Posts Categorized: International

VR: Res. 30/1 Implementation Monitor #3

UNHRC Resolution 30/1 Implementation Monitor: Statistical & Analytical Review No. 3 by Verite Research, Colombo, February 26, 2018 This is Verité Research’s latest study on the Sri Lankan government’s commitments on reconciliation and accountability. The ongoing UNHRC Session began on 26 February 2018, and will include a discussion on Sri Lanka’s progress in this regard. This report… Read more »

US Embassy Statement

by US Embassy, Colombo, March 6, 2018 March 6, 2018 – COLOMBO:  Rule of law, human rights, and equality are essential for peaceful coexistence.  It is important that the Government of Sri Lanka act quickly against perpetrators of sectarian violence, protect religious minorities and their places of worship, and conclude the State of Emergency swiftly, while… Read more »

Why Civil Wars Are Lasting Longer

Although the norm of negotiation has not died, countervailing norms have emerged around non-negotiation with terrorists, militarily defeating terrorist organizations, and prioritizing stabilization over democratization, even if that means bolstering authoritarian rule. Across today’s battlefields—in the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Libya, Mali, Myanmar, the Philippines, South Sudan, and Yemen—external actors are… Read more »

Annadurai, the Champion of the Eelam Tamil Liberation

by  M.K. Eelaventhan, February 3, 2018 Critical estimate of Anna’s contribution to Tamil and the Tamils. Annadurai’s 50th Death Anniversary fell on February 3, 2018                       Mr. C.N. Annadurai, the beloved disciple of Periyar, owes a lot to Periyar who shaped his multifarious career.  If is not for Periyar, Annadurai may not have attained this unique position…. Read more »

HRW: Key Elements for HRC 37 Statements on Sri Lanka

by Human Rights Watch, January 15, 2018 HRW Sri Lanka HRC37 letter We write to seek your support in ensuring that the upcoming consideration of Sri Lanka’s progress towards implementation of its commitments under UN Human Rights Council (HRC) resolution 30/1 accurately and substantively reflects the situation within the country, including both progress to date… Read more »

UN High Commissioner’s Report on Sri Lanka 2018

by High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva, January 25, 2018 OHCHR Report on Sri Lanka 25 Jan 2018 Human Rights Council Thirty-seventh session 26 February–23 March 2018 Agenda item 2 Annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General Promoting reconciliation,… Read more »

UN Committee Tells Sri Lanka to Transfer Military Run Schools

by ‘Colombo Gazette,’ February 8, 2018 A United Nations (UN) committee has urged Sri Lanka to ensure that all schools currently run by the military are transferred back under the Ministry of Education. The recommendation was made by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child in its findings on Sri Lanka released today…. Read more »

Panel in Washington discusses Transitional Justice in Sri Lanka

by ‘Tamil Guardian,’ London, February 5, 2018 A panel event on mass atrocities discussed the lack of progress made by Sri Lanka in the realm of transitional justice, in Washington DC last week. The US Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Ferencz International Justice Initiative and the National Endowment for Democracy held an event on promoting justice for… Read more »

ITJP: : What Vetting of Sri Lankan Diplomats?

by Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka & International Truth & Justice Project, February 7, 2018 ITJP JDS press-release-7-feb-2018 vetting SL diplomats Johannesburg: The UK, the UN and the international community have an obligation to step up their screening and vetting of Sri Lankan public and security officals for alleged involvement in atrocities during and… Read more »

ITJP: Brig. Priyanka Fernando in London

by Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka and International Truth & Justice Project, February 5, 2018 On Sri Lanka’s 70th Independence Day, 4 February 2018, Brigadier Fernando attracted attention by thrice making slitting throat gestures to a crowd of chanting Tamil protestors outside the High Commission in London. The video of him, in full military… Read more »

UNHRC Briefing Note

HRC_briefingnote_En The Human Rights Council (HRC or Council) is the only intergovernmental organisation responding to all human rights abuses across the globe by exposing violators and demanding change. Follow proceedings by webcast Feb. 26-March 23 at http://webtv.un.org Documents & other materials are at  http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HRC/RegularSessions/Session37/Pages/37RegularSession.aspx   Current Membership of the Human Rights Council, 1 January – 31 December 2018… Read more »

UNHRC February/March Session & Sri Lanka

by Thambu Kanagasabai  LLM [Lond], Former Lecturer in Law University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, February 5, 2018 The 37th UN Human Rights Council is scheduled to commence on 26th February 2018 and concludes on 23rd March. During this session, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights is expected to present his written interim report on… Read more »

Rajinikanth’s Aimless and Empty Political Gamble

by M.K. Eelaventhan, January 17, 2018 Member of Parliament of Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam.  Former Member of Parliament, Sri Lanka Rajiniikanth born in Karnataka State, India on December 12, 1950 and named as Sivaji Rao Gaekaward by his parents with Marathi as his mother tongue is a popular screen hero in Tamil Nadu with… Read more »

UNWG: Sri Lanka Must End Arbitrary Detention

Sri Lanka must urgently implement reforms to end arbitrary detention, UN rights experts say COLOMBO / GENEVA (15 December 2017) – The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has identified significant challenges to the enjoyment of the right to personal liberty in Sri Lanka, resulting in arbitrary detention across the country. The experts recognize positive… Read more »

Sri Lanka’s Sixth Amendment Challenged

Sri Lanka’s Sixth Amendment Challenged at the UN by 1,705 Lawyers from around the World: TGTE Complaint cited terminology of “one undivided and indivisible country” & safeguards against secession in Article 2.2. of the New Interim Constitutional Report by Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE), /EINPresswire.com/ GENEVA, SWITZERLAND, December 14, 2017 One thousand seven hundred and… Read more »

UN: Protectors or Watchers?

by Thambu Kanagasabai, LLM [Lond.], former Lecturer in Law, University of Colombo, January 1, 2018 The United Nations is a global organization that brings together its member states to confront common challenges, manage shared reponsibilities and exercise collective action in an enduring “quest for a peaceful world.”  One of the main purposes of the United… Read more »

Amnesty: UPR Pledges Must Be Fully Implemented

SRI LANKA: UNIVERSAL PERIODIC REVIEW PLEDGES MUST BE FULLY IMPLEMENTED by Amnesty International, 20 December 2017, Index number: ASA 37/7630/2017 Eight years after the end of the armed conflict in Sri Lanka, the island nation’s human rights record was scrutinized again at the recently held Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in Geneva, Switzerland on 15th November… Read more »

Sri Lanka Must Urgently End Arbitrary Detention

Sri Lanka must urgently implement reforms to end arbitrary detention, UN rights experts sayCOLOMBO / GENEVA (15 December 2017) – The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has identified significant challenges to the enjoyment of the right to personal liberty in Sri Lanka, resulting in arbitrary detention across the country. The experts recognize positive initiatives, including… Read more »

British Police Are Training Riot-Cops Linked to War Crimes

Undercover Footage Shows British Police Are Training Riot-Cops Linked to War Crimes in Sri Lanka Foreign aid money is being spent on a paramilitary style unit notorious for its brutality and linked to extra-judicial killings. by Phil Miller, ‘Vice UK,’  December 7, 2017 A still from the footage provided by Yardstick films shows the STF… Read more »