15th September 2015

TAMILS FOR OBAMA TO OBAMA: TAMILS’ LIVES MATTER TOO, AND WE NEED YOUR HELP WASHINTON, DC, USA, September 14, 2015 /EINPresswire.com/ — Tamils for Obama wrote a letter to the White House saying that no justice has ever followed a Sri Lankan investigation of its own people for crimes against Tamils, and urged that these investigations be kept in international community. “We know that when the Sri Lankan government investigates its own officials, nothing comes of it,” said the press spokesman for Tamils for Obama. “We had great hopes for the Obama administration, and we hope now that stories that say the admiration is weakening and ready to put matters back in Sri Lankan hands. “We are saddened by these stories. And hope that Obama, […]

Over 50 eminent citizens from across the world today in a letter asked the UN Human Rights Council to show courage and consistency when it discusses a report this week on human rights in Sri Lanka and help bring justice to the war crime victims of the country.  The letter, signed by 62 eminent pesonalities from diverse fields, reminds the Human Rights Council (UNHRC) that just as it was necessary to set up an international inquiry, so it is now necessary to move on to an internationally mandated judicial process. A purely domestic process in Sri Lanka – run by the government which won the war – would inevitably be a “victors court” and would fail to have that fundamental element: the confidence of the […]

The UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence, Pablo de Greiff, says any accountability strategy in Sri Lanka needs to provide answers to key basic questions. He also said that Sri Lanka has the potential to constitute an example for the region and for the world of how a sustainable peace ought to be achieved. In a statement made during the 30th session of the UN Human Rights Council today, Pablo de Greiff said that one largely untouched aspect in the area of ‘guarantees of non-recurrence’ is the provision of psychosocial support and trauma counselling. He said that this area of work is central for repairing the social contract (the relationship between the State and the individual) and […]

There is change, and for the better. The presence of the leader of the SLFP at the UNP Convention was something unimaginable even a year ago. Maithripala Sirisena was the Chief Guest at the annual gathering of the UNP and that was a sign of new times, a movement towards a more tolerant and inclusive political culture, an indication that Sri Lanka has changed positively. A Tamil as the leader of opposition too was unimaginable just a year ago. What is encouraging is not just the appointment of R Sampanthan to that post but the total absence of a backlash from Sinhala society. The UPFA right-wingers (Lankan National-Socialists) were banking on a wave of fearful discontent in the South. It did not happen. That absence […]

The Northern Provincial Council has reiterated its call for an international probe into alleged acts of genocidecommitted against the Tamils during the war. The Northern PC has reiterated its call to coincide with the UN Human Rights Council 30th session which began in Geneva yesterday. Also the UNHRC office yesterday announced that it will make public the UN report on the investigation into the alleged war crimes committed during the final phase of the war against the LTTE on Wednesday. A senior TNA member of the Northern PC said today that the council will not accept the domestic probe proposed by the government and will insist on an international investigation. He said that the northern and Eastern Tamils who bore the brunt of the war […]

By S. I. Keethaponcalan – Once, Tamils were more Sri Lankan (or rather Ceylonese) than the Sinhalese. When the Kandyan National Assembly and Bandaranaike were demanding a federal setup in Sri Lanka, resistance came from Tamil leaders. Although, G. G. Ponnampalam’s 50-50 demand entailed an unfair equation it was still a Colombo-centric formula. Even today, Tamil political leadership is extremely Colombo oriented and spends more time in Colombo than in their electorates in the North and East. Lack of power and opportunities in the center immensely contributed to the Tamil demand for separation. Accommodating minorities including the Tamils at the center and at the national level certainly could be one of the ways to promote national integration. Therefore, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader R. Sambanthan’s appointment […]