in Engagement with Sri Lanka by US House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair & Ranking Member, December 3, 2021 https://foreignaffairs.house.gov/2021/12/meeks-mccaul-urge-state-department-to-prioritize-political-solution-in-engagement-with-sri-lanka Washington, DC – Today, Representatives Gregory W. Meeks and Michael McCaul, Chair and Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken urging the Administration to prioritize in… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Politics
North-Eastern Diplomacy of the Rajapaksas
by Jathindra, Uthayam News, Jaffna November 10, 2021 [Translation from the original Tamil by Google Translate] Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently opened a new international airport in Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh, India. Kushinagar is believed to be the final resting place of Gautama Buddha. Namal Rajapaksa, the son of Mahinda Rajapaksa, was present at the event along… Read more »
Zero Performance of Tamil Parties
And their leaders N.B. Not to say that Tamil leaders could not do a lot better than their current splintered disarray, but we’d like to quote a frequent comment by a member of our editorial committee – “One can’t blame Tamil leaders for not accomplishing much, since they hold no power.” — Editor by Thambu… Read more »
Management of the Tamil Diaspora 2006
LTTE’s Primary Function Abroad by Vipula Wanigasekera, Institute for Defense Analyses, Alexandria Virginia, March 2006 Building a CATR Research Agenda, Proceedings of the Third Bi-Annual International Symposium of the Center for Asian Terrorism Research (CATR) March 1-3, 2006, Colombo, Sri Lanka Proceedings_of_Center_for_Asian_Terrorism Research 2006 Management of the Tamil Diaspora–LTTE’s Primary Function Abroad … III-52 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………… Read more »
The Quad was Born in Crisis
An exclusive interview with U.S Ambassador to Sri Lanka Alaina B.Teplitz by A. Jathindra, Centre for Strategic Studies, Trincomalee, Sri Lanka, September 25, 2021 Ambassador Alaina B.Teplitz has served as the U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives since 2018. Prior to this, she was the U.S. Ambassador to Nepal. A career member of… Read more »
UNHCHR: Oral Update on Sri Lanka
by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, Geneva, September 13, 2021 48th session of the Human Rights Council Geneva, 13 September 2021 Distinguished President, Excellencies, I am pleased to update the Human Rights Council on Sri Lanka and the trends and issues identified in my last report. I acknowledge the inputs sent by… Read more »
Core Group Statement on Sri Lanka
UN Human Rights Council 48 by Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office & Simon Manley CMG, UK Government, September 14, 2021 (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered) Thank you Madam President This statement is by the Core Group on Sri Lanka comprising Canada, Germany, North Macedonia, Malawi, Montenegro and the UK. We thank… Read more »
UN Special Rapporteur on Transitional Justice
by UN Special Rapporteur on Transitional Justice, September 2021 Human Rights Council Forty-eighth session 13 September–1 October 2021 Agenda item 3 — Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development Interactive Dialogue at UNHRC Sept. 16, 2021 – ID: SR on Truth & Justice… Read more »
Genocide Designations Aren’t Enough to Stop Mass Atrocities
by Kate Ferguson, World Policy Review, New York, September 7, 2021 There is extensive evidence that the Chinese government is violating the human rights of ethnic Uyghurs, and that these violations include crimes against humanity and genocide. Satellite imagery, testimonials, demographic data and photographs substantiate the extensive allegations against China, which include the use of mass surveillance… Read more »
SR TJ: Follow-up on 2017 visit to Sri Lanka
by UN Special Rapporteur on Transitional Justice, Geneva, September 2021 Follow-up on the visits to Burundi, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Sri Lanka Report of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence, Fabián Salvioli Summary The Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth,… Read more »
Letter from Association of Relatives of Enforced Disappearances
by Association for Relatives of Enforced Disappearances, North & East Provinces, Kilinochchi, August 30, 2021 (letter courtesy tweet by Tamil Americans United) * * xxx
An Exclusive Interview with India’s Commodore R. S. Vasan
by A. Jathindra, Centre for Strategic Studies, Trincomalee, Sri Lanka, August 24, 2021 Commodore (Ret) R. S. Vasan, Former Regional Commander Coast Guard Region East, Indian Navy is currently, Director Chennai Centre for China Studies and Regional Director National Maritime Foundation Tamil Nadu. China’s influence in Sri Lanka has grown remarkably in recent years. It… Read more »
Ellusive Unity & Eroding Aspirations
Of the Tamils of Sri Lanka by Thambu Kanagasabai, LLM – London, Former Lecturer in Law, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, August 25, 2021 There is no doubt that unity is the most uttered and much used and abused word by the Tamil politicians and leaders who took control of the political destiny of Tamils… Read more »
Letter by FeTA-UK to Aid Agencies in 1996
by Federation of Tamil Associations in the UK, March 31, 1996 Fed Tamil Assoc UK 1996 Letter SL military budget 1996
2nd Vaddukkodai Resolution
by DMK’s Minister of Fisheries A. Radhakrisnan, August 9, 2021 Report on ‘2nd Vaddukoddai Resolution’ video conference held on 1-8-2021 with the participation of Tamil Leaders from Tamil Eelam (North and East of Sri Lanka) and Tamil Nadu, India. —— Second Vaddukkodai Resolution 1 August 2021 2nd Vaddukoddai Resolution video conference seeking India’s immediate and… Read more »
The Taliban Has Seized More Cities, Despite U.S. Efforts to Build a Strong Afghan Military
What happened? Persuading partners to emulate the U.S. military approach doesn’t necessarily work, new research finds by Rachel Tecott, The Washington Post, August 9, 2021 On Sunday, the Taliban claimed the northern city of Kunduz, freeing dozens of Taliban fighters from the city prison. As U.S. troops continue to withdraw from Afghanistan, the Taliban is seizing regional… Read more »
US Continues to Vet Sri Lankan Soldiers
– But are war criminals being let in? by Tamil Guardian, London, August 2, 2021 The United States says that all Sri Lankan soldiers continue to be fully vetted for involvement in human rights abuses before being allowed to train in the country. Recent appointments however point to holes in the vetting process and raise… Read more »
Reading the Southern Mothers’ Front with Malathi de Alwis
30 years later The report of the Commission of Inquiry for the Western, Southern and Sabargamuwa Provinces (CoI-WSS), the most detailed of all the reports, described the violence of 1988-1991 as a systemic and orchestrated phenomenon, in which those in political power and the law were deeply complicit. It is also unequivocal in concluding that… Read more »
Sri Lanka Sliding Down a Dark and Slippery Slope
Daily Mirror editorial, Colombo, July 14, 2021 Somewhere after defeating separatist terrorism in 2009, Sri Lanka missed a glorious chance of turning a destructive era on its head. In the aftermath of the near 3-decade-long separatist war, instead of pursuing a cherished dream of reconcilliation, our political leaders acted like Don Quixote who went tilting… Read more »
Racial Prejudice Rears Its Head in Singapore
Imperfect harmony The city state is less racially harmonious than its government likes to think by The Economist, London, July 31, 2021 DAVE PARKASH and his girlfriend were strolling down the street one evening in June when an irate man accosted them. Tan Boon Lee accused Mr Parkash of “preying” on his girlfriend, whom Mr Tan,… Read more »