote at the next election and make your choice. A choice between Britain building a fairer future for all at home and abroad through leadership on the world stage, or isolating ourselves as our Conservative opponents seek to do.

Text in Labour manifesto:

“We strongly support reconstruction and reconciliation in Sri Lanka. We believe that both the LTTE and the Government of Sri Lanka must be held to account for the loss of civilian life, and we will continue to urge the Sri Lankan Government to fulfil its commitment to a full and fair investigation into war crimes committed in the final months of the civil war.”

Global consortium of Tamil corporates needed to address Eezham question

2010-05-02T21:06:00.000-07:00

In the present world of corporate colonialism, the national question and the liberation of Eezham Tamils have to be negotiated with the international community in the language of the corporates. But the Tamil corporates, existing in Tamil Nadu and in the diaspora across the world, are yet to be awakened to the prospects of forming a consortium among them to deal with the situation in a concerted way for the mutual benefit of them and the Eezham Tamils. The potentiality of the Tamil corporate world and what it could achieve by coming together globally are still not realised due to lack of initiatives and lack of insight in Tamil political thinking.

The political leadership in Tamil Nadu is poised well in undertaking an initiative in this respect. But succumbing to the system in New Delhi and hijacked by petty prospects of family empires, it has not so far shown any creative approach in empowering Tamils to have political discourse with the world corporate scenario by mobilising economic institutions of global Tamils.

At least in matters of Tamil affairs, Tamil Nadu is bestowed with all potentialities under the current world system to exercise its own foreign policy transcending the constitutional confines of India, through organising global Tamil economic corporation. But so far Tamil Nadu has not even explored the possibility.

A positive trend noticed in the Tamil Nadu diaspora in the USA, after seeing what India and the World did to Eezham Tamils in the war, is that the Brahmin sections and the ‘Dravidian’ sections have now come together united by Tamil nationalism. But polity in Tamil Nadu neither matches itself nor makes the best out of the emerging diaspora realities.

The economic brain of a personality like that of Mr. P. Chidambaram that comes from the heritage of ancient trade guilds of Tamils, serves the systems in New Delhi and Colombo to oppress Eezham Tamils rather than effectuating politico-economic realities to justify their liberation.

The outlook of leading media like The Hindu, owned by Tamils, only champions corporate support to Colombo-centric system at the cost of Eezham Tamil independence and emancipation from genocide.

By crushing the military strength and by engineering elected representation to denounce the cause, the political organisation of Eezham Tamils at home has been made powerless for any independent negotiation with the world of corporates. The diaspora’s political organisation is only in the making and it remains to be seen how effective it will be in such matters.

The net result is that the corporates don’t find any force comfortable for them to deal with among Tamils.

The mechanism is that corporates seek contacts with local corporates for mutual benefits and expansion of the system.

Obviously the choice for the world corporates and the governments behind the corporates is to operate in the island through the Sinhala-owned corporates in the South. This strengthens the Colombo-centric system further and constantly blunts the cause of Tamils.

This is how the land of Tamil nation has become an open hunting ground.

To cite a few examples: The US embassy proudly advertises its exploits in Tamil land through Sinhala-led corporates. Indian intelligence writers now talk of similar corporate to corporate collaboration between India and Sri Lanka to counter China. Like the US Senate Committee report they also advise India to invest more in the South. Aid agencies in the West want to entrust development in the North and East with Sinhala NGOs.

Even Tamil diaspora corporates such as in Malaysia and money-owning individuals among Eezham Tamils are no exceptions in entrusting faith in Colombo’s system.

This is why the brokers of the system in their language tell that Tamils have to be ‘realistic’ and should not ‘confuse between politically achievable and the impossible.’ We already find some of our mainstream politicians too speaking that language.

But a liberation struggle is to make impossible possible.

Of course the corporates will not tell us how to do it. They will not even care for political solutions or for humanitarian situations unless those are inevitable for the ‘stability’ in the ground needed for their operations.

Political struggle at home, in Tamil Nadu and in the diaspora, with political organisation steadfastly committed to the cause, is therefore of supreme importance in creating necessary ground realities and in ensuring whatever benefits the nation get are equally distributed.

But simultaneously on another plane the nation has to negotiate with the corporate system to find overlapping interests with the Eezham Tamil cause.

This task of genuinely supporting the cause and negotiating on its behalf with the corporate world in its language has to be carried out by a world consortium of Tamil corporates.

To the understanding of Eezham Tamils, initiating efforts to bring out global Tamil economic corporation has been vested with the Global Tamil Forum (GTF). Soon they are going to ask what progress has been made in this respect.

MIA spreads genocide message through video, album

2010-05-02T20:40:00.000-07:00

In a recent release of a video called "Born Free" containing "a hyper-violent mini-film" as a pre-release to her forthcoming album to be released on June 29, Oscar and Grammy award nominee, Eezham born music phenom, Maya Arulpragasam (MIA) expresses her sympathy for genocide victims with the powerful imagery of her video. YouTube yanked her video Tuesday, triggering an avalanche of publicity, including a detailed narrative of MIA's album that appeared in the weekend edition of the Washington Post, MTV, and Los Angeles Times among other media outlets.

Eezham born music phenom, Maya Arulpragasam (MIA)"But I'm also invigorated by the video, the message, and the rather massive cajones M.I.A. displayed by making it in the first place. Of course, Ms. Arulpragasam, who is of Sri Lankan descent, has never been one to shy away from the political: Her father was a Tamil militant sympathizer in Sri Lanka, and she's spoken out about the long-running civil war in the country, both verbally and in her work; this video is the latest in a long run of political commentary on her part," MTV's video critic said.

Conjuring images of Sri Lanka's internment camps, in the video, riot gear-clad goons swarm the streets of Los Angeles, rounding up young men with red hair and busing them to a remote internment camp.

MIA's Myspace account, publicizing the video also contains the images from the Channel-4 broadcast execution video showing Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers summarily executing unarmed Tamils stripped naked and hands tied behind the back.

"Whether it's a comment on the absurdity of genocide (of which MIA saw plenty during her early childhood in Sri Lanka) or a challenge to the idea of "other" in Arizona's immigration law, it is startling even in the context of recent genre-bending music art-films," Huffington Post said of MIA's latest work.

"...the transnational hip-hop star's decision to team with Gavras and release a video that clearly connected to the history of political filmmaking is no rash impulse. With "Born Free," M.I.A. lets her growing cult of fans know that she has no intention of softening her message to court the mainstream.," said Los Angeles Times.

This site is dedicated to the Tamil victims tortured, raped and murdered by the Sinhalese community.

2010-04-27T19:17:00.000-07:00

Executive Summary of the evidence of war crimes committed by the Government of Sri Lanka

2010-04-27T19:13:00.000-07:00

EU shares blame for failure of Sri Lankan cease fire agreement and peace talks

2010-04-25T18:30:00.000-07:00

strongly regret the unilateral decision by the Sri Lankan government to abrogate the cease fire agreement of 2002, however I do understand the militaristic mindset of the current political establishment in Colombo but must underline that there can never be a military solution to the legitimate grievances of the Tamil people.

The international community with special regard to the European Union (except Finland, Sweden and Denmark) are to blame for the failure of the cease fire agreement. The decision to ban one of the parties of this agreement had led to the foundation of the current friction in the military balance that affects the process to facilitate a durable solution to the conflict.

This decisive step in foreign policy by the European Union has been a huge mistake and in this context the European Commissioner for External Relations Benita Ferrero-Waldner statements are considered meaningless to the warring parties as the EU credibility has been weakened in the process of mediating.

Norway and Iceland has been left aside in their very sincere efforts to stop this decades old civil war. The decision by the European Union was considered as an unwise decision and objection has been made by the SLMM and Norway, however the EU was not willing to reconsider their decision and favoured a Bush policy, which led to a severe increase of violence.

I am disappointed that the international community has again failed to stop the deteriorating situation of this conflict and urge them to implement an en-compassing strategy which should be based on a even-handed approach to the warring parties. Unless this is achieved by the international community, both parties will resume hostilities and that might change the future status of this island and will once again affect all ethnic communities in Sri Lanka.

No short cuts to peace, says a South African peace delegation

2010-04-25T18:27:00.000-07:00

Peace doesn’t come easy, so start working at it, says a team of South African peace delegates, to Sri Lanka’s business community.

As Biki Minyuku, the former head of South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission put it, "There are no short cuts to peace, it’s a long haul flight." Minyuku was explaining to the local business community on Tuesday, how South Africa moved from the apartheid social-straight-jacket to democratic governance.

"You have to get started," says John Hall, a businessman who is also the chairman of South Africa’s National Peace Accord.

The South African team, that has had hands on experience in driving peace from within the private sector, is in Sri Lanka to share their experience with the local business community.

It was South Africa’s business community- later joined by religious leaders- that pressured political parties to put an end to decades of apartheid driven violence that crippled the countries economy.

Now Sri Lanka’s private sector too, is stirring itself awake to reactivate the peace process through the Sri Lanka First movement.

As the South Africans point out, nothing short of full time dedication to peace facilitation can build trust and credibility in the private sector.

In fact it was the business community and the churches that convened South Africa’s first peace meeting - the then government, the National Party finally called for peace talks when the violence became uncontrollable but no one would come.

So now Sri Lanka’s business community is taking a leaf off the South African experience and is trying to coax various political parties and the LTTE back to the peace table.

They are also looking at setting up a permanent secretariat and a trust fund for full time peace activity.

"We invite you to help us start this business fund that is very much similar to the model in South Africa," said Neela Marikkar Chairperson of Sri Lanka First.

South Africa’s Business Trust was set up by its businesses that went so far as to endow the fund with one billion Rand to start off with.

The trust is to this day sustained by funds from companies, matched by government contributions.

The money, on corporate-government consensus, goes into selected social and economic development activities like education and employment generation.

Although the local business community did make a proposal for a similar fund in Sri Lanka ‘’the government,’ they say ‘has not acknowledged the proposal.’

Truth and Forgiveness

The powerful Truth and Reconciliation Commission was part of the social healing process, where South Africans learned about thousands of deaths, tortures and disappearances.

"Out of thousands of amnesty applications around 60 percent was granted amnesty, but these people didn’t have to face street justice," says Minyuku.

He tells a story of a man that was tortured and torn in two up to the neck.

"The Arch Bishop Desmond Tutu fainted when he heard the man’s story."

But thousands of torture victims and families were willing to forgive similar atrocities and reintegrate their torturers back into society on an amnesty.

"South Africans must be very forgiving," says a local businessman.

"No. South Africa wanted reconstruction after decades of apartheid and violence. Street justice would have a spiral effect of violence, not reconstruction," says Minyuku.

