Yearly Archives: 2016

How Sri Lanka Demonstrates the Limits of the UN System

This is a classic example of pursuing an important issue in a forum that’s not equipped to handle it. by Taylor Dibbert, ‘The National Interest,’ Washington, DC, October 20, 2016 In recent years, the island nation of Sri Lanka has received considerable attention from the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council. Country-specific council resolutions were passed… Read more »

MGR Remembered – Part 37

by Sachi Sri Kantha, October 23, 2016 Part 36 Front Note by Sachi Through the courtesy of Mr. R. Kannan, fellow MGR biographer and friend, early this month, I received a copy of the 263 page book authored by journalist Sudhangan, who had published a book with a title, ‘Suddachu – Suddachu’ [I’ve Shot! I’ve… Read more »

January 8: The Promise and the Pain

President Sirisena’s outburst last week only reinforced public perception that two years after they swept into office on a wave of hope and change, the Government’s only commitment was to the restoration of the political status quo and the corrupt business of politics as usual. In ways that will become apparent only years from now,… Read more »

Why Just Counting the Dead in Syria Won’t Bring Them Justice

A full tally of the war’s horrific violence requires estimates, models, and sophisticated pattern analysis to understand who’s responsible and why. by Patrick Ball, ‘Foreign Policy,’ Washington, DC, October 19, 2016 Nearly 18,000 people died in Syrian government prisons between March 2011 and December 2015. My colleagues and I at the Human Rights Data Analysis Group(HRDAG)… Read more »

Jaffna Press Club: Remembering Mylvaganam Nimalarajan

October 19, 2016 Today, 16 years have passed since our colleague Mylvaganam Nimalarajan was assassinated. Along with the lack of justice for hundreds of thousands of Tamil people massacred in the Tamil homeland in the island of Sri Lanka, there has similarly been no justice for journalists and media workers, including Nimalarajan. The culture of… Read more »

Judge Reduces Jail Sentence over Haunting ‘Injustice’ in Sri Lanka Case

by John Marzulli, New York Daily News, October 13, 2016 Brooklyn judge reduces convicted terror trio’s jail sentence over haunting ‘injustice’ in Sri Lanka case Judge Raymond J. Dearie (pictured) has reduced the sentence of three Canadian nationals with ties to Tamil Tigers after admitting the haunting Sri Lanka case “has just taken over my… Read more »

GTF welcomes the UN Special Rapporteur’s statement

Issued for immediate release  PRESS STATEMENT 22 October 2016, London   Global Tamil Forum welcomes the UN Special Rapporteur’s statement on minority rights and calling on Sri Lanka to act decisively to not to lose the momentous opportunity to bring lasting peace and reconciliation among all communities The Global Tamil Forum (GTF) welcomes the end-of-mission… Read more »

Statement of UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues

Statement of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on minority issues, Rita Izsák-Ndiaye, on the conclusion of her official visit to Sri Lanka, 10-20 October 2016 http://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=20709&LangID=E by Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva, 20 October 2016 In my capacity as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on minority issues, I conducted an official… Read more »

Oral History: ‘Through the Generations’

by Race on the Agenda, London, 2012 In January 2012, Race on the Agenda (ROTA) was awarded a grant by the Heritage Lottery Fund to collect oral histories of Sri Lankan Tamils in London. Book available for download at http://tamilgenerations.rota.org.uk/book/

Noolaham Book Collection

 நூலகம்  Impressive list of books [5579 and growing] and other publications originating from Eelam Tamils. Provides knowledge and information services to ensure free and open access thereby support educational, research and development endeavors related to Sri Lankan Tamil speaking communities. Books [5,579] Magazines [7,421] Newspapers [3,941] Pamphlet [1,880] http://www.noolaham.org Project Madurai Electronic versions of ancient… Read more »

