Further Statement of Group of concerned Tamils of Sri Lanka

The Group of Concerned Tamils of Sri Lanka is disturbed by persistent reports of continuing lack of adequate shelter, privacy, water, toilet and bathing facilities, nutrition, and medical services as well as other grave ills, notably disappearances in several of the detention centres. In any case it is surely in the interest of all concerned that the detention centres become more accessible immediately and, progressively, converted in to welfare centres that contain only those few who may choose to remain for a short period. They may opt to remain briefly on account of any unavoidable delay in getting back to the homesteads that they had vacated and have no other home to move in to as an interim measure.

pic by: UNHCR

Continue reading "I.D.P.'S Yearn to Get away from Their Barbed Wire Enclosures" »

Posted by transCurrents at 12:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

by Shanie

Sri Lanka has for far too long been held hostage by the extremist forces. These were the vocal elements on both sides of the ethnic divide who strangulated and silenced the moderates. We noted in our column last week the effect of the vocal extremist elements among the Sinhalese on enactment of the Sinhala Only Bill. Banadaranaike’s original draft bill, while enforcing Sinhala as the sole official language, had also provision for the use of Tamil. But the extremists would have none of it.

Continue reading "Sri Lanka held hostage by extremist forces for far too long" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

by Lucien Rajakarunanayake

I’m no believer in numerology, or the power that numbers can have on people, but it appears that 13 has suddenly emerged as the make or break number in the politics of Sri Lanka.

Continue reading "Unlucky thirteen: make or break number in present politics of Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

by P. Sainath

The Tamils have built what is thought to be the first Ganesh temple in the Koraput region with their own hands.

One is a member of the Malkangiri District Cricket Association and custodian of its cricket kit. Another, a minor contractor in a public works project. A third runs a tiny shop. They’re all pretty rooted in Malkangiri. Not very different from any other small town group. Except that this one consists of a bunch of former Sri Lankan Tamil warriors settled in deep rural Orissa in one of the country’s poorest districts where they’ve been nearly 20 years.

Continue reading "Turning Tamil swords into Oriya ploughshares" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

by Dayan Jayatilleka

There are two types of people who assert that President Mahinda Rajapakse is against the 13th amendment or does not intend to or will not implement it. These are the Tamil ultranationalists, the Tamil hawks and their fellow-traveling Sinhala doves, who say that no devolution will emanate from the Rajapakse administration, and the Sinhala hardliners who oppose any kind of devolution and attempt to use President Rajapakse’s patriotic profile behind which to hide their extremism. Some even invoke Mahinda Chinthana, oblivious to the irony that Mahinda Rajapakse can be safely trusted to know the letter and spirit of Mahinda Chinthana better than anyone else.

Continue reading "Implementation of 13th Amendment is a Guarantee of our National Security" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

Full Text of Statement by National Peace Council of Sri Lanka

The end of the war has brought with it the opportunity for a restoration of normalcy and reconciliation after 30 years of suffering and trauma. However, the plight of the nearly 300,000 internally displaced persons who are being kept within welfare centres in Vavuniya is a continuing source of much suffering and heartburn. The situation within these camps is reported to be very poor and cannot easily be verified as entry into them is severely restricted. The National Peace Council urges the government, as a priority measure, to specify a time frame for the release of these people from the welfare centres and their resettlement.

Continue reading "Hold Special School Examinations for IDPs to Restore Confidence" »

Posted by transCurrents at 02:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

On Thursday (July 2), one week after Jackson, 50, died following cardiac arrest at a rented Los Angeles-area mansion on the eve of the July 13 start of the O2 run, MTV News obtained a clip of a rehearsal filmed just two days before Jackson's sudden passing. And though it is just a 90-second glimpse of the singer performing the controversial track "They Don't Care About Us," the brief bit of film does appear to show Jackson in solid shape, stomping around the stage, apparently singing in full voice and energetically dancing with an all-male troupe of backup performers.

Continue reading "New Michael Jackson video: "They Don't Care About Us"" »

Posted by transCurrents at 05:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

by Kusal Perera

"What is the procedure in sending relief stuff to the IDP camps ?" asked a friend one morning. "My daughter is helping some group to collect stuff for those people" he added.

"We are planning to visit the IDPs next week." another colleague told me. "Rotarians are doing some voluntary work at Menik farm."

"I was asked to join a volunteer group to Vavuniya. They had gone once. Is it O-k ?" another asked me.