South Africa also restructured her security forces after the peace accord.

Law enforcement and security personnel were given the option of joining the new South African forces or leaving their jobs.

Those that opted out were re-trained and re-oriented for civil occupations.

The South African administration set up a personnel register to track security personnel that had vacated their posts, including deserters.

World and Eelam Struggle - Sub Categories

2010-04-25T18:21:00.000-07:00

The proposed project to establish the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam is by far the best, most hopeful and exciting thing that has happened to Tamils in a long while. It gives us hope at a time when our kith and kin are being illegally held in detention camps under appalling conditions and subjected to starvation and medical neglect.

It gives us hope at a time when Tamil families are being torn apart, children and women are being subjected to sexual abuse, and young adults are being tortured and even unlawfully killed by the Sri Lankan security forces. It gives us hope at a time when our lands are being illegally expropriated by the rapacious Sri Lankan state and Sinhalese from distant places are being illegally settled there to change the demography of the North and East of the island.

It gives us hope at a time when Buddhist structures are being built everywhere in an orgy of triumphalism. In other words the Sinhalese government of Sri Lanka is not only acting illegally and without limits but is doing so with impunity.

Under these circumstances the most effective means of countering the continuing atrocities is through engaging those in the international community who are genuinely committed to protecting human rights through a credible and democratically constituted high profile organization that enjoys the confidence of the Tamil-speaking people in the island and the support of the Tamils the world over.

The proposed Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam will have the right credentials to enter into dialogue with the international community with a view to winning support for pursuing the Tamil people’s aspirations to enjoy freedom, security and self-determination in the island of Sri Lanka.

Why Tamils Need To Project A United Front Under A Democratic Framework

The international community remained silent while the government of Sri Lanka committed war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrating a continuing genocide on the Tamil-speaking people in the island. In the absence of a popular democratic global Tamil organization to dialogue with and serve as a channel of communication with the rest of the world the situation is not getting any better. On the contrary the government of Sri Lanka is getting more brazen in its attitude.

We cannot allow this unsatisfactory situation to continue while extra judicial killings and unlawful imprisonment of our people grow inexorably, while the Tamil-speaking people are deprived of fundamental freedoms including civil, political and human rights and a quality of life that are basic under the norms of good governance.

If this situation is allowed to continue unchecked it will result in the total annihilation of the Tamil nation. Under these circumstances the Tamil Diaspora needs to come together sink any differences that may have existed among them and take concerted and urgent steps to establish an internationally acceptable organization.

Setting Up A Credible And High Profile Organization

Last June, an Advisory Committee comprising persons of distinction with empathy for the Tamils and an intimate knowledge of the history of the persecution of Tamils in Sri Lanka was tasked to draw up proposals for establishing the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam. The Advisory Committee’s report and recommendations were released in mid January 2010 on Thai Pongal day.

The report is well researched. It lucidly presents essential historical facts with courage and candor. It lays down the parameters of the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam and spells out the steps that need to be taken to implement the project in a logical, democratic and transparent manner so as to earn not only the respect and recognition of the international community but also the confidence of the Tamil-speaking people in Sri Lanka. We extend our hearty congratulations to the Advisory Committee for a job well done.

It’s vital that we come together and do everything within our power to popularize and support this praiseworthy venture and ensure its speedy and successful implementation. It is only by all Tamils joining together to support the project and working in concert to make it function smoothly and efficiently that the proposed Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam will have the requisite democratic credentials and political stature to be taken seriously by the United Nations and the international community.

Hence I urge everyone to read the report, digest it and make it your personal and sacred duty to actively encourage your Tamil and non-Tamil friends alike to share your dreams of establishing Tamil Eelam and a better future for all Tamil-speaking people in the island.

The Popular Democratic Mandate For The Liberation Struggle

We are all aware that all the Tamil political parties met in convention in Vaddukoddai in May 1976 to consider ways of ending 28 years of merciless persecution and discrimination at the hands of successive Sinhalese dominated governments.

The Convention unanimously adopted a resolution that read as follows: “Restoration and reconstitution of the Free, Sovereign and Secular state of Tamil Eelam based on the right of self-determination inherent to every nation, has become inevitable in order to safeguard the very existence of the Tamil Nation in this country”.

The same Vaddukoddai Convention also declared as follows. (1) The State of Tamil Eelam shall consist of the people of the Northern and Eastern provinces;
(2) The State of Tamil Eelam shall ensure full and equal rights of citizenship to all Tamil-speaking people living in any part of Ceylon;
(3) The State of Tamil Eelam shall extend citizenship rights to Tamils of Eelam origin living in any part of the world who may opt for citizenship of Tamil Eelam;
(4) The constitution of Tamil Eelam shall be based on the principle of democratic decentralization so as to ensure the non-domination of any religious or territorial community of Tamil Eelam by any other section.
(5) In the State of Tamil Eelam caste shall be abolished and the observance of pernicious practices of untouchability or inequality of any type based on birth shall be totally eradicated and its observance in any form punished by law.
(6) Tamil Eelam shall be a secular state giving equal protection and assistance to all religions to which the people of the state may belong.

The clearly forward thinking Vaddukoddai Resolution was not only approved unanimously by the Convention but was subsequently presented to the Tamil nation as the TULF party political platform in the general elections of 1977 and overwhelmingly endorsed by the entire Tamil nation in a free and fair vote.

Changing Complexion Of Peaceful Democratic Protests

The Tamil-speaking people’s democratic Gandhian style protests against state sponsored genocidal policies and pogroms began in the mid 1950s. Over time and in response to the worsening and unbearable cruelty inflicted on Tamil civilians by the Sinhalese police and military the complexion of democratic protests changed to armed self-defensive resistance by the LTTE against repeated Sinhalese onslaught.

It is indeed sad to record that the international community watched in silence the continued oppression and violence perpetrated on the Tamils. It is indeed sad to record that some countries gave their tacit support and even military hardware and intelligence to the oppressor to destroy the LTTE by merely branding it a “terrorist” organization thereby leaving the Tamils entirely unprotected. Such unjustifiable action by the international community contributed to the ever mounting Tamil civilian death toll and the wholesale slaughter of an estimated 48,000 innocent Tamil civilians at Mullivaikaal in the final forty-eight hours of the war.

We Need To Inform, Educate And Engage The International Community

Against the backdrop of such injustice the Tamils have found it necessary to redouble their efforts and come together through a democratic process to collectively present candid and irrefutable facts to the international community and persuade them to see the truth behind the Tamil nation’s persecution and resulting struggle for liberation and self-determination.

We cannot tarry any further to help break the silence of the international community by showing them that our struggle is firmly rooted in an overwhelming democratic mandate delivered via a free and fair vote. We need to get the international community to break its silence and demonstrate compassion for the Tamils by supporting the Tamil people’s struggle for human rights, freedom, security and self-determination. The recent action by the European Union to withdraw “GSP plus” privileges from Sri Lanka is ample proof that this can be done. We salute all the Tamils and Tamil organizations that fought hard to achieve this.

Martin Luther King is quoted as having said, “Even long after the taunting words of the cruel oppressor have been forgotten, one will always remember only the silence of one’s friends”.

We cannot allow our friends in the international community and organizations, which espouse an enduring commitment for human rights and democracy to remain silent while our kith and kin, are being sexually abused, tortured and slaughtered with impunity.

Acting Within and With The Support Of The Law

The Advisory Committee has assured us that the project to establish the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam will conform to international laws and the laws of the democracies that host the Tamil Diaspora.

The Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam the Pride of the Tamils

The Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam is the pride of the Tamils for the following additional reasons.

(a) It is built on a firm foundation of transparency, democracy and human rights.
(b) It is designed to embrace all Tamil-speaking people wherever they may have been born or chosen to live.
(c) It encourages Tamils to forge closer and stronger ties with all Tamil-speaking people especially the Muslims.
(d) It hurdles all religious boundaries and gender distinctions.
(e) It reaffirms and proclaims to the world our faith in the universal truth that we are all children of God.
(f) It reaffirms our acceptance of the principle that all of us have equal rights under law and a shared responsibility to uphold the law.
(g) It aims to provide equal rights to all of us to enjoy peace with security while we pursue prosperity and the well-being of our future generations.

Urgent Need To Establish Tamil Eelam

At present Tamils of Sri Lanka have lost the land they called home – their motherland, and are dispersed all over the world, just like the Jews were at one time not long ago. They must act to facilitate the long-term development and growth of their motherland so as to ensure that it is not lost forever for current and future generations. Tamils outside and inside the island are stakeholders and therefore must act on this.

It is not difficult to see that the establishment of Tamil Eelam as a model state based on democracy, freedom of thought and expression, the rule of law and respect for human rights will throw open the door to endless possibilities to support the future growth and prosperity of all Tamil-speaking people throughout the world. For instance the world has come to recognize that the founding of the state of Israel in 1948 transformed the outlook and ensured the future well being of Jews who had for centuries suffered persecution throughout the world.

As such there is no denying that the successful implementation of the proposal to establish the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam will help Tamils throughout the world to work towards the establishment of Tamil Eelam as a means for Tamils to not only realize their full potential but also contribute towards creating a better and more just society in the island.

Steps For Establishing The Transnational Government Of Tamil Eelam

It is proposed to take the following democratic and transparent steps. 1. Form a Transnational Constituent Assembly to draw up a Constitution for the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam.
2. The Transnational Constituent Assembly will comprise 135 members of whom 115 will be elected directly and democratically from the Tamil Diaspora living in 16 of 26 regions worldwide. Due to logistical considerations such as small and diffused population or difficulty of access the balance 20 members will be nominated from the remaining regions.
3. Simultaneously with drafting the constitution the Constituent Assembly would also design the organizational structure of the Transnational Government with a view to addressing the most pressing needs of the Tamil-speaking people of the island. Canadian Tamil Membership Quota

Canada having the largest presence in the Diaspora has been assigned the largest quota of 25 members - all elected. It is important to note that with a view to promoting the active participation by women and youth, no less than ten (10) places will be reserved for them (no less than 5 places for women and no less than 5 places for youth).

Proposed Election Date

The Country Working Group has recently announced that voting will take place on Sunday 2nd May 2010.

Procedures For The Election Process

1. Country Working Groups and Secretariats have already been established to facilitate the conduct of fair and free election in the various regions where Eelam Tamil Diaspora lives.
2. Country Secretariats are busy performing the various tasks needed to plan and conduct the electoral process and implement other essential programs.
3. Country Working Groups will also establish independent Election Commissions to (a) establish a voter registration system; (b) receive applications from those wishing to be candidates for the Constituent Assembly; and (c) count the votes and announce the results.
4. Such Country Working Groups have been active in reaching out and engaging the local Tamil organizations and Tamil people including political leaders, the media and other key figures in civil society to explain the concept of the Transnational Government and solicit support.