TAG Briefing Note – Fresh Evidence of Cluster Munitions

by Tamils Against Genocide, London, October 17, 2016 The  new draft of the counter terrorism policy in Sri Lanka further demonstrates the government’s willingness to disregard the civil liberties of its people. This, unfortunately, casts further doubt on the new administration’s ability to formulate a credible strategy for transitional justice. Any strategy will also have… Read more »

Tamils Resort to Nationalism to Shore Up Eroding Political Base

By JS Tissainayagam, ‘Asian Correspondent,’ September 30, 2016 In its list of demands, the ‘Eluga Thamil’ (Tamils Arise!) rally in Jaffna, Sri Lanka, on Sept 24 included phrases that form the bedrock of Tamil nationalism – ‘Tamil nation,’ ‘sovereignty’ and the ‘right to self-determination.’ This is because the Sri Lanka government and Tamil politicians supporting the regime are… Read more »

Land Grabbing & Accountability

by South Asia Centre for Legal Studies, Colombo, September 27, 2016 Despite land grabbing being a common feature of many armed conflicts and an integral part of discriminatory policies against minority groups, it is insufficiently addressed in post-conflict or transitional justice accountability processes. While truth-commissions, in particular the Truth Commission in El Salvador, have highlighted… Read more »

A Tamil Diaspora Perspective on Sri Lanka

I want to reemphasize that any type of political resolution should be based on the people’s will ascertained through a referendum. by Taylor Dibbert, ‘International Policy Digest,’ USA, October 10, 2016 Mr. Visuvanathan Rudrakumaran is Prime Minister of the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE). He is based in New York City. This interview has… Read more »

Can Sri Lanka Hold On to Its Fragile Peace?

But it’s not Power or other foreign officials whom the government needs to win over. Far more crucial is the Tamil minority that feels left behind by the country’s postwar progress and embittered by the Sinhalese majority’s seeming indifference to its plight. And this is where the young woman with the tiny photograph comes in…. Read more »

Still Missing in Mullaitivu

by Meera Srinivasan, ‘The Hindu,’ Chennai, October 1, 2016  More than seven years after the brutal three-decade-long civil war ended in Sri Lanka, people are still picking up the pieces and searching for their loved ones. The last time Mary Sabamalai saw her son Mayuran was in 2008, when he came home for his 21st birthday…. Read more »

Sri Lankan Army KIA, 1981-1999

by Dr. Paul Staniland, PaulStaniland.com, October 10, 2016 Below I posted about a source I’d found with micro-data on SLA combat fatalities. The OCR-ing has proven more of a challenge than I had hoped, but the information on date and place is inputted for all observations, though we still need to add many of soldiers’ names and… Read more »

Buddhism and the Regulation of Religion in the New Constitution

by Benjamin Schonthal and Asanga Welikala, Centre for Policy Alternatives, Colombo, August 2016 Buddhism-and-the-regulation-of-religion-in-the-new-constitution-Working-Paper-3 …This Working Paper offers a legal and historical overview of the issue of Buddhism in Sri Lanka’s constitution, which, we hope, will help the Constitutional Assembly in its deliberations. We also hope that this Working Paper will help advance discussions beyond… Read more »

Elugha Tamil [Arise Tamils] and Vilifying Hon. Wigneswaran

by Thambu Kanagasabai, October 9, 2016 The ‘Eluga Tamil rallies held in Jaffna on September 24, 2016 received overwhelming response and ended with astonishing success beyond the expectations of many, belying the pessimists. The success of this event was due to the undaunted efforts of Tamil Peoples’ Council spearheaded by Northern Province Chief Minister Wigneswaran,… Read more »

Cookbook Tells The Story Of Sri Lanka’s Civil War Through Food

by Vidya Balachandar, ‘NPR,’ Washington, DC. October 9, 2016 Even if you knew nothing about Vijaya, her haunting portrait would likely give you pause. She peers out of the page, unsmiling, her silver hair pulled back and her eyes conveying an unspoken anguish. From the accompanying narrative, we learn that a few years ago, almost… Read more »