The internet more than the local Sri Lankan media is full of stories about the Sri Lankan Tamil IDP's. It is an exodus to Vavuniya now, to see the IDP's "live" in their true settings as refugees. Leaving out those freelance journalists who take these IDPs as an opportunity to file stories, there are many many Sri Lankan groups from the South who try to drive up to Vavuniya with relief material and for short time volunteer work. All of them come back with their own "tearful human" stories and often try to justify their trips to IDP camps by saying how helpful they were for those thousands of "innocents" behind barbed wire fences. "Poor innocents" living a refugee life and for how long, the new breed of local tourists wouldn't want to discuss about.

[A young girl receives food assistance at an IDP camp in northern Sri Lanka-pic: World Vision Lanka]

Continue reading "Defining moments of living with a Sinhala Buddhist 'guilt'" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (44)

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

The conditions prevailing at the Internally displaced person (IDP)camps in Vavuniya and Chettykulam are far from satisfactory.

Many of those who serve or have served as volunteers in these camps are upset over the continuing humanitarian tragedy .

It is widely acknowledged that the authorities are making sincere efforts to improve conditions as far as possible.

It is also accepted that conditions are improving gradually. But there is a crying need for vast and quick improvement .

Recently a team of volunteers returned after a stint at IDP camps in Manik Farm. [click here to read the article in full~dbsjeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 11:45 AM | Permalink

Sri Lanka - camps, media…genocide?

By Martin Shaw

What kind of violence has the Sri Lankan state been committing against its Tamil civilian population as the island‘s civil war ended; on what scale and with what intentions? Martin Shaw explores the difficult terrain where war, atrocity and genocide meet.

The civil war in Sri Lanka is receding from the international headlines, as crises in Iran and celebrity deaths occupy the media's limited space and attention-span. A very large number of its Tamil victims are still, more than six weeks after the fighting ended, confined in government forces in a complex of forty camps in the north east of the country. An estimated 280,000 civilians - originally displaced from their homes by the fighting between the Sri Lankan military and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam (TamilTigers / LTTE), and in some cases fleeing from the brutal regime in the LTTE's former "liberated" zone - are being held, generally against their will.

[Jewish children behind Barbed wires 1945-pic: Aquaview]

Continue reading "‘Camp system is all too clearly the latest stage of genocide’" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (13)

by Kath Noble

We are constantly told that restrictions on access to IDP camps prove that awful things are happening. If the situation were under control, this hypothesis goes, the Government would allow people to go and see for themselves. So when journalists write unverified stories about disappearances, rapes, starvation, epidemics and more, often encouraged by equally imaginative NGO reports, they are believed.

Continue reading "A Two - Day Trip to the I.D.P. Camps in Vavuniya and Chettikulam" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (22)

International Crisis Group - Asia Report N°172

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Sri Lanka’s judiciary is failing to protect constitutional and human rights. Rather than assuaging conflict, the courts have corroded the rule of law and worsened ethnic tensions. Rather than constraining militarisation and protecting minority rights, a politicised bench under the just-retired chief justice has entrenched favoured allies, punished foes and blocked compromises with the Tamil minority. Its intermittent interventions on important political questions have limited settlement options for the ethnic conflict. Extensive reform of the judicial system – beginning with a change in approach from the newly appointed chief justice – and an overhaul of counterproductive emergency laws are essential if the military defeat of the LTTE is to lead to a lasting peace that has the support of all ethnic communities.

Continue reading "Sri Lanka’s Judiciary: Politicised Courts, Compromised Rights" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The Following statement re: “Tamil People” was issued today by The Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity:

“Wherever minorities are being persecuted we must raise our voices to protest. According to reliable sources, the Tamil people are being disenfranchised and victimized by the Sri Lanka authorities. This injustice must stop. The Tamil people must be allowed to live in peace and flourish in their homeland.” - Elie Wiesel, June 30th 2009 - http://www.eliewieselfoundation.org/inthenews.aspx

Continue reading "“Tamil people must be allowed to live in peace and flourish in their homeland.” – Elie Wiesel" »

Posted by transCurrents at 04:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)

Reported by IRIN News

Health experts warn that the arrival of monsoon rains in July could increase the risk of waterborne diseases for tens of thousands of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in camps in northern Sri Lanka.

More than 280,000 people who fled fighting between government forces and the now defeated Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) are staying in some 35 government camps in four northern districts - Vavuniya, Mannar, Jaffna and Trincomalee.

The majority, 220,000, are living at the Menik Farm camp, a sprawling site of over 700ha outside Vavuniya town.