Voter Eligibility

1. Eligible voters shall be connected to Tamil Eelam by descent, marriage, adoption or naturalization.
2. Voters must have reached their seventeenth (17th) birthday by Election Day (May 2nd 2010). Voter eligibility shall be evaluated by the election officials prior to or on the day of the election.

Objectives Of The Transnational Government Of Tamil Eelam

The Constituent Assembly will frame the Constitution of the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam taking into consideration the following.
(1) The primary objective of the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam is to establish itself as a respected democratic institution with worldwide support from Tamil-speaking people.
(2) To help the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam to evolve as a power center for the global Tamil community
(3) To develop its institutional capacity to function as a parallel government providing economic, political, moral and diplomatic support for the Tamil-speaking people both in the island and throughout the world.
(4) Need to incorporate a “Recall Provision” to remove from membership through a referendum those elected members who are deemed to pursue policies that go detrimental to the best interests of the Tamil people.

For the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam to fulfill its role effectively it needs the recognition of the following four actors, namely, (a) The Eelam Tamil Diaspora,
(b) The Tamil-speaking people in our homeland,
(c) The global Tamil-speaking community,
(d) The international community.
Diplomacy The Means

The Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam will use diplomacy as a means to influence people and win friends in the international community to achieve its aims.

To ensure the success of the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam in winning the human rights and the right to self-determination of Tamils we must all come together by making a conscious and sincere effort to sink our differences in the interests of achieving the greater good of the Tamil-speaking people.

Have One Dream and Let’s Work As One to Achieve It

We have one dream. Let us organize ourselves to strengthen bonds, reach out to others, win friends and earn the goodwill of the international community towards realizing this dream. Only by working together can this be achieved.

We Have A Duty To Turn Tragedy Into Action

We It is nearly one year since the greatest tragedy of all struck the Tamil nation. Yet we have an opportunity to turn tragedy into positive action to resurrect the Tamil nation and give it new life and set it on a winning path. Let us dedicate ourselves to working together to fulfill this wonderful dream.

Let all of us dutifully and patriotically cast our votes on Sunday May 2nd 2010to elect the Canadian representatives to the democratically elected Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam. May God bless Tamil Eelam and the Tamil-speaking people!

S. B. Sri-Skanda-Rajah PhD (Cambridge) Tamil Eelam Advocacy Group (Dedicated to working in concert with compassionate people the world over To establish Tamil Eelam by persuasively presenting candid facts about the deprivation of human rights of Eelam Tamils and their continuing genocide) Reference: Report titled “Formation of a Provisional Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (Released on 14 January 2010)

99.4 percent vote for Tamil Eelam in Australia

2010-04-25T18:06:00.000-07:00

99.4 percent of those who cast votes in the Tamil referendum across Australia last weekend said “yes” to the formation of independent and sovereign Tamil Eelam in the contiguous north and east of the island of Sri Lanka. The results were announced Thursday at a press conference held at NSW State Parliament in front of state and national media. 8,272 out of the registered, numbering around 10,000, participated in the polls. The number of eligible Eezham Tamil voters in Australia is estimated to be around 15,000. The formation of Tamil Eelam was assented by 8,154. The negative votes were 51 and 67 were invalid.

CPI Strategic, an independent body engaged by event organisers to coordinate and process the ballot, announced the results.

The results of the referendum, the first in the eastern hemisphere, is being touted by Diaspora circles as evidence for the aspiration of Tamil Eelam in the diaspora across major parts of the world.

Members of the national press and human rights activists were addressed by a panel consisting of Greens Senator Ian Cohen, who launched the event alongside TRCA representative Dr Gowri Palan, Australian Tamil Congress (ATC) national spokesperson Sam Pari and CPI Strategic spokesperson Steven Newnham , who announced the results at 2:30 p.m. AEST.

“The Tamil referendum employed a far more rigorous process then AEC (Australian Electoral Commission) elections, and we are very confident that the numbers are an accurate indication of voter opinion” said Newnham, citing the need for all voters to provide photographic I.D before casting their vote as opposed to a standard voters list used in Australian political elections.

Dr Sam Pari, national spokesperson for the Australian Tamil Congress told reporters that the result of the mandate and overwhelming support for Tamil independence merely “backs what has been seen as the general consensus for the many decades”.

“If a similar procedure was to be held on the island of Sri Lanka without voters fearing intimidation, we believe the same trend shown in these results and in similar referendums held across the world, would be evident” she said, before again calling upon the U.N to facilitate a similar referendum in Northern and Eastern provinces of the island of Sri Lanka to assess the will of the people and their political aspirations.

TRCA Spokesperson Dr Gowri Palan, citing the fact that over 200,000 “yes” votes had been registered in similar referendums across the globe, said the results were a clear indication of the Diasporas desires held under a transparent and democratic framework.

Representatives from the ATC and TRCA also highlighted the inaction of successive Australian Governments throughout the armed conflict and the current administrations’ decision to refuse asylum to Tamil refugees as reaffirming the importance of the Diaspora voicing its opinion in a transparent and unquestionable manner as embodied by the voting process.

"These results show that the Australian Government failed in its responsibility to listen to its citizens by refusing to condemn its Sri Lankan counterparts, despite vociferous protests from Tamils across the country," said TRCA spokesperson Adrian Francis.

“The inhumane policies taken up by the federal government in dealing with the issue of Tamil refugees, after years of ignoring their plight in their homeland illustrates the need for a paradigm shift within the political landscape, and we hope this referendum can kick start the process” he continued.

British Tamils must pick candidate, not party

2010-04-25T18:03:00.000-07:00

With Britain’s general election less than two weeks away, campaigning is in full swing. In an election that is too close to call and with many constituencies where British Tamils' vote can be decisive, the vital question facing expatriate Tamils is where best to place their votes? "As British Tamils, we have in this country, every opportunity to make our voices heard. By participating with enthusiasm in the forthcoming general elections British Tamils can work towards a just and stable future for Tamils in Sri Lanka," argues TamilNet political commentator in UK.

Leaders of British Parties: Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrats), David Cameron (Conservative) and Gordon Brown (Labor)The commentator further writes:

The simple answer is that Tamils should pick the candidate in each constituency who is the best on the Tamil issue. In the absence of a clear policy position from any of the three main parties, Tamils should not make their decision on the basis of party platforms.

Voting by candidate rather than party also makes the most sense given that none of the parties is assured a strong majority in the next parliament. Opting for the best candidate on the Tamil issue can ensure that there is a strong cross party voice for Tamils in the next parliament.

At the official policy level there is very little to choose between the three parties. However, the governing party for the past thirteen years, the Labour party, has of course the most to answer for. Since Labour came to power in 1997 British policy towards Sri Lanka has steadfastly backed the Sri Lankan state despite the visible cost to the Tamils.

The Labour government enthusiastically supported President Chandrika Kumaratunga's disastrous 'war for peace', proscribed the LTTE while the Norwegians were exploring peace, and also lobbied strongly for EU proscription of the LTTE while the peace process was ongoing.

Britain also led international efforts to give President Mahinda Rajapakse the green light to resume the war in 2006 and stood idly by while Sri Lanka massacred Tamils in Vanni and the East, including using British-supplied armaments.

Both Prime Minister Tony Blair and his successor, Gordon Brown, held well publicized meetings with President Rajapakse, even as human rights abuses spiralled.

Finally, when the slaughter in the Vanni reached a crescendo in the early months of 2009 the UK government did not make an unequivocal statement – in contrast to the United States. Not even when tens of thousands of Tamils demonstrated in front of parliament.

Those protests did, however, open a new era of interaction between British Tamils and the UK’s political parties and state.

Although there is now a growing engagement on the Tamil question by the Labour party this cannot readily compensate for the wreckage of the past thirteen years.

There is therefore no longer a question of a block Tamil vote. However, the Tamils do have strong friends in the Labour party and they should be supported as a means of urgently addressing Labour's utterly discredited Sri Lanka policy.

As the main UK opposition party the Conservatives have not fared much better. Although they cannot be held directly responsible for the disasters of British policy they have also failed to oppose Labour's position on Sri Lanka in any serious way.

If anything, the Conservatives have been even more insistent in viewing Sri Lanka purely through the anti terror framework and have, therefore, until recently, been utterly insensitive to the issue of Sri Lanka’s structural genocide.

The recent progress in engagement between the Conservative party and Tamils should be encouraged, and Tamils should give every support to those Tory candidates who have taken a principled position on the Tamil issue – just as they should support those Labour candidates with a clear stance on the same.

The Liberal Democrats have traditionally been more outspoken against Sri Lanka’s violence against the Tamils. There are a number of Lib Dem MPs who have taken clear and consistent positions on the Tamil issue who also deserve the Tamils' ongoing support and encouragement. However, the Liberal Democrats can do more, a clear commitment in favour of Tamils’ self determination. Such a position is in keeping with the larger Liberal Democrat ethos.

As the campaign heats up, many candidates in areas with a significant number of Tamil electorate are directly canvassing Tamil voters. In locations where the Tamil vote can make a real difference, Tamils ought to vote for the candidate who has the best record on the Tamil issue, irrespective of party.

Tamils should support candidates who will be effective voices on the Tamil issue not just in parliament but also within their own parties. Those candidates who have worked hard to lobby their own party leaderships in support of the Tamil issue should especially be supported.

Conversely, those candidates who have been associated with the anti-Tamil polices of the UK government in the past thirteen years should not be able to call upon Tamil support. This applies especially to those who served as ministers and thus actively supported Sri Lanka.

The most important thing however is that British Tamils' participation in British politics continues its upward trajectory. Whatever the outcome of the election and whichever candidates wins in any particular constituency, if British Tamils participate in large numbers that alone will take the Tamil issue forward in the coming years.

As British Tamils, we have in this country, every opportunity to make our voices heard. In contrast to the situation faced by our people in Sri Lanka, we can freely participate in the electoral process, make our opinions known, vote in full confidence of a rigorous and fair electoral mechanism, lobby our representatives and canvass support for the Tamil cause without fear of intimidation and oppression.

The Tamils in Sri Lanka have no such luxury and as the results of the last parliamentary elections on the island shows most Tamils have lost faith in the democratic process. In Britain the reverse is true: Tamils are engaging in democratic processes as never before, as exemplified by the massive turnout for Jan Jananayagam's electoral campaign and the Vaddukoddai referendum.

