Posts Categorized: Human Rights

TG: Nowhere to Hide

Tamil Guardian editorial, London, June 9, 2024 Britain’s Metropolitan Police made a significant announcement this week; only the second of its kind. A man accused of committing war crimes in Sri Lanka was arrested in South London. Though this is just a single person being investigated it sends a powerful message to those in Colombo… Read more »

TG: International Criminal Court and Beyond

Tamil Guardian editorial, London, June 2, 2024 Recent weeks have seen several senior politicians from the two leading opposition parties in the UK, reiterate the importance of ensuring Sri Lanka is referred to the International Criminal Court (ICC). Keir Starmer, the man widely tipped to become Britain’s next prime minister, called on the ruling government… Read more »

Burning of the Jaffna Public Library

43rd anniversary remembrance  by British Tamils Forum, London, June 1, 2024 June 1st evokes the scar of the Burning of Jaffna Public Library in 1981, the irreplaceable asset of Tamil people. This calculated arsenic destruction was one of the major cultural genocides against Tamil people masterminded by Sri Lankan state to destroy historic evidence of Tamil… Read more »

Second Arrest inn UK’s Sri Lanka War Crimes Investigation

Police appeal for information by uknip427 (UK News in Pictures, June 5, 2024 Counter Terrorism detectives investigating allegations of war crimes linked to the Sri Lankan civil war in the early 2000s are appealing for anyone who might have information that could assist their investigation to contact police. The appeal comes after a second UK-based… Read more »

Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields Cast a Long Shadow

Impunity for crimes committed during the civil war has fuelled post-war repression in Sri Lanka. by Al Jazeera, May 18, 2024 By Madura Rasaratnam and Ambihai Akilan Published On 18 May 202418 May 2024 Today we mark the 15th anniversary of the bloody end of Sri Lanka’s three-decades-long civil war. This anniversary comes around at a critical historical… Read more »

Recognising Genocide

by Tamil Guardian, London, May 25, 2024 Tamils across the world marked the 15th anniversary of the massacres at Mullivaikkal last week. Thousands gathered, en masse in public commemorations and in private ceremonies at homes, to pay tribute to those who were killed by the Sri Lankan state. As they did so, they were clear… Read more »

The Burden of War Widows

Gendered consequences of war and peace-building in Sri Lanka by Karen Brounéus, Erika Forsberg, Kristine Höglund, Kate Lonergan, Third World Quarterly, Pages 458-474, Received 26 Aug 2022, Accepted 16 Aug 2023, Published online: 09 Sep 2023 Burden of War Widows Third World Quarterly Sept 2023 Abstract Research shows that war affects various groups of survivors… Read more »

HRW: Crackdown Over Civil War Anniversary

UN Report Calls for International Prosecutions for Enforced Disappearances by Human Rights Watch, New York, May 23, 2024 (Geneva) – Sri Lankan authorities have threatened and detained Tamils commemorating those who died or went missing in the country’s civil war, Human Rights Watch said today. On May 17, 2024, the United Nations human rights office issued a report calling… Read more »

Dead or Alive?

Parents of children gone in Sri Lanka’s civil war have spent 15 years seeking answers by Krishnan Francis, Associated Press, New York, May 18, 2024 MULLAITIVU, Sri Lanka (AP) — For 15 years, Rasalingam Thilakawathi has been trying to find out what happened to her daughter at the end of Sri Lanka’s bloody civil war…. Read more »

Legacy of Enforced Disappearances Haunts Sri Lanka

by Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva, May 21, 2024 “I have been looking for my son since 2009. I am now 72 years old and I will leave this world soon. Maybe I will get to see my son again or at least find out where he is buried,” said Kamala*…. Read more »

15 Years Today – A Massacre in Mullivaikkal

by Tamil Guardian, London, May 18, 2024 To mark 15 years since the Sri Lankan military onslaught that massacred tens of thousands of Tamils, we revisit the final days leading up to the 18th of May 2009 – a date remembered around the world as ‘Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day’.  After providing an initial death toll of 40,000, the UN… Read more »

OHCHR: Accountability for Enforced Disappearances in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka must ensure accountability for decades of enforced disappearances – UN report by UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva, May 17, 2024 report-accountability-enforced-disappearances-sri-lanka-may2024-en GENEVA (17 May 2024) – Sri Lanka’s Government must take meaningful action to determine and disclose the fates and whereabouts of tens of thousands of people who… Read more »

Sri Lanka: Accountability Needed for Enforced Disappearances

Sri Lanka must ensure accountability for decades of enforced disappearances – UN report UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights press release, Geneva, May 17, 2024 GENEVA (17 May 2024) – Sri Lanka’s Government must take meaningful action to determine and disclose the fates and whereabouts of tens of thousands of people who… Read more »

OHCHR Report – Accountability for Enforced Disappearances in Sri Lanka

by Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva, May 17, 2024 Full report, with summary in English, Tamil & Sinhalese – Accountability for Enforced Disappearances in Sri Lanka – OHCHR report | OHCHR OHCHR report re accountability for enforced disappearances May 2024 Summary:  Unofficial document This report, issued pursuant to the United Nations… Read more »

Maatram: Website for Memories of Enforced Disappeared

by Maatram, March 30, 2024 Memories of relationships…! உறவுகளின் நினைவுகள்…! நாளை மாலை 6.00 மணியிலிருந்து 7.30 வரைhttps://t.co/mzGQTR9iZX pic.twitter.com/izm2Rjk34X — Maatram (@MaatramSL) March 29, 2024 Maatram is a citizens journalism website in Tamil, based in Sri Lanka. Established in 2014. Curated by @SRajasegar

Amnesty: Digital Space Launched to Highlight Enforced Disappearances in South Asia

by Amnesty International, London, March 27, 2024 Enforced disappearance in South Asia – Amnesty International Amnesty International, along with over 20 partner organisations from South Asia, launches the first phase of an interactive digital space titled, “Footprints – Virtual Museum on Enforced Disappearances in South Asia,” today to highlight stories of those who have been… Read more »

CPA: Understanding Interconnections between Human Rights and Economic Crimes

in Sri Lanka: Exploring Issues and Potential Ways Forward by Centre for Policy Alternatives, Colombo, March 2024 Economic-Crimes-Advocacy-Report.pdf (cpalanka.org) Summary In Sri Lanka, economic crimes perpetrated by Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) have received critical attention at present, where there have been discussions on plausible interventions to address the culture of impunity and the human rights… Read more »

The Logic Behind Sri Lanka’s Arrests

Tamil Guardian editorial, London, March 24, 2024 Illustration by Keera Ratnam / @wavesofcolour After more than a week of detention, a group of eight Tamils who had been assaulted, arrested and detained without bail finally had a trumped-up case against them dismissed. The Sri Lankan police never did have any basis to hold them, a fact that even… Read more »