Remember the May 2009 Massacre of Tamils

Tamils for Obama to World Leaders

by PRWeb, May 10, 2010

In a letter to leaders of "the world's leading democracies," Tamils for Obama called upon public figures to recognize the massacre of unarmed Tamil civilians by Sri Lankan armed forces during the closing month of the recent Sri Lankan civil war. The letter was posted and/or emailed to President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton, Under Secretary Robert Blake, various senators and congress people, Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh, UN ambassadors, and EU MEPs.

Washington DC (PRWEB) May 10, 2010 -- In a letter to leaders of "the world's leading democracies," Tamils for Obama called upon public figures to recognize the massacre of unarmed Tamil civilians by Sri Lankan armed forces during the closing month of the recent Sri Lankan civil war.

The letter was sent to President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton, Under Secretary Robert Blake, various senators and congress people, Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh, UN ambassadors, and EU MEPs.

"This is an important anniversary," said a spokesman for Tamils for Obama. "An appalling event of this magnitude should not go unremarked, but we think that much of the world has chosen to look away and not pay any attention. About 40,000 Tamil civilians were killed in just a couple of weeks.

"Here is what we said in our letter. 'We civilized people have no trouble mourning thousands of Bosnian victims of Yugoslavian ethnic cleansing. We can be appalled at the displacement, enslavement, and murder of villagers in Darfur by government-directed Sudanese militiamen. But where is the horror and disgust at the deliberate butchery of 30,000 to 40,000 ethnically distinct Sri Lankan Tamil civilians by armed forces carrying out what was clearly a state policy?'

"In Sri Lanka, there were huge numbers of internally displaced civilians packed into a small area," the spokesman said. "The Sri Lankan government designated it the 'no fire zone.' But the Sri Lankan armed forces fired at these undefended civilians with all kinds of anti-personnel weapons. It looks like they were trying to kill as many people as possible as quickly as possible, before the war ended and they no longer had a pretext to keep shooting.

"One UN observer, Gordon Weiss, who was in Sri Lanka during the massacre, stated 'I think most likely it's somewhere between 30,000 to 40,000' people killed. This, in just a few short weeks," said the Tamils for Obama spokesman. Find Mr. Weiss's statement here: http://www.sbs.com.au/dateline/story/watch/id/600331/n/War-Stories

The spokesman added that Tamils for Obama had been asked by many in the Tamil diaspora why there had been no outcry. "Over the last year there has been no anger expressed by leaders in the U.S. or the E.U or India. We want to ask why. Could it be that these victims were so far away that their destruction was not worth noticing?"

The letter ends: "We call on leaders and elected officials in the world's leading democracies to acknowledge this appalling crime and to express their sympathy for the survivors and families of those Tamils who did not live through the massacre. Even after a year, decency and humanity require that the world recognizes the pain of these survivors.

"We send this request in the hopeful expectation that you will express your horror and sympathy for the events of May 2009."

To read the entire letter go to: www.TamilsforObama.com/Letters/Remember_the_May_2009_Massacre_of_Tamils_Letter.html

To read this press release in Tamil go to: www.TamilsforObama.com/Letters/Remember_the_May_2009_Massacre_of_Tamils_in_Tamil.html

Tamils are an ethnic group living mainly in the northeast of Sri Lanka and southern India. During the final weeks of the recent civil war, the Sri Lankan government killed about 1,000 Tamil civilians per day, according to the United Nations, and about 30,000 in 2009. The Tamil are a population in Sri Lanka has borne the brunt of a civil war they regard as genocide. One-third of the Tamil population has fled the island and formed a substantial diaspora overseas. Tamils for Obama is comprised of Tamils who have settled in the U.S. or who were born in the U.S.

To contact the group, call at (617) 765- 4394 and speak to, or leave a message for, the Communication Director, Tamils for Obama.

www.TamilsForObama.com

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Tamils for Obama
Communication Director
(617) 765- 4394
E-mail Information
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