By participating with enthusiasm in the forthcoming general elections British Tamils can work towards a just and stable future for Tamils in Sri Lanka. By voting here, now and in the coming years, we will make a difference over there.

Tamils From Ireland

2010-04-01T20:16:00.000-07:00

TamilNet.Com

2010-03-25T20:59:00.000-07:00

India had larger plans when it backed genocidal Colombo in the UN Human Rights Council. India is now embarked upon a greater genocidal war against its own tribal nations, picking up the footsteps of Colombo, making use of its partnership experience in crushing Eezham Tamils, exploiting the impotency of international community and encouraged by the electoral endorsement from Tamil Nadu. The precarious dimensions of the ongoing war in Central India, vividly brought out by Arundhati Roy in Outlook India this week, need careful study by all Eezham Tamils to device apt political moves for them and for the benefit of entire humanity. The IC, Tamils in India and progressive Sinhalese have to realise that acknowledging Eezham Tamil independence is a test case in reconstructing State outlook that is messing up life in entire South Asia and in achieving wider solidarity of peoples in the region.

One of the grievances of Eezham Tamils at the height of war was about information sabotage in the Age of Information – how successfully the powers managed a war without witnesses, twisted the cause and came out with lies. Some Indian Ministers went on record on this ‘achievement.’

One of them, P. Chidambaram as home minister now, is commandeering a war in similar lines against the long-oppressed tribal nations of his own country and the world as usual is not caring in the name of state sovereignty.

In a setting where the Indian Establishment used Sikhs and Gurkhas to fight a war against Eezham Tamils in 1987, used Kerala diplomats to sabotage the Tamil cause and uses Tamil soldiers to fight Kashmiris and Assamese in the frontiers, it is not surprising that the Eezham Tamils and their diaspora is not paying enough attention to understand what is going on in Dandakaranya in Central India. This is the success of the Establishment ‘for the corporates, by the corporates, of the corporates,’ in the name of democracy.

Sections of Eezham Tamils may think that they are not tribals and the Indian Establishment will treat them differently by taking them as partners. So why jeopardize the Establishment by showing solidarity to the oppressed others? There are some who harp only on Tamil Nadu and don’t extend their vision beyond. There are also sections that believe sooner or later India will be forced to recognize Tamil Eelam due to China’s inroads into the Island. Some envisage that India will ‘empower’ them by giving fresh ‘training.’

All of them have to carefully read what Arundhati Roy portrays in Dawn / Outlook India this week to realise that nothing is more important than Eezham Tamils evolving their own independent polity with wider and progressive outlook, to meet any unfolding eventuality.

Excerpts of the article "Walking With The Comrades" by Arundhati Roy appeared in Dawn and Outlook India this week follow:

The deadly war that is unfolding in the jungle is a war that the Government of India is both proud and shy of. Operation Green Hunt has been proclaimed as well as denied. P. Chidambaram, India’s home minister (and CEO of the war), says it does not exist, that it’s a media creation. And yet substantial funds have been allocated to it and tens of thousands of troops are being mobilised for it. Though the theatre of war is in the jungles of Central India, it will have serious consequences for us all.

On one side is a massive paramilitary force armed with the money, the firepower, the media, and the hubris of an emerging Superpower. On the other, ordinary villagers armed with traditional weapons, backed by a superbly organised, hugely motivated Maoist guerrilla fighting force with an extraordinary and violent history of armed rebellion.

Each time, it seemed as though the Maoists (or their previous avatars) had been not just defeated, but literally, physically exterminated. Each time, they have re-emerged, more organised, more determined and more influential than ever. Today once again the insurrection has spread through the mineral-rich forests of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and West Bengal—homeland to millions of India’s tribal people, dreamland to the corporate world.

The Indian Constitution, the moral underpinning of Indian democracy, was adopted by Parliament in 1950. It was a tragic day for tribal people. The Constitution ratified colonial policy and made the State custodian of tribal homelands. Overnight, it turned the entire tribal population into squatters on their own land.

Over the past five years or so, the governments of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Orissa and West Bengal have signed hundreds of MoUs with corporate houses, worth several billion dollars, all of them secret, for steel plants, sponge-iron factories, power plants, aluminium refineries, dams and mines. In order for the MoUs to translate into real money, tribal people must be moved.

Therefore, this war.

Tamils From Ireland - Facebook

2010-03-17T22:47:00.000-07:00

The panel of experts being set up by the United Nations as part of an accountability process following the end of the civil war in Sri Lanka will not infringe on the country’s sovereignty, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday. Mr. Ban told journalists that the establishment of the panel is in line with a joint statement he issued with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa during his visit to the country last May after Government forces defeated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), according to UN News Centre press release Tuesday

Irish Tamil Forum

2010-03-17T22:32:00.000-07:00

Rasaratham Suresh, a Tamil from Jaffna in Sri Lanka travelled a long way from his home town to a country he had hardly heard about before. His story illustrates how a mixture of political turmoil and economic hardship drives people from their home countries. It also shows how travel destinations unexpectedly change.

Interview by Jakub Boratynski

On a chilly February morning, the refugee reception centre in Debak near Warsaw is nearly empty. The day before, a large group of Somalis was moved to another centre in southern Poland. That's why Rasaratham Suresh does not have too many customers in the canteen where he sells cigarettes, candies and beer so we sit at an old wooden table and talk.

Last autumn, the 31-year-old Tamil arrived in a country he had hardly heard of before. Coming from a well-off middle class family in Jaffna, Rasaratham earned a degree in electronic engineering from the University of Colombo. He later married Kalevani, his high school sweetheart, who teaches the traditional Indian dance Bharatha Natiyam. Rasaratham says he never wished for anything extraordinary, just a simple, peaceful existence and a happy family life. He took seriously what his father, a former political activist, used to tell him: "Tamils do not have it easy. So study hard and find a good job." But it did not quite work out that way.

"Problems started when I was looking for my first job," he recalls now. "Any employer who realized that I was a Tamil no longer wanted to talk to me. Any young Tamil like me was automatically suspected of being a member of the Tamil Tigers" – the army of the separatist movement in northern Sri Lanka.

Rasaratham, like many Sri Lankans of his generation, eventually found a job in one of the Persian Gulf countries. But he returned home after he received more and more worrying news about the safety of his family in Jaffna. In October 1991, his house was bombed. Kalevani survived by chance because she had gone to the kitchen just before the blast. "Before that incident we had problems but we could still stay in our house," Rasaratham said. "When that was destroyed and we lost everything, I really felt like a refugee." After that, as the frontlines continually shifted, so the Rasarathams were constantly forced to move from one place to another in search of safety.

In June 1994, during a routine police check in Colombo, Rasaratham was arrested and held for two weeks. He was released after his family paid the equivalent of $1,000, only to be arrested again in similar circumstances in August 1995. He says as a young Tamil, he was doomed to have problems either with the government or with the Tigers who tried to recruit young Tamils. "I neither wanted to work for the government nor was I keen on fighting for the Tigers," he says.

"My little daughter had a serious hearing problem as a result of the shelling. I was really afraid for her," he said. It finally made him decide to get out of Sri Lanka. This cost him $20,000, practically all the savings his brother had made while working in a restaurant in the mountain resort of St. Gallen in Switzerland. The money went to a smuggler in Colombo who euphemistically called himself a 'travel agent.'

Everything then happened very quickly. He recalls taking a taxi to the airport, where he showed his brand new passport and ticket. "The 'travel agent' had told me that everything was O.K. and I shouldn't worry," Rasaratham laughs sarcastically, "I really was not worried at that point. I thought that the $20,000 would get me to Zurich." To his astonishment the signs at the airport where he and his family landed read MOSCOW. In the arrival area, they were approached by a Russian who spoke little English but nevertheless collected the 'balance' of the money owed the so-called travel agent.

They spent five days in total isolation in a house on the outskirts of Moscow before being bundled into a car for 36 hours and finally dumped at another large house already full of Sri Lankans, Indians and Bangladeshis. "We were crammed into this house like sardines in a tin can," he says. "A guy brought us some water and biscuits. The 'Made in Poland' label on the packet of biscuits told me where I actually was."

Rasaratham was finally taken by the Polish police to a reception centre in the town of Debak where he "spent the first three months just sleeping and eating. It was very depressing." Eventually one of the centre's social workers, Mrs. Ania, asked him to run the canteen where he now earns 200 zloty ($70) per month and escapes the boredom just a little. His wife and daughter Anushika have joined him and life is getting better. "It's very simple," he says. "Here, we don't hear bombs and machine guns."

Asked whether he would like ever to return home, he responds, "Sri Lanka is my only mother country. One day I will go back there. We still have 50 acres of land which is now in the war zone." He points to his friend who has joined us at the canteen's table and says emphatically: "He is a very, very rich man. For generations they had accumulated so much land. Do you believe that if our country was peaceful we would have any economic problems?"

Rasaratham talks a lot about the future. A Polish businessman offered him a job. Mrs. Ania has told him that he could have his engineering degree recognized in Poland. And as more Sri Lankans start to settle in Poland, his wife could perhaps start giving dancing classes. At heart, whether in Sri Lanka or Poland, Rasaratham is an optimist. That is in sharp contrast to many asylum-seekers striving to make it to western Europe.

Sri Lanka soldiers remanded over rape of 9-year old Tamil girl.TamilNet.com

2010-02-27T19:50:00.000-08:00

Six Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers were taken into custody for allegedly molesting a nine-year-old Tamil girl at Ki'raan Vaazhaichcheani in the eastern Batticaloa district, sources in Batticaloa said. The victim identified one of the perpetrators during an identification parade held in Batticaloa Magistrate Court. Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) reported that the soldiers of the Digiliwatiya camp had threatened the protesting villagers, and the body of one protester was recovered in a pond near the SLA camp after the protests.

The victim "was returning home in the company of two of her friends when soldiers bathing near a well chased after her and raped her. The girl was admitted to a hospital and the medical reports confirmed that she had been sexually abused. It is also reported that the girl who is still being treated at the hospital is being questioned constantly by commando officers," AHRC report said.

The alleged incident happened on the 12th of February. The suspects have been remanded by the Batticaloa Magistrate until 3rd of March, legal sources in Batticaloa said.

When the issue of rape by SLA soldiers was raised by US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, Sri Lanka's Defense Ministry website carried a refutation, saying "such sadistic allegations are far from the existing realities: far from the truth," and added that "there was no basis whatsoever even to suggest Sri Lankan forces had involved in such gross violence during its three-year humanitarian campaign."

