Posts Categorized: International

Sri Lanka Growth Diagnostic Analysis

by Harvard U’s Center for International Development, January 2018 https://srilanka.growthlab.cid.harvard.edu/publications/sri-lanka-growth-diagnostic https://growthlab.cid.harvard.edu/files/growthlab/files/growth_diagnostic_for_sri_lanka_1.pdf Abstract: Throughout 2016, CID conducted a growth diagnostic analysis for Sri Lanka in collaboration with the Government of Sri Lanka, led by the Prime Minister’s Policy Development Office (PDO), and the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC). This presentation report aggregates collaborative quantitative and qualitative analysis… Read more »

US Millennium Challenge Corporation

by US Millennium Challenge Corporation, July 2019. Pictures from US Amb. Teplitz’s Twitter feed, July 30, 2019 The land project will initially focus on districts in the Central, North-Western, North-Central and Eastern Provinces. Highlights of MCC Compact Scorecard FY19 More info, including 2017 Constraints Analysis  

Targeting Foreign Assistance to Prevent Violent Conflict

By Peter Quaranto, US State Dept blog DipNotes, July 23, 2019 The United States and other international donors devote significant amounts of foreign assistance to fragile states, now more than $65 billion a year combined.  But how much of that assistance is focused on preventing violent conflict and instability? That was the question that the Office… Read more »

Time for Recognition of Sri Lanka’s Genocide

by Thambu Kanagasabai, LLM [Lond.] Former Lecturer in Law, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, July 9, 2019 Genocide of Tamils in Sri Lanka, including structural genocide, commenced in 1948 soon after the independence. As defined in the United Nations Genocide Convention of 1948, genocide includes “ killing members of the group, or causing serious bodily… Read more »

Pursuing Accountability for Atrocities

by Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, Washington, DC, June 13, 2019 Announcement Please join the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission for a hearing to examine accountability for mass atrocities, with a focus on the tools and mechanisms available to the United States government. “Mass atrocities” are defined as large-scale, deliberate attacks against civilians, and include genocide, crimes… Read more »

Canadian House of Commons Passes Motion re Genocide of Tamils

by Canadian Parliament, June 19, 2019 https://openparliament.ca/debates/2019/6/19/cheryl-hardcastle-1/ (halfway down page) Sri Lanka Oral Questions June 19th, 2019 / 3:15 p.m. Mr. Speaker, there have been discussions among the parties, and I am hopeful that if you seek it, you will find unanimous consent for the following motion. I move: That the House, (a) extend its… Read more »

US Senate Resolution 184 on Sri Lanka

Passed by US Senate, June 10, 2019 116th CONGRESS 1st Session S. RES. 184   Condemning the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka, offering sincere condolences to the victims, to their families and friends, and to the people and nation of Sri Lanka, and expressing solidarity and support for Sri Lanka. IN THE SENATE… Read more »

Lessons from the War in Sri Lanka

by VK Sashikumar, Indian Defence Review – July – Sept 2009 – Vol 24(3) Lessons from Sri Lanka’s War – Indian Defence Review 2014 version, PDF http://www.indiandefencereview.com/spotlights/lessons-from-the-war-in-sri-lanka/0/ “The news about the killing of Prabhakaran sparked mass celebrations around the country, and people poured into the streets of Colombo, dancing and singing. Looking back at the… Read more »

Sri Lanka, MSF Amidst All-Out War

by Fabrice Weissman, Academia.edu, accessed June 2019 In Claire Magone et al. (ed.), Humanitarian Negotiations Revealed. The MSF Experience, London, Hurst & Co, 2011. Sri_Lanka_MSF_Amid_All-Out_War 2011 On 18 May 2009, the Sri Lankan government’s crushing victory over the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) put an end to twenty-six years of civil war. Described by… Read more »

