Frances Harrison co-founded and runs the International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP) in London. She’s a former BBC foreign correspondent and author of the book ‘Still Counting the Dead: Survivors of Sri Lanka’s Hidden War’. This interview has been edited lightly. Following are excerpts. By Taylor Dibbert Q: The ITJP has recently published another report. Would you tell us a little bit about it? A: Some of the twists and turns of this story would be better suited to a soap opera or thriller if they were not so tragic. The…
Read MoreDay: 13 November 2019
”We see only Muslim villages have been developed, but NOT the Tamil villages” says Namal Rajapaksa
By Shreen Abdul Saroor “We see only Muslim villages have been developed, but not the Tamil villages. The only way for Catholic and Hindu villages to get developed is to vote for Gota.” -Namal Rajapaksa in Mannar. “We have to act against Muslims. We Tamil youth have to think and act.”– leaflet by Kiran youth front for SLPP. Mannar voters who are living in Puttalam are banned to come in hired private buses to cast their votes – Assistant Election Commissioner, Mannar. If Muslims do not vote for Gota they will get…
Read MoreWhy the Tamil’s Decided to Support Sajith Premadasa as the Better Choice Between the Two Main Contenders at the 2019 Presidential Election
By M.A. Sumanthiran MP In less than a week, Sri Lankan citizens all over the island will go to the polls to select the country’s eighth executive president. There is no denying that, irrespective of the result, this election will mark a crucial turning point in Sri Lanka’s political history. A stark choice faced voters in the 2015 presidential election. The people were called upon to choose between perpetuating authoritarian rule and turning a democratic corner. Despite the failures and disappointments of the past five years, I still believe our…
Read MoreRajapaksas are playing the Racist card – TNA
All the political parties affiliated to the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) representing the Tamil community especially in the North and East, have pledged their full support to New Democratic Front Presidential candidate Sajith Premadasa. Five days ahead of the election, the Daily Mirror interviewed TNA MP and leading lawyer M. A. Sumanthiran who explained the reasons for the decision to support Premadasa and why the Tamil community would resist the return of Rajapaksas to power. Excerpts; Q The Gotabaya Rajapaksa camp alleged that there are translation differences among Sinhala, Tamil and…
Read MoreWhy hide Gota’s citizenship documents from media?
SLPP doubles down on GR’s citizenship issue SLPP doubles down on GR’s citizenship issueNov 12 (FT) The SLPP yesterday defended its presidential candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s renunciation of his US citizenship and attempted to frame any criticism on the issue as a political move to undermine his election campaign. Fresh debate erupted over Rajapaksa’s citizenship during the weekend as Minister Harin Fernando alleged in a Twitter message that Rajapaksa had not renounced his US citizenship. more.. Why hide Gota’s citizenship documents from media? – Mangala Why hide Gota’s citizenship documents from media?…
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