British weekly, The Observer, in December 2009 said that "Tamil women interned after escaping the horrors of the civil war in Sri Lanka were sexually abused by their guards who traded sex for food," reporting on an interview with Vany Kumar, a British medic who was released from internment in September from the camps run by Sri Lanka military.

"Systematic rape of Tamil women in custody and in areas under control of Security forces, and sexual abuse of LTTE women cadres caught during combat, had occured from as early as September 1996 when Krishanthy Kumarasamy, a 17-year old highschooler, was murderd after being stopped and raped at an SLA sentry point at Kaithadi, Jaffna. Horrendous videos showing Sri Lankan soldiers abusing women cadres stripped naked have routinely surfaced," said activist for a Washington-based pressure group.

UN Resolution 1325
The link between maintaining international peace and security, and preventing and responding to sexual violence used as a tactic of war to target civilians was first laid out in last year's United Nation's Security Council resolution 1325.

United Nations charged 114 Sri Lankan soldiers who were on peace-keeping missions to Haiti in March 2008 with sexual exploitation and abuse against children. After an investigation into pending charges against Sri Lankan troops in Haiti, the UN's Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) concluded that “acts of sexual exploitation and abuse [against children] were frequent and occurred usually at night, and at virtually every location where the [Sri Lankan] contingent personnel were deployed.”

Irish Tamil Forum

2010-02-26T18:10:00.000-08:00

.Human rights defender Pattani Razeek has been missing since he was apparently abducted on 11 February in the town of Polonnaruwa, in Sri Lanka’s North Central Province. He may be the victim of an enforced disappearance, and could be at risk of torture or other ill-treatment. It is not clear what the authorities are doing to investigate his case.
Pattani Razeek, aged 55, is the head of the Community Trust Fund (CTF), a Sri Lankan NGO based in the town of Puttalam in North Western Province. He was returning from a visit with colleagues when their vehicle was intercepted by a white van. Pattani Razeek approached the men in the other vehicle, and exchanged greetings in Arabic. He returned to his CTF colleagues and said he would join the group in the white van, which according to him was headed for Valaichchenai, a town in Eastern Province. He assured his colleagues that he would meet up with them later. However, they did not see him again, and he never returned home.

On 16 February, Pattani Razeek’s family obtained records of calls made to and from his mobile phone. The records revealed that a number of short calls were made from Pattani Razeek’s phone on the evening of 11 February, the day he went missing. On 15 February, a call from the phone was made to a CTF driver, who did not answer. When the call was eventually[ returned, there was no answer. A text message sent on 15 February to a member of Pattani Razeek’s family said that he was in Polonnaruwa and that he would be home soon. Since then, there has been no further communication.

His family lodged a complaint with the local police in Puttalam, and also reported his disappearance to the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka. However, colleagues say the Human Rights Commission failed to give his relatives a reference number which they could use to follow up on the case. Nobody from the Commission has subsequently contacted them. Although Pattani Razeek’s disappearance was reported to the police, colleagues say that police have not been following up leads in the case.

The CTF works to protect human rights and promote equality. It also provides emergency assistance to civilians affected by Sri Lanka’s internal conflict.

PLEASE WRITE IMMEDIATELY in English, Sinhalese, Tamil, or your own language:
* calling on the Sri Lankan authorities to order an immediate and impartial investigation to establish the whereabouts of Pattani Razeek, who went missing on 11 February;
* urging the authorities to ensure that human rights defenders are able to continue their legitimate work without fear of harassment or intimidation.

British Shadow FM calls for political reform, independent war-crime investigations

2010-02-26T18:01:00.000-08:00

Noting that "there is a natural affinity between Tamils in Britain and our [Conservative] Party," William Hague, the British Shadow Foreign Secretary, in his speech to the inaugural launch of Global Tamil Forum, warned that the "continued confinement [of thousands] will simply sow the seeds of discontent, [and] could lead to renewed conflict in years to come," called for "meaningful political reform," and said that "there should be a full independent inquiry into alleged war crimes committed by both sides during the final stages of the military conflict

Denmark goes for Tamil referendum Sunday

2010-02-26T17:57:00.000-08:00

Eezham Tamils in Denmark will cast their ballot in 32 centres across the country in a referendum on the question of independent and sovereign Tamil Eelam in the North and East of the island of Sri Lanka. The referendum will be conducted by a professional institute TNS Gallup, specialised in sociological and public opinion research services, deploying electronic system for confidential voting, says Dr. Remmon Washington, the spokesperson of the Denmark Tamils Forum formation committee, which has initiated the poll. The total number of eligible Eezham Tamil voters in Denmark is estimated to be ranging around 6,500.

All polling booths will be supervised by a non-Tamil representative, who will liaise with TNS Gallup and will be responsible for giving the individual password necessary for electronic voting at the booth.

When voters enter the password, the statement for the referendum and three columns, 'yes', 'no' and 'blank', will appear in the screen for the voters to choose and submit.

Dr. Remmon WashingtonThe committee appealed to all eligible Eezham Tamil voters to prove solidarity in democratic approach to the national question, through overwhelming participation.

Even though small in number, voters in Denmark have to be conscious about the significant impact they could make, as successful referenda in several diaspora countries have proved it domestically and internationally, says Dr. Remmon Washington, an Eezham Tamil physician who came to Denmark in 1987 at the age

Video authentic, Alston calls for wider war crimes probe

2010-01-08T19:32:00.000-08:00

Philip Alston, the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, in a press meet today called for wider investigations into allegations of war crimes in Sri Lanka after three forensic experts hired by Alston and two previous independent analyses by Times On Line (UK), and a Colorado firm confirmed the authenticity of the video broadcast by Channel-4 in August.

Full text of the article appearing in UN News Center follows:

An independent United Nations human rights expert said today there are strong indications that the video of alleged extrajudicial executions by Sri Lankan soldiers that aired last August on British television is authentic, and called for an inquiry into possible war crimes committed during the conflict with Tamil rebels.

Philip Alston, the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, commissioned three experts in forensic pathology, forensic video analysis, and firearm evidence to examine the video, after concluding that the investigations carried out by the Government had not been thorough or impartial.

“The conclusion clearly is that the video is authentic,” he told a news conference in New York. “I have therefore called on the Government of Sri Lanka to respond to these allegations.”

The Government – which earlier this year declared victory over the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) after years of fighting – has categorically denied the allegations raised by the video, which purportedly depicts the extrajudicial execution of two naked and helpless Tamil men by the Sri Lankan military and the presumed prior executions of others.

It had commissioned four separate investigations which concluded that the video was a fake. However, Mr. Alston had pointed out that two of the Government’s experts looking into the matter were members of the Sri Lankan Army, the body whose actions have been called into question.

Meanwhile, the reports by the three experts from the United States commissioned by Mr. Alston to examine the video “strongly suggest that the video is authentic,” according to a note prepared by the Special Rapporteur.

Peter Diaczuk, an expert in firearms evidence, concluded that the recoil, movement of the weapon and the shooter, and the gases expelled from the muzzle in both apparent shootings were consistent with firing live ammunition, and not with shooting blank cartridges.

Daniel Spitz, a prominent forensic pathologist, found that the footage appeared authentic, especially with respect to the two individuals who are shown being shot in the head at close range. He found that the body reaction, movement, and blood evidence was entirely consistent with what would be expected in such shootings.

Jeff Spivack, an expert in forensic video analysis, found no evidence of breaks in continuity in the video, no additional video layers, and no evidence of image manipulation.

“Given these conclusions, and in light of the persistent flow of other allegations of extrajudicial executions by both sides during the closing phases of the war against the LTTE, I call for the establishment of an independent inquiry to carry out an impartial investigation into war crimes and other grave violations of international humanitarian and human rights law allegedly committed in Sri Lanka,” stated Mr. Alston.

He added that there are a small number of characteristics of the video which the experts were unable to explain, including the movement of certain victims in the video, 17 frames at the end of the video, and the date of 17 July 2009 encoded in the video (the conflict was officially declared over in May 2009).

“Each of these characteristics can, however, be explained in a manner entirely consistent with the conclusion that the videotape appears to be authentic,” noted a news release also issued today.

“In sum, while there are some unexplained elements in the video, there are strong indications of its authenticity. In addition, most of the arguments relied upon by the Government of Sri Lanka to impugn the video have been shown to be flawed.”

In a separate development, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has informed the Sri Lankan Government that he is considering the appointment of a Commission of Experts to advise him further and to assist the Government in taking measures to address possible violations of international human rights and humanitarian law.

Mr. Ban’s spokesperson, Martin Nesirky, told reporters that the UN is in regular contact with the Government regarding the implementation of the joint statement issued in May at the conclusion of the Secretary-General’s visit to Sri Lanka.

In that statement, Mr. Ban had underlined the importance of a comprehensive accountability process for addressing violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, and the Government undertook to take measures to address grievances of the victims of the conflict.

