Posts Categorized: Diaspora

Ample Space for Sri Lanka Testing its Commitments & Credibilities

By  Thambu Kanagasabai  LLM [Lond.], FCII, July 13, 2016 In the much expected 32nd session of Human Rights Council, the UN Human Rights High Commissioner delivered his oral statement evaluating the progress made by Sri Lanka regarding the implementation of various matters outlined in the Sri Lanka-US sponsored resolution passed on October 01, 2015. Nine… Read more »

USTPAC Welcomes High Commissioner Zeid’s Call for Sustained International Engagement on Sri Lanka

WASHINGTON, June 30, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) member states responded yesterday in Geneva to High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al-Hussein’s midterm report on the government of Sri Lanka’s implementation of Resolution 30/1. USTPAC welcomes High Commissioner Zeid’s report and statements from member states and other countries for more… Read more »

Oral Statements at UNHRC

Monday, June 13, 2016 – Oral Statement by Pasumai Thaayagam UN Web TV link: http://webtv.un.org/meetings-events/human-rights-council/watch/item2-general-debate-contd-4th-meeting-32nd-regular-session-of-human-rights-council/4940474281001 No. 58, Time: 2:06:00 ———– —————– ————– Tuesday, June 21, 2016 – Oral statement by Pasumai Thayagam UN Web TV link: http://webtv.un.org/watch/item3-general-debate-cont-20th-meeting-32nd-regular-session-of-human-rights-council/4962898189001 No. 48, Time: 06:30 ———– —————– ————– Thursday, June 23, 2016 – Oral statement by Pasumai Thayagam UN Web TV link: http://webtv.un.org/meetings-events/watch/item4-general-debate-contd-27th-meeting-32nd-regular-session-of-human-rights-council/4973022505001… Read more »

GTF: International Community Must Continue to Exert Pressure on Sri Lanka

International Community must continue to exert pressure on Sri Lanka to facilitate faithful implementation of all aspects of the UNHRC resolution – Global Tamil Forum Wednesday, June 22, 2016 As the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) meets in Geneva this month and the High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein prepares his… Read more »

Studying Sinhala by Tamils

by Eelaventhan Manickavasakar, June 12, 2016 Northern Provincial Chief Minister Justice C. V. Wigneswaran in a recent speech has exhorted the Tamil students to study Sinhalese.  The reasons he mentioned were Lack of knowledge in Sinhalese is the root cause of misunderstanding, suspicion, mistrust and lack of confidence. If you know Sinhalese, you can effectively reply… Read more »

Sangam Kalai Vila

  Ilankai Tamil Sangam (ITS), USA successfully hosted its bi-annual cultural show “Kalai Vila” on Sunday June 5th in West Windsor New Jersey.  This year the Kalai Vila 2016 was combined with a super singer show.   Over 100 students from different parts of New Jersey show cased their talent in Tamil language, music and arts… Read more »

ITJP-SL: Forgotten

by International Truth & Justice Project: Sri Lanka, South Africa, June 10, 2016 Exiled Tamil victims of war crimes and torture say they would testify by video to a special court in Sri Lanka only if international judges were involved and their identities protected, says a new study. ITJP Forgotten press release ITJP Forgotten report… Read more »

Diaspora Participation in the Transitional Justice Process

by Public Interest Advocacy Centre, ‘Groundviews.org,’ Colombo, May 17, 2016 ‘I gave my statement not only for what I hoped to achieve, but on behalf of the hundreds of people at home who could not raise these issues … I wanted the truth to be known to the UN and the powerful international community so… Read more »

2nd Tamil Studies Symposium May 6-7

Full program http://ycar.apps01.yorku.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Tamil-Studies-Symposium-Program.pdf The 2nd Tamil Studies Symposium Bearing Witness: Unspeakable Crimes, Invisible Atrocities 6-7 May 2016 at York University The most challenging paradox of the 21st Century may well be the saturation of our media with news of atrocities, even as many conflicts around the world are described as ‘wars without witnesses’. While news reports… Read more »

Conference: The Politics of Life & Death

at Columbia University, New York, Center for Palestine Studies, April 21, 2016 ABSTRACT by Rudhramoorthy Cheran, University of Windsor; Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminology Title: No Closure for Tamils: Bearing Witness and Writing Apocalypse Abstract: In his work, “I was not there”, Raul Hilberg (1988), writes about the dilemma facing… Read more »

New Report Raises Concern Sri Lanka’s Window for Reconciliation is Closing

(Washington, DC; April 20, 2016) A new report by People for Equality and Relief in Lanka (PEARL) provides details of ongoing militarization and harassment amongst the Tamil population of the North-East of Sri Lanka, over one year after the change in presidency and seven months after the election of the United National Party-led national government…. Read more »

“The Other Side”

By Indrani Balaratnam, March 30, 2016 A glimpse of the streets we would have called home, I’m laughing in the park, climbing the coconut trees, Cycling through the dusty lanes, playing at the local spots. It’s a strange relationship: Caught in opposition of the surveillance state, And, gratitude, for finally seeing the corners we’ve never… Read more »

flickering screens

by Varathas, Diasporaland.tumblr, October 2015 While working on an Al Jazeera documentary on Sri Lanka, I stumbled upon raw landscape footage of Jaffna. The camera captured the lush green, rural landscape of the peninsula in beautiful dawn light. Watered paddy fields, palm groves in the distance, thick jungles on the sides, narrow pathways elegantly drawn… Read more »

Vaddukoddai Resolution

The Vaddukoddai resolution of May 14th 1976 is a turning point for the history of the Eelam Tamils’ struggle.  Dr A.J. Wilson, the late lamented head of the political science department, Brunswick University speaks in the following words about the turning point in the Eelam Tamils’ struggle. “In the years after the onset of the… Read more »

Leaderless Tamils and Floundering Causes

Tamils who once ruled the entire country, but later ruled in the name of Jaffna Kingdom lost their rule after the entry of foreign Kingdoms.  The 1948 independence opened the route to the loss of language rights; land ownership rights, employment rights.  The first blow fell on the plantation Tamils, depriving them of their citizenship… Read more »

Receding Hopes for Accountability, Reconciliation and Justice

The much talked and discussed current burning issues of accountability, reconciliation and justice appeared to be facing a life and death battle, the contributors being Sri Lanka’s Government thriving on an uneasy alliance, the UN Human Rights Commissioner and the chauvinistic politicians, spearheaded by Mahinda, BBS and others struggling to revive their political fortunes –… Read more »

No Turning Back

International pressure, which has relentlessly driven reform on the island so far, must persist if a justice process where the victims voices take centre place is to be forged.

Fundraising for Tamil Chair at Harvard University

http://www.harvardtamilchair.com/ Harvard University has endorsed the idea of a Tamil Chair in their Department of South Asian Studies. The following note, was part of a letter received from Harvard University: “We are very pleased to convey to you our desire to support the establishment of the first Sangam Professorship in Tamil Studies at Harvard University…. Read more »