U.S. Should Not Repeat its Post 9/11 Counter-terrorism Mistakes in Sri Lanka

by Ronnate Asirwatham, ‘Medium,’ May 28, 2019 The U.S. government’s hurried moves to expand military-to-military cooperation with Sri Lanka to fight terrorism after Easter Sunday’s bomb blasts is ill-advised because, Colombo’s counter-terrorism policies are shambles. Sri Lanka targets ethnic communities for acts of terrorist groups, and its military, enjoying impunity, uses torture as the main… Read more »

What the Holocaust Can’t Teach Us about Modern-Day Genocide

Never Again? by Andrew Stroehlien, International Crisis Group, December 2, 2009 (originally published in ‘Foreign Policy’) It was cold, misty, and miserably wet the day we visited Auschwitz-Birkenau, but no one wished for better weather. My companions — mostly midlevel diplomats from more than a dozen countries around the world — all seemed to agree… Read more »

Statements by US Congress on 10th Year after End of War in Sri Lanka

Rep. David Price (D-NC), Co-Chair House Democracy Partnership — Rep David Price Mullivaikkal Remembrance Day 2019 Rep. Bill Johnson (R-OH), Co-Chair of the Caucus on Ethnic & Religious Freedom in Sri Lanka —https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZYKeC4uMvc&feature=youtu.be Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA), Chair, Asia & Pacific Subcommittee — Rep. Brad Sherman statement end of war May 16 2019   &… Read more »

Sri Lankan Conflict Mapping Report

by Public Interest Advocacy Centre, Ltd., Sydney, Australia, May 14, 2019 Sri Lankan conflict mapping report highlights work to be done for transitional justice Media Releases Project highlights A decade since the end of the Sri Lankan civil war, a landmark report has been released detailing thousands of examples of reported human rights violations in… Read more »

The Sri Lanka Attacks: New Front, Old Wounds

The bombings will fuel inter-communal tensions in Sri Lanka, which still struggles with the legacy of its civil war. by Mario Arulthas, Al Jazeera, April 22, 2019 OPINION /SRI LANKA The attacks in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday for many brought back memories of the long ethnic war, which came to a bloody conclusion 10 years ago in… Read more »

Extending the Woes of Tamils

And evasion of accountability and justice by Sri Lanka by Thambu Kanagasabai,  LLM [London] Former Lecturer in Law, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, April 1, 2019 At the much awaited 40th Session of the UNHRC, the Commissioner Her Excellency Michelle Bachelet released her Report on March 03 2019 and then made her oral statement on March… Read more »

United Nations Must Recognize Tamils’ Right To Self-Determination

By Kumarathasan Rasingam, March 29, 2019 Tamils demand the Right to Self-Determination as Tamils in Sri Lanka qualify as a People and Nation When the United Nations was created after World War II, one of the main purposes of the United Nations was spelt out in Article 1 [2] of the Charter, which states ‘To… Read more »

India’s Statement at UNHRC

Statement by India at the 40th Session of the Human Rights Council (25 February – 22 March 2019) under Agenda Item 2: Interactive Dialogue with the OHCHR report on Sri Lanka, delivered by Ambassador Rajiv K. Chander, Permanent Representative of India [20 March 2019, Geneva] Mr. President We thank the High Commissioner for the report… Read more »

Verité: Res. 30/1 Implementation Monitor

by Verité Research, Colombo, March 2019 https://www.veriteresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Verite-Research_UNHRC-Monitor-No4-March-2019.pdf This brief contains an updated analysis of progress since February 2018. Background……………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Methodology…………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Resolution 30/1: Implementation Status……………………………………………………………… 1. Transitional Justice and Reconciliation…………………………………………………. 2. Rights and Rule of Law………………………………………………………………………… 3. Security and Demilitarisation……………………………………………………………… 4. Power Sharing………………………………………………………………………………………. 5. International Engagement…………………………………………………………………. Resolution 30/1: Overall Status of Implementation………………………………….. Annex 1: Implementation Status… Read more »