Holding transnational government above collaboration politics

2009-12-05T18:30:00.000-08:00

For the first time in the history of Eezham Tamils they have moved to evolve an international polity for themselves, independent of armed struggle, through the concept of transnational governance. The space available today, especially in the diaspora, has to be made the best use of in forging an innovatively democratic structure that should be contributing not only to the cause of Eezham Tamils, but also challenging and shaping a global system that is inadequate in handling a crisis like that of Eezham Tamils. Conceiving the transnational government as a 'post-defeat' organ for collaboration will be the greatest ever tragedy in the polity of Eezham Tamils.
TamilNet Editorial BoardTransnational government is an innovative concept and a major political step Eezham Tamils in the diaspora opted for after the war in Vanni.It is now six months since the efforts were called for and is thus time for stock taking.Even though the transnational move suffers from an inherent liability that it was insinuated by factional politics at the very outset, that should not be allowed to discredit the noble cause, and the diaspora Tamils should act vigilantly and boldly if necessity arises for any course correction.The most fundamental problem with the transnational move is that it has failed to bring out the national aspiration and aim of Eezham Tamils in concrete terms. Mincing with words and harping on ambiguous concepts are not ways to lay a sound foundation to the novel and global political move.Why the hesitation in telling that the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam is conceived to globally represent the national aspiration of Eezham Tamils to form an 'independent and sovereign state of Tamil Eelam' in the island of Sri Lanka?If it is argued that laying the political foundation is the work of the first assembly elected, then there should have been total abstention from telling anything at all – neither the phrase right to self-determination nor the nametag Tamil Eelam.On the contrary, some of the functionaries and some personalities claiming as supporters of the transnational move have entered into controversy in the last few months in many countries by openly opposing democratic political moves upholding national aspirations such as the re-mandate of the main principle of Vaddukkoaddai Resolution and the formation of Country Councils that stand for independent and sovereign Tamil Eelam. Thus they have created an image that the transnational move stands for revisionism. They have every right to have that shade of political opinion. But this has to be debated in an elected assembly. A few cannot hijack the whole concept of transnational government to revisionism even before its inception. Let people of that shade of opinion get elected if they command support, to democratically argue the case in the assembly.Re-mandated independence and sovereignty of Eezham Tamils and elected country councils are the grassroot strengths for the transnational government. They in fact internationally legitimise and insure the security of transnational government from power manipulations. Such exercises train and produce a wide spectrum of a new breed of democratic politicians in our nation.The transnational government move should welcome and encourage such democratic exercises, prior to its formation, ultimately to get an overwhelming support for its own formation.While showing reluctance to accept the term and principles of the mandated Vaddukkoaddai Resolution in its entirety, transnational functionaries and supporters show keenness in citing various subsequent premises adopted for failed talks such as Thimphu.Those who are unhappy about the term Vaddukkoaddai may drop the name, but that is not an excuse for dumping its main mandated principle of independence and sovereignty, and stopping with self-determination of Thimphu or internal self-determination of Oslo.To what extent the formation moves of the transnational government and appointment of organisers were transparent in the last six months and why its policy outline of June, appearing in its website, has still not found with any point worthy enough for revision, are questions asked in diaspora circles.Another widely prevalent misconception about transnational government comes from confusing it with government in exile.Transnational government is not government in exile. Transnational government comes from the diaspora because of a unique situation of the Eezham Tamil diaspora - in its distribution, in its peculiar disposition to face a whole world and in its needs to look after its kith and kin in the home country as well as to look after itself.Transnational Government of Eezham Tamils (not Tamil Eelam) will stay in the diaspora even after Tamil Eelam is achieved. Therefore, the political foundations of the transnational government have to be laid with lot of far sight, self-reliance and with independent thought, if this government has to withstand any global eventuality that may unfold. The foundations cannot be guided by immediate power equations around us.While it is a foregone conclusion that democracy is going to be the means of political organisation, it is also time for Eezham Tamils to start thinking on the shade of democracy to be pursued for the current needs of the struggle. The oppressed context of our nation demands the adoption of radical democracy even for achieving true liberal democracy advocated by many in the Tamil society.Diaspora should seriously think of fielding and choosing right candidates to make the experiment successful and beneficial to the cause.No one coming from a victimised nation like ours would mean harm to the nation in his or her line of political thinking. They all may mean good. But risk cannot be taken with an apex body such as the transnational government.We don’t need a transnational government for collaboration politics. We have enough parties for that.

Civilians held for more than a year in SLA Thellippazhai Rehabilitation Centre

2009-12-05T17:46:00.000-08:00

One hundred and thirteen civilians, claimed to have surrendered themselves as Liberation Tigers, are being held for more than a year in Thellippazhai Special Rehabilitation Centre of Sri Lanka Army (SLA) in Jaffna peninsula, according to Jaffna Human Rights Commission (HRC) sources. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka government refuses to reveal the number of inmates continued to be detained in Kaithadi SLA detention camp which has been converted into a Rehabilitation Centre, Jaffna Secretariat (JS) sources said.

According to JS sources 95,473, persons of 28,055 families including IDPs from Vanni are being held in Jaffna camps and staying with their relatives. This number is 17% of the total population of Jaffna peninsula.

Most of the above IDPs are located in Chaavakachcheari area consisting of 26,584 persons of 8,104 families while 42 persons of 19 families are in Nedunththeevu.

Let’s unite and fight the psychological war on Tamils: LTTE Intelligence

2009-11-27T01:23:00.000-08:00

Rather than focusing on the stories about Ram and Nagulan and the information provided by them, it is more important to focus on the motives of the Sri Lankan government in orchestrating a complete decimation of the Tamil struggle using them as their vehicle, says LTTE Intelligence wing.
A media release by the LTTE's Department of Intelligence brings out the truth behind the incidents related to Ram and Nagulan. Media Release:
Our dearest and respectful Tamils, The LTTE Intelligence wing would like to inform that the recent incidents and misinformation perpetrated by Mr Ram and Mr Nagulan, who were our former commanders, have to be clarified, and the truths to be brought to the public attention at this crucial stage of our struggle. We would like to reiterate to our people that more importance should be directed towards the motives of the Sri Lankan government in orchestrating a complete decimation of the Tamil struggle rather than focusing on the information provided by Ram and Nagulan as their vehicles.
In the latter part of May 2009, Ram and his group left Ampara district and moved into Batticaloa. During this period, Nagulan joined Ram and his group. Over the next few months, members of Ram’s group reduced in numbers due to various reasons including death during the struggle against the Sri Lankan army, disappearances, internal conflicts and surrendering to the government forces. It was obvious that Ram and his group could not sustain the struggle against the government forces, and thus Ram made contact with existing members of the LTTE’s intelligence wing who were operating in the Batticaloa district. With the assistance of the intelligence group, Ram, Nagulan and his group were shielded in the Batticaloa/ Vellaveli area. During this time, the Sri Lankan military intelligence came out with information that Ram and Nagulan are hiding in the vicinity of Batticaloa/ Vellaveli. This caused immense struggle for the LTTE intelligence operatives and supporters to provide safety for Ram and his group.
The head of the Batticaloa intelligence wing, Prabha was in Vanni at the final stages of the war. He managed to make his move towards Batticaloa and was in close contact with his fellow intelligence operatives who were providing safety for Ram and his group. Prabha was also in close contact with Thavendran, another intelligence operative who was believed to be in the Trincomalee district. Prabha informed Ram and Nagulan that Thavendran will be able to make the necessary arrangements to make his way to Batticaloa.
But Thavendran, who surrendered to the Sri Lankan forces in Mullivaikal, was suspected of collaborating with the Sri Lankan army and it was confirmed by a number of inmates who managed to escape from captivity. Prabha, who was in an extreme hostile situation at the time, was unable to verify or analyse this information and believed Thavendran to be acting in the best interest of him and his group. It is important to understand the background of Thavendran. Thavendran was born to a Sinhalese father, and was brought up in a Sinhalese area. His brothers are married to Sinhalese as well. Further, Thavendran can speak Sinhala fluently and these were some of the many reasons he was deployed in Trincomalee closer to Sinhalese settlements. Thavendran has also successfully completed numerous tasks in the Trincomalee region, which was one of many factors that led Prabha to believe the necessity of Thavendran’s assistance.
Based on this arrangement, Thavendran arrived with some of his Sinhalese friends to transport Prabha and his group. At this instance, Prabha realised that Thavendran was collaborating with the Sir Lankan army intelligence. The Sinhalese friends were in fact army intelligence officers. This is the first act by the Sri Lankan military intelligence targeting Ram and Nagulan. From instructions from the military intelligence Prabha made contact with Ram and his group informing them that Ram and Nagulan has to be relocated to a more secure area. Thavendran and Prabha coordinated the movement of Ram and Nagulan and later arrived with a group of Sinhalese friends in a “Hiace” van. Though the LTTE intelligence operatives in Batticaloa believed that the group which came with Prabha belonged to the Sri Lankan army, Prabha managed to convince them as his friends helping him in this operation.
It was alleged Ram and Nagulan were moved to a safe haven in the Trincomalee district. But no direct contact was made by Ram or his group until the time Ram made contact with LTTE operatives living abroad. Ram insisted that he wanted to lead the Tamil freedom struggle forward and requested financial and military aide. The Sri Lankan armed intelligence was so successful in devising this operation, which was widely portrayed as a brave and selfless act by Ram.
KP’s emergence as the leader of LTTE projected immense danger for the Sri Lankan government. The existence of KP and his ability to reorganize LTTE was seen as a major setback and threat to the Sinhalese chauvinists. However, a section of the LTTE opposed KP as their new leader, but Ram publicly supported KP’s leadership role and went to the extent of officially making statements. The positive relationship between KP and Ram led the Sri Lankan intelligence to close in on KP and abduct him.
Further, under instruction by the Sri Lankan army intelligence, Ram and Nagulan were in constant contact with international LTTE operatives causing internal conflicts and confusion amongst them and the Tamil Diaspora in general. In addition, it is clear that all details of these operatives have been provided to the government sources for other covert operations. In September 2009, information emerged that Ram has been in Sri Lankan army custody. This created immense pressure to the army as their secret mission was uncovered. In turn, on November 5th, the army announced that Ram has escaped from their “Minneria” army camp. On November 10th, the government further announced that Ram has been recaptured and was in government custody. During this period, Ram made telephone contact with one of our intelligence operatives and his narration of events was questionable. It is still unclear whether the Sri Lankan army intelligence is propagating a confusing message with the intention of side tracking and perplexing LTTE operatives.
Based on these events, we strongly believe Ram and Nagulan are being utilized by the Sri Lankan intelligence to psychologically destroy the re‐emergence of Tamil nationalism. In this context, the army intelligence have chosen the “heroes day” for Ram to provide his policy directive and the preferred topic chosen may be the contentious issue of martyrdom of our beloved national leader, His Excellency Vellupillai Pirabaharan. Currently, the Tamil Diaspora is divided into those that believe our national leader has attained martyrdom and those that believe he is still alive. This uncertainty will be instrumental to segregate the Tamil community in order for the government of Sri Lanka to eliminate any attempt towards reaching the ultimate goal of Tamil’s right for self determination. This form of psychological war upon our community should be viewed with caution, thus we request your fullest support and utmost vigilance during this challenging phase of our struggle. Thank you. Yours truly, Kathirkamathamby Arivazhakan, Head, External Affairs Wing, Department of Intelligence.

