CSIS interactive map of transportation projects, “Reconnecting Asia” – https://reconnectingasia.csis.org/map/ including rehabilitation of the Talaimannar Railroad spur, etc. 2012 UNCTAD paper on the “Political Economy of Regional Integration in South Asia” – http://unctad.org/en/PublicationsLibrary/ecidc2013misc1_bp5.pdf Graphic by World Bank, accessed April 24, 2017 at http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/infographic/2016/05/24/the-potential-of-intra-regional-trade-for-south-asia
Posts Categorized: Other
UN System Owes Sri Lankan Tamils Remedial Justice
For its failures in delivering justice and to protect them during the genocidal war from 2004 to 2009 by Kumarathasan Rasingam, January 10, 2017 “In the end, it comes down to values, as was said so many times today. We want the world our children inherit to be defined by the values enshrined in the… Read more »
Sri Lanka At A Crossroads – A Tamil Perspective
by Suren Surendiran, ‘Colombo Telegraph,’ December 18, 2016 Suren Surendiran January 2015 saw one of the worst tyrannies in the history of Sri Lanka come to an abrupt end. The unexpected was realised through the ballot and not through bullet. President Maithripala Sirisena swept to power with 51.2% of the vote compared with his rival… Read more »
Why Facebook Won’t Help Heal War Torn Sri Lanka’s Wounds
by Senel Wanniarachchi, ‘The Sunday Leader,’ Colombo, November 6, 2016 Sri Lanka’s ethnic conflict, one of the world’s most protracted and destructive conflicts of our time was brought to a bloody, military end in May of 2009. Seven years have passed since, but the communities in the country remain divided along narrow ethno-religious lines. In… 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 »
What Have You Done with My Husband?
By Ananthi Sasitharan as told to and with additional reporting by Melissa Petro | Comic by Danielle Chenette, ‘Narratively,’ August 12, 2016 As Sri Lanka’s bitter civil war ground to a bloody end, many rebel leaders disappeared, never to be seen again. Seven years later, one wife wants answers. In October 2015, the United Nations… Read more »
A Reality Check
by Prof. Jayadeva Uyangoda, published in ‘Groundviews,’ Colombo, July 15, 2016 Text of the presentation at the seminar on “Peace and Reconciliation & Nation-Building”, organized by the Association for Social Development and held at Organization of professional Associations Auditorium, Colombo, on July 10, 2016. I share the basic premise on which the theme of this… Read more »
Xavier was my Saviour
by M.K. Eelaventhan, July 12, 2016 J.R. Jeyawardena brought this draconian legislation in 1979 to wipeout the so-called terrorism. In his declaration he said wipeout terrorism on or before 31st December 1979. I was kept in the Jaffna military camp housed at the old kachcheri premises and later I was transferred to the Jaffna Prisons housed… Read more »
The American Hug
Fundamental military alignments with US, taking place without open debate, may foreclose India’s options.
Pressing Your Case: Nonviolent Movements and the Media
Introduction by Nada Alwadi Organizers and strategists of nonviolent movements often struggle in dealing with the mainstream news media. Some consider it their enemy, because coverage can be patchy or inaccurate. Others unrealistically expect the media to advocate for their causes. Yet few resources for activists have provided a reliable explanation of how an… Read more »
Framed Memories of Black July
http://30yearsago.asia/portfolio/framed-memories/ Mary Gunawathy Varatharajah Mary Gunawathy Varatharajah (alias Poonga), did not want to become a teacher or a doctor or an engineer as the Tamil community in Sri Lanka aspires to be, instead she has broken the traditional barriers, and chosen to be a fighter. She joined the armed struggle after “Black July” to fight… Read more »
The Darker Side of Buddhism
The principle of non-violence is central to Buddhist teachings, but in Sri Lanka some Buddhist monks are being accused of stirring up hostility towards other faiths and ethnic minorities. Their hard line is causing increasing concern. The small temple in the suburbs of Colombo is quiet. An image of the Buddha is surrounded with purple… Read more »
Ecological Disaster in Vallikamam, North Sri Lanka
Donate to Sangam’s efforts to determine the extent & cause of the spill and work on clean-up. by Lankawebnews.com, March 4, 2015 There is an ecological disaster of serious proportions takingshape over the last few years with the effects already showing in the Vallikamam area of Northern Sri Lanka. It is being realized by the… Read more »
Sri Lanka’s War Affected Women Call For Genuine Accountability Initiatives
133 war affected women and 20 organisations have today urged the new government to take immediate steps to address past violations and to initiate credible and independent investigations that lead to indictments and prosecutions of alleged perpetrators. We publish below the statement in full; We, as women impacted by war and ongoing post-war violence in… Read more »
Look Back to Move Forward
by Jared Genser, ‘The Diplomat,’ January 15, 2015 http://thediplomat.com/2015/01/look-back-to-move-forward-advice-to-the-new-sri-lanka-president/ This week, Sri Lankans welcome their first new president in a decade. In an election called two years ahead of schedule, surprise incumbent challenger and former Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena narrowly, albeit impressively, defeated outgoing President Mahinda Rajapaksa. But while the face of Sri Lankan politics… Read more »
Jaffna International Tamil Research Conference of 1974
Introductory Note The 40th anniversary of the 4th International Tamil Research Conference held in Jaffna (January 3-9) had passed by silently. The sad event of January 10th, 1974 in which nine Tamils lost their lives was one of the trend setting episodes which generated the Eelam Campaign of late 1970s among Tamil militant youth. As… Read more »
Why Tamils Should Know about the Indo-Lanka Accord (ILA) and 13th Amendment
The Indo-Lanka Accord and the 13th Amendment to the Sri Lankan constitution were drafted nearly 30 years ago. Successive Indian governments have attached a lot of importance to it. There have been many debates over it in the past. Post-2009, new debates on it have again been pushed to the fore. I have always… Read more »
Kanagasabai (K) Gunaratnam (1917-1989)
by Sachi Sri Kantha, September 10, 2014 Kanagasabai Gunaratnam, popularly known as ‘K. Gunaratnam’, was a pioneer Tamil industrialist and movie mogul of Sri Lanka. He also ranked as one of the prosperous Tamils in post-independent Ceylon. In 1960s, when I was a school boy, the pen produced by ‘KG Industries’ was a big hit… Read more »
Amnesty: Ensure Security Detainees are Charged or Released
Mano, a 29-year-old Tamil man, was arrested in March 2007 “on suspicion” of being a member of the opposition Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and held for years without ever facing trial; while in custody he has been tortured. Several years after the end of the war in Sri Lanka, hundreds of people are languishing… Read more »
2009: The Ruined Wasteland of Sri Lanka as 300,000 People are Displaced after War with Tamil Tigers
This is the devastation left behind after 26 long years of civil war. Thousands died in Sri Lanka during the government’s clash with the ethnic Tamil people, fighting for their own homeland. Now the war zone is a wasteland, its earth scorched and pocked by craters. Cars and trucks lie overturned near bunkers beside clusters… Read more »