Posts Categorized: International

Universal Jurisdiction — the Most Difficult Path

To Achieve Justice in Sri Lanka by Andreas Schuller, JustSecurity, New York, February 24, 2022 (Editor’s Note: This is the latest in a series on the spotlight to be placed on allegations of war crimes and other abuses in Sri Lanka during the Feb. 22 to March 23, 2021, session of the United Nations Human Rights… Read more »

How Britain Stole $45 Trillion from India

And lied about it by Jason Hickel, Al Jazeera, Dubai, December 19, 2018 There is a story that is commonly told in Britain that the colonisation of India – as horrible as it may have been – was not of any major economic benefit to Britain itself. If anything, the administration of India was a cost to… Read more »

It’s Time for the Human Rights Council to Act on Sri Lanka

Former UN High Commissioner Pillay Says by Laurel B. Fletcher, JustSecurity, New York, February 15, 2022 (Editor’s Note: This is the latest in a series on the likely spotlight to be placed on allegations of war crimes and other abuses in Sri Lanka during the next session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, beginning Feb…. Read more »

What Makes Amnesty’s Apartheid Report Different?

by Maureen Clare Murphy, The Electronic Intifada, February 3, 2022 What makes Amnesty International’s new report determining that Israel practices the crime of apartheid against Palestinians any different from those that came before it? Certainly, Israel’s “hysterical” reaction – (in the words of one Haaretz headline) – to the Amnesty study is notably different from its relatively understated response to similar… Read more »

UN Human Rights Chief Welcomes Sri Lanka Report

Urges further investigation into conduct of final stages of the war Pillay on Sri Lanka by UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva, 26 April 2011 GENEVA (26 April 2011) — The High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay on Tuesday welcomed the public release of the report of the Secretary-General’s Panel… Read more »

Indian Ocean Strategic Studies Newsletter

by Indian Ocean Strategic Studies, New York, January 2022 Indian Ocean Strategic Studies newsletter January 2022 Mission of the IOSS Indian Ocean is at the heart of international geo-politics. Some 80% of the world’s maritime oil trade flows through three narrow passages of water, known as choke points, in the Indian Ocean. This includes the… Read more »

India Stays in the Game Facing a Pushy China

by Indrani Bagchi, Times of India, January 21, 2022 China will never “bully” its neighbours in the South China Sea, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi promised the Philippines this week. Instead, he preached: “Stressing only one side’s claims and imposing one’s own will on the other is not a proper way for neighbours to treat… Read more »

China’s Bare-chested Turn to Sri-Lankan Tamils is India’s New Headache

by Shrey Khanna, The Print, New Delhi, January 17, 2022 Anti-China sentiment among the Sinhalese allows China to influence the Tamil north. This time, through the fishermen crisis. The arrest of more than 60 Indian fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy last month created a political stir in Tamil Nadu. The state’s fishermen are continuing their indefinite strike from 19 December,… Read more »

China Sits on the Sidelines of Peace Efforts

Despite High Stakes in Ethiopia by Joseph Sany, Ph.D. & Thomas P. Sheehy, US Institute for Peace, Washington, DC, January 19, 2022 Since November of 2020, Ethiopia has been suffering from a deadly internal conflict that has claimed an estimated 50,000 lives and displaced over two million. The United States, the African Union and others… Read more »

Friend or Foe? China Ventures into the Tamil Homeland

Tamil Guardian editorial, London, December 24, 2021 Last week China’s ambassador to Sri Lanka made his first visit to the North-East, in an interesting venture to the Tamil homeland. Qi Zhenhong went to great lengths to ingratiate himself with the Tamil people. The ambassador’s efforts ranged from visiting the historic Jaffna Library where he donated laptops and… Read more »

Seven Tamil Parties Seek Modi’s Help for Implementing 13-A in Full

by DBS Jeyaraj, Daily Mirror, Colombo, January 8, 2022 In a significant political move, seven  political parties mainly representing the  Sri Lankan Tamils of the Northern and Eastern provinces have written a joint letter to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking his help to fully implement the provisions of the 13th  amendment to the Constitution…. Read more »

Sumanthiran Charts Way Forward

by Marianne David, The Morning, Colombo, January 8, 2022 No need to reinvent the wheel in constitution making No response on building consensus on previous processes US will take leading role on Sri Lanka at UNHRC once again ‘One Country, One Law’ opposite to promises give to world TNA still awaiting meeting with Prez on… Read more »

Myanmar Coup: Military Regime Seeks to Weaponize Religion

In a propaganda blitz, the military portrays itself as the guardian of Buddhism and stokes fear of a Muslim takeover. by Billy Ford, Zarchi Oo, US Institute of Peace, Washington, DC, December 16, 2021 Ten months have passed since Myanmar’s military overthrew the country’s elected government, and by now it’s apparent that arrests, executions, torture… Read more »

TG: Getting Serious on Sri Lanka

Tamil Guardian editorial, London, December 15, 2021 Last week, the United States announced long-overdue travel restrictions on two more accused Sri Lankan war criminals. The move is a step in the right direction and will be welcomed across the globe by those who seek justice on the island. It serves as a reminder to the Sri Lankan… Read more »

Challenging the LTTE’s FTO Listing

by Steve Schneebaum, TGTE’s virtual Parliament sitting, December 4, 2021 Other videos from the sitting at தேசமாய் சிந்திப்போம் நாட்டை உருவாக்குவோம் ! சிறப்புடன் கூடிய நாடுகடந்த தமிழீழ அரசாங்கம் !! – Homeland (tgte-homeland.org)

TLHR Hearing: Accountability and Human Rights in Sri Lanka

by Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, US House of Representatives, Washington, DC, December 8, 2021 Accountability and Human Rights in Sri Lanka | Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission (house.gov) Announcement Please join the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission for a hearing on accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is a multi-ethnic multi-religious state that… Read more »

Meeks, McCaul Urge State Department to Prioritize Political Solution

 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 »

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 »

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 »