Tamil Refugees Held in Indonesia

2009-11-26T00:41:00.000-08:00

Two hundred and fifty five asylum seekers from Sri Lanka have been forced to live in a small wooden boat in Indonesia since October 11th. The Tamil-speaking refugees were fleeing for their lives from Sri Lanka where a quarter of a million of their people are currently suffering in so-called “refugee camps”, in reality concentration camps.
The Tamil Solidarity campaign in association with others is calling for people around the world to send letters and emails of protest to Indonesian embassies’ around the world to support the refugees and their demands for their right to asylum in Australia.
Fleeing for their lives
The refugees originally went to Malaysia hoping to find asylum there, however they were informed that any Tamils living in Malaysia would be considered members of the terrorist LTTE organization by the Sri Lankan government. As well as this, the refugees were told that since the Malaysian government had not signed the 1951 Refugee Convention, they would not be given their rights as refugees. Hence, they decided to leave Malaysia on October 1, 2009 and try to sail to Australia in a wooden boat in the hope for a better life.
After over a week of sailing they were intercepted by the Indonesian Navy, and taken to the port of Indah Kiat in Indonesia. This is inline with the so-called “Indonesian solution” policy of the Australian government, where the Australian government funds the detention of asylum seekers in Indonesia, which, unlike Australia, has not signed the 1951 Refugee Convention and does not have a system for dealing with asylum seekers or refugees.
This meant the refugees were rightly fearful that the Indonesian government would try to deport them back to Sri Lanka where there lives would be at risk, rather than allowing them to get to Australia and apply for refugee status. Instead of going quietly, they refused to leave the ship and instead demanded to meet with the UNHCR to discuss their fate and the protection of their rights as refugees. They also are demanding that they be allowed continue their journey.
Shocking conditions of the refugees
However the Indonesian government has refused point blank to allow the UNHCR to visit the refugees, and has also banned any media from meeting them and reporting their story. In a letter from the refugees themselves they explain their situation since arriving in Indonesia:
“For the last month we have been waiting on the boat at sea with all sorts of difficulties and still we have not received any favorable outcome either from Australia or any country that respects human rights. The UNHCR, which is supposed to be an international organisation that looks after the plight of the refugees, has not only refused to recognise us as refugees, but has refused to treat us as human beings. This causes us immense suffering. We are also worried and afraid of the effect that the changes in the climate will have while we are still at sea.”
Now those that change in weather is really starting to put them in danger, with heavy rain falling on the boat which only has tarpaulin roof, torn in several spot which doesn't cover all the room. Despite the fact that more 30 of those on the boat are suffering from diarrhea and other illnesses, food and medical supplies have been denied to them. When food has been supplied it has been of terrible quality, sometimes with worms, small stones or even in one case a needle in it.
The refuges have also found no help from the so-called “international community”. For instance, Britain’s special envoy to Sri Lanka, Labour Party MP Des Browne supported the Australian and Sri Lankan governments and announced that: “We take the view that it is safe to return people, including Tamils, to Sri Lanka”.
International Solidarity
However they have got support from the Tamil Solidarity campaign and the Committee for a Workers’ International (the international organization the Socialist Party is in). The Tamil Solidarity campaign has linked in with the refugees and made this a key campaign of theirs, and the website of that campaign, http://www.tamilsolidarity.org is a great source of information on the situation. Members of our sister parties in Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Australia have been in contact and given support to the Tamils, with the Socialist Party of Australia highlighting the issue in Australian media.

Credentials of IC challenged while widespread rape by SLA alleged in Vavuniyaa

2009-11-24T18:23:00.000-08:00

Sri Lanka Army (SLA) intelligence officers operating in the internment camps of Vanni have been allegedly involved in several rape cases during the past months. At least three cases of young victims, aged 14, 15 and 16, appeared in front of Vavuniyaa District Judge in October. SLA soldiers have also raped a 14-year-old mentally retarded Tamil girl inside the Vavuniyaa hospital. There have been many alleged rapes in Zone-2 and Zone 3 internment camps. A 17-year-old girl was reportedly raped by the SLA intelligence official who alleged that the girl was a former LTTE under-age cadre and threatened that she would be taken to detention centre where LTTE cadres were kept imprisoned. She was later sent to detention centre. There are also two other girls aged 17 and 19, who have been raped by the SLA officers. Evidences have come to light through primary and secondary sources and TamilNet refrains from revealing the sources due to security concerns. In the month of July, injured Tamil girls admitted in the Padawiya hospital were taken for naked open-air bath by Sinhala nurses using hose pipes to the amusement of Sinhala soldiers watching it, according to an eyewitness. Reports have also surfaced from several sources that an influential humanitarian worker attached to a global body has been making use of women, who have been struggling to find out the plight of their husbands detained by the SLA inside undeclared detention centres. "I was shocked to learn that there were also Tamils involved in rape cases with the support of the SLA intelligence personnel," an activist documenting the evidences told TamilNet on Monday. "We have three cases registered on this 'influential' international worker".In May, 2009, three dead bodies of young girls were located at the riverbed near the internment camp. The dead bodies were handed over to Vavuniyaa hospital. Eyewitnesses, who have seen the corpses, report that they identified bite marks and signs of sexual harassments.Recently, when US State Secretary Hillary Clinton condemned use of sexual violence as a tactic of war, declared rape by soldiers as a war crime and indicted Sri Lanka engaging in such a crime in the 'past', Sri Lankan authorities made a big noise in reaction. Sri Lanka's Prime Minister went to the extent of personally attacking the US State Secretary. "Everybody knows that it is not a past activity of Colombo, but an ongoing crime facilitated by the entire International Community by leaving hundreds of thousands in the camps at the mercy of a hostile army," said the exiled Tamil activist who is documenting the rape cases. "Sexual violence by the SLA is not confined to internment camps alone. The Colombo government is institutionalising the crime by creating hundreds of SLA mini-camps amidst populated areas of Tamils." "This is why the victim nation of Eezham Tamils have lost faith in the empty rhetoric of the International Community and the UN, which have no means of taking any action or providing protection even to those who make the complaint.""Humanitarian workers who have authentic evidences for the crime and for the perpetrators of the crime in the island, challenge the IC whether it can prove its credentials by taking action if evidences are provided to it," he further said.

Sri Lanka’s President Rajapaksa ‘feared coup’ after defeat of Tamil Tigers

2009-11-18T22:29:00.000-08:00

President Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka was so afraid of a military coup after the defeat of the Tamil Tigers that he warned India to place its troops on high alert as recently as last month, according to the former head of the Sri Lankan Army. General Sarath Fonseka, who led the victorious campaign against the Tigers only to be sidelined two months later, made the allegation in a bitter resignation letter, seen by The Times yesterday.
General Fonseka, who was switched to the largely ceremonial role of Chief of Defence Staff in July, said the Government alerted India on October 15 that a coup was imminent, “unnecessarily placing Indian troops on high alert”.
“This action tarnished the image and reputation gained by the Sri Lankan Army as a competent and professional organisation capable of defeating a terrorist group,” he said.
After resigning, General Fonseka is now expected to challenge Mr Rajapaksa in a presidential election due by April.

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His letter drew no immediate response from Indian officials, while a Sri Lankan minister said only that the Government would study its contents. “The President has ordered a study of [Fonseka’s] letter and we will make a suitable response,” Mahinda Samarasinghe, the Human Rights Minister, told reporters.
Although the letter does not specify what action Mr Rajapaksa wanted India to take, the implication was that its troops should intervene in case of a coup.
India sent peacekeeping troops to Sri Lanka in 1987, but they were soon drawn into the fight with the Tigers, and withdrew in 1990. The Tigers then assassinated Rajiv Gandhi, the former Indian Prime Minister, in 1991.
The General’s letter reveals for the first time the rift that developed between the Army and Government after the end of the 26-year civil war in May.
It also adds to the charged political atmosphere in Sri Lanka since General Fonseka emerged as a potential challenger to Mr Rajapaksa, who has been riding a wave of popularity since the war ended.
General Fonseka is considered a national hero by most of the ethnic Sinhalese majority community and is therefore likely to split the ruling alliance’s support base in the elections.
Although he has a reputation as an outspoken Sinhalese nationalist, he criticised Mr Rajapaksa for failing to make peace with the ethnic Tamil minority since the Tigers’ defeat.
“Your excellency’s Government has yet to win the peace, in spite of the fact the Army under my leadership won the war,” he said

Forbidden movie is released Tamil Widow

2009-11-07T16:12:00.000-08:00

Forbidden Movie Is Released Tamil Widow
in Dublin Ireland

British MPs hail US initiative on Sri Lanka warcrimes

2009-11-04T00:23:00.000-08:00

Joining international calls for a full independent investigation into alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka, a group of British Parliamentarians Tuesday welcomed the initiatives taken by the United States in this regard and urged the UK government to support Washington’s efforts. In a statement, the All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils (APPG-T) welcomed US authorities questioning of Sri Lankan Army General Sarath Fonseka over the massacre of Tamil civilians in the closing months of the war this year

British MPs call for suspension of GSP+, Sri Lanka's removal from Commonwealth

2009-10-30T18:07:00.000-07:00

Several British Members of Parliament participated in a debate on Sri Lanka's internment camps, Wednesday 28 October for nearly 3 hours starting from 2:30 p.m. Many MPs cited the inhumane conditions under which more than 250,000 Tamil civilians are being kept in military supervised internment camps in Sri Lanka and called for the termination of GSP+ trade benefits and suspension of Sri Lanka from British Commonwealth. Joan Ryan, the Labour MP for Enfield North and a vice chair of the Labor party, initiated the debate. Full video is attached below. Press play button to activate the video:

HRW: US report ignites call for war crimes investigations against Sri Lanka

2009-10-26T01:23:00.000-07:00

The US State Department war crimes report to the Senate submitted as mandated by the explanatory statement to the US Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2009, detailed day-by-day account in a format similar to a "model indictment," and said the alleged incidents in the final stages of war may constitute "violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) or crimes against humanity and related harms." Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch (HRW), said, "[g]iven Sri Lanka's complete failure to investigate possible war crimes, the only hope for justice is an independent, international investigation," and added, "concerned governments should use the US State Department report as a clarion call for an international investigation. There are no more excuses for inaction."

The report while not reaching any legal conclusions listed Common Article 3 of Geneva Conventions, statutes of International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), and Rwanda (ICTR), and the statutes of International Criminal Court (ICC) as "useful foundation for reviewing the conduct" described in the State Department's report.

Legal experts pointed out that under basic rules of international criminal law, the US has to give the GoSL the opportunity to investigate itself credibly, and that, further steps are warranted by the international community, if and when the GOSL fails or refuses to do so.