“With such a large number of people concentrated together, there is always the risk of waterborne disease with the rains,” Laurent Sury, head of mission for Médecins Sans Frontières, told IRIN in Colombo.

A child at a displaced persons site in Vavuniya, northern Sri Lanka-pic: IRIN

Continue reading "Rains raise fears of malaria setback in camps" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

by Michael Roberts

The Sri Lankan squad had a wonderful tournament, though the gloss was reduced by their comprehensive loss to Pakistan at the final hurdle. This disappointment should not be permitted to deny striking successes: (a) the comprehensive victories they secured over Australia (one of the favourites), West Indies (twice) and Pakistan in earlier rounds; and (b) the selection of Tillekeratne Dilshan as Player of the Tournament.

World Twenty20 @ Lord's-pic: Hari Ramanathan

Continue reading "Twenty 20 Championship: Well done, Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

By Veronica Zaragovia

Sri Lanka's 26 years of civil war effectively ended on May 19, 2009 with a single image. Televisions across the globe broadcast a government-issue photo of slain Tamil Tiger head, Velupillai Prabhakaran, lying on a muddy patch of ground with wide eyes and a fractured skull. His life's end terminated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam's decades-long fight for an independent homeland for Sri Lanka's Tamil minority — about ten percent of the population — and a cycle of violence that Sri Lankans of all ethnicities and religions have been living with for decades.

The enormous Tamil demonstration in London on 20/6/09, in support of their people suffering horrific violence and conditions in post-war Sri Lanka.Pic: lewishamdreamer

Continue reading "Around the World, Young Tamil Voices Not Quieted By War's End" »

Posted by transCurrents at 05:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Several prominent human rights organizations have expressed their deep concern over the dire human rights and humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka in a joint letter to President Barack Obama:

Full Text of letter:

June 18, 2009

President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President,

We, representing several human rights organizations, are writing to express our deep concern about the situation in Sri Lanka and urge you to take immediate steps to address the dire human rights and humanitarian situation in that country.

Since December, during the last phase of intense fighting, tens of thousands of civilians have been killed, injured or displaced. Independent observers and media were denied access to the conflict zone. Three medical doctors who were providing independent information were arrested and held incommunicado. Even after the government claimed military victory, it denied access to camps and to the former safe zone where the final battle took place.

Continue reading "Human Rights Leadership Coalition writes President Obama Urging Action on Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

The troubles and travails faced by the displaced civilian population of the Northern mainland, Wanni is indeed a tragedy of our times.

I have in the past written extensively about the Wanni civilians who lived in tiger-controlled territory and described them as the wretched of the Wanni earth.

These people are now uprooted from their homes and compelled to live as “Internally Displaced Persons” in various camps described as welfare centers. [click here to read in full ~ dbsjeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 10:00 PM | Permalink

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

“Can the Tamils Seize a new opportunity” ? was the heading given by Ajith Ratnarajah to his well-written piece on the future of Tamils in Sri Lanka.

Though lengthy the post evoked a lot of constructive discussion and debate on this blog.

Ajith had written it from a Tamil perspective and outlined certain ideas and proposals envisaging a bright future for the Tamils of Sri Lanka who at the moment face bleak prospects.

Another person of Sri Lankan origin now resident in Britain has sent an interesting , thought provoking article on what the future holds for Sri Lankans in general and Sri Lankan Tamils in particular.

Gus Mathews the writer in an e-mail sent to me says: [click here to read in full ~ on dbsjeyaraj.com

Posted by transCurrents at 08:06 PM | Permalink

by Dayan Jayatilleka

We have a once –in-generations chance to re-found Sri Lanka, to build Sri Lanka anew. To do so, we must be both hard and soft; and vigilant as hawks and as conciliatory as doves. We must be hard enough to obliterate what is left of the LTTE as an organization and surgically pre-empt any attempts at re-emergence, be they local or Diaspora-based and originated. We must be soft and malleable enough to arrive at a consensus with the non-Tiger Tamils as to the shape of the Sri Lanka we wish to build and live in.

Continue reading "Starting Point of Realistic Reform is Implementation of the 13th Amendment" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (35)

Lanka Business Online, The web based business portal based in Colombo in an “Ideas” article published today is calling for bold moves to revitalize Sri Lanka’s economy, for the betterment of all.