United Nation Radio

2009-10-23T22:53:00.000-07:00

The washington Times

2009-09-24T15:45:00.000-07:00

The Real News

2009-09-24T15:34:00.000-07:00

Timesonline

2009-09-20T20:58:00.001-07:00

Pathivu

2009-09-20T20:48:00.001-07:00

Tamilnet

2009-09-20T20:44:00.001-07:00

CNN

2009-09-20T20:39:00.000-07:00

BBC

2009-09-20T20:35:00.001-07:00

LankaSri

2009-09-20T18:18:00.000-07:00

Sri Lanka's displaced face uncertain future as government begins to unlock the camps VIDEO

2009-09-20T16:57:00.000-07:00

11 September 2009
Only a fraction of nearly 300,000 people who were displaced by recent fighting in the north east of Sri Lanka have been allowed to leave government camps since the war ended in May. More than a quarter of a million people remain detained and under military guard in crowded, unsanitary conditions that are still far below international standards. The government finally agreed on Tuesday to allow displaced people wishing to leave the camps to stay with relatives who were willing to accommodate them, but families of the displaced told Amnesty International they had not been consulted by the government about the process for leaving and were sceptical of the government’s screening process. Monsoon rains due in October threaten to swamp tents and flood latrines. Pre-monsoon rains have already flooded some camps and forced people to relocate within the camps. However, the government of Sri Lanka, citing varying security concerns, has continued to prevent people from leaving."If the government follows through on its promise, it could considerably reduce overcrowding," said Yolanda Foster of Amnesty International. "The next hurdle these people face is the bureaucracy associated with the government’s ‘screening’ process, which is intended to weed out members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam it says are still hiding within the civilian camp population." One family member of the displaced held at Manik Farm reacted with caution to the announcement. "The government has made many promises... we cannot be certain that our relatives will be offered a chance to leave, they will probably get caught up in unnecessary red tape and delays."Nobody but the authorities really knows how the screening works or what criteria they use to determine if someone is a security threat – all that is known is that it takes time. By the end of August, the government said that it had registered about half of the newly displaced people. This means that there must be about 130,000 to go.The government has also said that it has detained about 10,000 people suspected of ties to the Tamil Tigers – the real numbers could be higher. These detainees are held without charge or trial, in what are described by the government as "rehabilitation camps". Their whereabouts and conditions of detention in many cases are unknown. The International Red Cross (ICRC) said Friday that it is being denied access to these detainees. Incommunicado detention has been shown to greatly increase the risk of torture and extrajudicial killing. There is a long history of both in Sri Lanka.Cabinet Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe told UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon in early September that the government would re-settle displaced people in the North as soon as the de-mining process was completed and infrastructure and basic services were restored. However, true reconstruction and resettlement of areas devastated by war could take many months. Playing with Words"'Resettlement', 'return' and 'release' are terms that are often used interchangeably to discuss the fate of Sri Lanka’s displaced people," according to Yolanda Foster. "Resettlement and ‘return’ imply durable solutions to the problem of displacement. 'Release' simply means people are free to go." "As an immediate matter, the government should allow freedom of movement for all the displaced, even if durable solutions such as resettlement take longer. All Sri Lankan citizens have a right to liberty and freedom of movement, regardless of where they reside. "In the case of displaced people, this means both choosing long-term accommodations and more temporary arrangements, such as staying with family members or friends. If they choose to remain in the camps for want of a better alternative, displaced people should also be at liberty to come and go."Durable solutions to Sri Lanka’s massive displacement problem will not happen overnight. De-mining, where necessary, is time consuming, costly and difficult; rebuilding infrastructure takes time. When displaced civilians are freed from camps and allowed to return to their home areas, they may well have to live in temporary accommodations for a long time while they rebuild their lives.Judging from earlier efforts to find durable solutions for displaced civilians in Sri Lanka – including people displaced by natural disasters outside the conflict zone – it could be years before many of them are effectively "settled." Controversy continues over discrepancies in the official count of people in the camps. A report from the Vavuniya District Secretary (the highest ranking local official in the area) to local police stated that as many as 10,000 displaced people who fled the conflict zone through May 2009 were unaccounted for. This discrepancy may be due to several factors: bad record keeping; some detainees escaping the camps by bribing officials; and, of most concern, the unknown fate of thousands of displaced people, many of them suspected of being LTTE cadres, in the custody of Sri Lankan authorities. Enforced disappearances have been reported by families in the camps. The government’s ban on most international protection activities remains in place. Humanitarian workers are not allowed to talk to camp inmates or to enter tents in the camps. "Without independent monitoring of the human rights situation in the camps and unimpeded human rights protection activities by humanitarian agencies, it is difficult verify these reports," said Yolanda Foster. "A transparent, independently monitored screening and registration process would provide a more accurate count of the number of people detained in the camps, would help facilitate family reunification and releases, and could help identify the whereabouts of people who may have been have arrested."

Arbitrations killings in Sri Lanka Innocent Tamils Killed by Srilankan Army VIDEO

2009-09-19T19:50:00.000-07:00

Tamil Medic Describes Camp Conditions VIDEO

2009-09-19T19:10:00.000-07:00

War and disregard make Tamils hard and determined (VIDEO)
[ Wednesday, 16 September 2009, 09:58.31 AM GMT +05:30 ]
“After looking at the people dying and dead bodies everywhere, it is like nothing threatens me any more, it is like I have had the hard time in my life and I think I am prepared to take up whatever happens in life now,” says Damilvany Gnanakumar, an Eezham Tamil of British citizenship, who witnessed war and internment camp in the island of Sri Lanka.
Sri Lankan civil war: Damilvany's story (VIDEO)
"I'm not that old Vany that sits down and cries for little things. I'm stronger now after going through and seeing all that problem. My mind is clear now," she told Gethin Chamberlain of The Guardian in an interview Tuesday, asking at the same time, what have the people done wrong? Why are they going through this, why is the international government not speaking up for them?
The 25 years old biomedicine graduate of Grrenwich University was one of a small group of medics treating the wounded in Vanni. The pressure from The Guardian, UK, was partly responsible for her release from Colombo’s internment camp. Her horrifying eyewitness accounts not merely put to shame Colombo and the establishments of the International Community, but indicts them of serious crime against human civilisation, commented Tamil circles. Even those who now shed tears in the international community still miserably fail in recognising the fundamental need that Eezham Tamils should get independence, the Tamil circles pointed out. Damilvany born in Jaffna in 1984, and migrated to UK in 1994, chose to go to Vanni in February 2008 to serve the people. She is a classic example for the younger generation of the Tamil diaspora sharing ownership of the national liberation struggle, Tamil circles said, adding that this generation cannot be taken for a ride by anyone without resolving the fundamentals of the Tamil national question in the island.

Tamils Are Extrajudicially Kills By SLA

2009-09-18T21:07:00.000-07:00

Following the broadcast of shocking video footage showing Sri Lanka Government soldiers executing Tamils stripped naked and hands tied behind their backs, British Television Channel-4 Monday revealed a new film that showed Tamil "victims of Sri Lanka's war suffering poor conditions in UN-funded camps." The new footage, allegedly taken by a mobile phone, was sent to Channel-4 from the group War Without Witness, and was reportedly shot two weeks ago in Vavuniyaa, in northern Sri Lanka, where more than 300,000 Tamils are being interned in Sri Lanka military supervised camps. Sri Lanka's spokesperson, while insisting that United Nations is active inside there [the camps], responded that the malnutrition statistics reflect "Western standards," indeed malnutrition is present in other parts of Sri Lanka, and also that the situation was worse under the Liberation Tigers.

Horrendous video images indicate violation of International Law - UN expert

2009-09-18T19:12:00.000-07:00

Philip Alston, the UN Special Rapporteur on extra-judicial, summary or arbitrary executions, commenting on the video clip aired in British Channel-4 TV, allegedly showing Sri Lankan troops executing prisoners, stressed the need for an investigation, AFP reported. The images, which Alston described as "horrendous," indicate a serious violation of international law if found to be authentic, AFP reported Alston as saying. The video showed victims stripped naked and their hands crossed and tied behind their backs, when they were executed.

Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on extra-judicial, summary or arbitrary executions
"If the government's position [of categorically denying the allegations] is validated as a result of an inquiry, the international community can rest easy and the government will have been vindicated," AFP quoted Alston as saying.Alston also pointed out that he had asked permission to visit Sri Lanka on several occasions in recent years, but Colombo had not given him the green light, according to the AFP report.Sri Lanka Army soldiers action, of stripping naked the Tamil victims before summarily executing them, is more akin to what the Nazis did to the Jews, depriving their victims of the last shred of their humanity before dying," Professor Boyle of Illinois College of Law observed.in Sri Lanka's ruling party, Anura Priyadharshana Yapa, and Information Director Anusha Palpita said they had never heard of the group ‘Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka’ which sent the video clip to Channel-4, adding that it could be a front organization for LTTE remnants attempting to pump oxygen to the dying organization, according Sri Lanka media.A UN press release issued on 9th May 2009 said: "The current humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka gives cause for deep concern, not only in terms of the number of civilians who have been and continue to be killed, but because of a dramatic lack of transparency and accountability."Philip Alston said in the same release, "[t]here is good reason to believe that thousands of civilians have been killed in the past three months alone, and yet the Sri Lankan Government has yet to account for the casualties, or to provide access to the war zone for journalists and humanitarian monitors of any type." British daily The Times on its 29th May issue revealed that at least 20,000 Tamil people were killed on the Mullaitivu beach by Sri Lanka Army shelling. Aerial photographs, official documents, witness accounts and expert testimony collected by the newspaper “present clear evidence of an atrocity that comes close to matching Srebrenica, Darfur and other massacres of civilians,” the paper’s editorial said. Confidential UN documents acquired by The Times record nearly 7,000 civilian deaths in the ‘no-fire’ zone up to the end of April. UN sources said that the toll then surged, with an average of 1,000 civilians killed each day until May 19.

Tamil Pay Solidarity

2009-09-17T21:53:00.000-07:00

Socialist Youth (SY) interview with Kandeepan – a Sri Lankan Tamil, living in Ireland who has assisted the Stop the Slaughter of Tamils (SST) campaign. Socialist Youth and the Socialist Party have helped to begin this campaign in Ireland.

SY – Why did you get involved with the SST protest?
Kandee – I love my people and my country the Tamileelam. The Tamils have been terrorised since 1948 by the brutal Sinhalese government. A quarter of a million Tamil people have been slaughtered and I cannot remain silent and watch the remaining Tamils be killed in the name of eliminating the LTTE the armed forces of the state of Eelam. I would like to make my contribution to save the Tamils.
SY – Do you, or your friends from the Tamil community in Ireland have any friends or family trapped in the war zone?
Kandee – Yes, some of my Tamil friends in Ireland have family who fled the war zone and were arrested by the Sri Lankan army on 1st May. They have not heard from them since.
Another friend had family trapped in the war zone. He has made no contact with them and does not know if they are alive or not.
SY – What do you think of the SST campaign?
Kandee – I feel that I have friends who are both Irish and of other nationalities who are standing with us during this difficult time. They are trying to save the Tamils and help get their rights. This is an example of great solidarity and participation when the lives of our fellow human beings are taken away by those elected leaders who have been committing crimes by abusing their power.
SY – Anything else you want to say about the issue or about the campaign?
I would like to see more campaigns and more people in Ireland support the Tamil struggle for freedom. I would like that the Irish government takes actions in such a way to stop the war and see that the rights of the Tamils are granted. We Tamils would like to thank the Socialist Party for its continuous support for the Tamils to live as free people.