And it has called to enact Sri Lanka’s North and the East as special economic zones:

at Trinco Chamber Of Commerce-by: indi.ca

Continue reading "'Sustained double-digit economic growth needed by all in Sri Lanka'" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

By Charles Haviland BBC News, Colombo

Leelawathi Mahagamaralalage's family is proud of their military tradition, despite the human cost

It is just over a month since Asia's longest civil war in modern times came to an end, with the Sri Lankan government's declaration that it had finally defeated the Tamil Tiger rebels (LTTE) on the battlefield and killed nearly all their leaders.

Yet the army chief says he wants the army, already 200,000, to increase in size by 50%.

To see what the military means to many Sri Lankans, I visited the peaceful bungalow home of Leelawathi Mahagamaralalage, set among banana trees in a village.

Taking pride of place in her front room are shelves with pictures of her family, but mostly of her second son, Nandana.

Continue reading "'Normality in northern Sri Lanka is still a very long way away'" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

The following editorial appeared first in the Boston Globe:

"If it bleeds, it leads," goes the old motto of the news business.

If this rule explains coverage of local crime stories and traffic accidents, it's even more applicable to global conflicts with their origins in old colonial conquests.

Those sad legacies have included bloodbaths in Vietnam, Cambodia, East Timor, Sri Lanka, India-Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran-Iraq, Iraq-Kuwait, Israel-Palestine, Chechnya, Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, and all too many more.

Continue reading "Greenland's peaceful passage to independence" »

Posted by transCurrents at 01:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

"Many of the grievances that fueled the conflict have not been met yet, and the question is what incentive does the [Sri Lanka] government have now that they have to reach out and begin reconciliation," said Dr Deepa Ollapally, Deputy Director at the Sigur Center at George Washington to an interview to Foreign Exchange TV, and added that without political leadership Tamils are "very vulnerable."

Continue reading "Tamils "very vulnerable" without political leadership" »

Posted by transCurrents at 01:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

by: Christoph Koettl

Amnesty’s Science for Human Rights project just released a satellite image of Menik Farm in Sri Lanka, a de-facto internment camp run by the military, which offers a rare glimpse of the massive displacement caused by the conflict. Mark Cutts, the UN official at Menik Farm, recently told the BBC that “nothing less than a new city had been created.”

[click here for full PDF satellite image of Menik Farm-by Amnesty’s Science for Human Rights project]

Continue reading "Beaches, Palm Trees, Displacement - Welcome to Sri Lanka’s War Zone" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

by Rajan Philips

“The rapacious West” was the epithet Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike flung at the West, feeding off the anti-imperialist fodder of the 1960s. That was during her first stint as PM and she chose the occasion of a State Banquet in Beijing to deliver the insult. J.R. Jayewardene, famous for his after dinner wit, would have cracked a few Chinese jokes. Not that anyone in the West significantly noticed, but the world’s first female PM provoked headlines in Colombo more in jest than in admiration.

[Sri Lankan protesters burn placards during a protest outside the British Embassy in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Monday, May 18, 2009.-AP pic]

Continue reading "The turn against the ‘rapacious West’ and the re-turn of communalism" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (21)

by Jorge Heine

Lakshman Kadirgamar, the former Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, was one of the most incisive legal minds of his generation. A former president of the Oxford Union, he made significant contributions to the ILO and the World Intellectual Property Organisation, among other entities. Whoever met him, as I did, could not help but be impressed with his knowledge of international affairs, his passion for peace in his homeland, and his razor-sharp intellect.

Continue reading "Responsibility To Protect Does Not Apply in Sri Lanka Situation" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (24)

by Shannie

The tragedy of Sri Lanka has been the growth, since the mid fifties, of ethno-religious nationalism and the consequent destabilisation of our pluralist society. Over the years, our political leadership, even though perhaps realising the perils of it, went along this slippery road for political gain. It was only the Left, the old Left of Samasamajists and Communists, who initially refused to succumb to these vocal yet obscurantist forces. In the end, the lure of political power engulfed even them. But, all through this capitulation to narrow nationalism, there remained, within all political parties, the civil society, the academic community and religious leadership, a core element with a commitment to liberalism, pluralism and moderation.

Continue reading "Silent majority must raise their voices loudly and clearly" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

By Dayan Jayatilleka

As Paul Berman once wrote, “somewhere in the world it is always 1941”. There comes a time in the life of every society when it is faced with an existential threat or challenge. It is the social forces or elements that rise up to this challenge and successfully overcome this threat that then have the power as well as the legitimacy to place their stamp on what comes after. Those who stood on the wrong side of history, or never rose to the occasion, or who abandoned the struggle partway, or simply failed; the defeated enemy, the collaborators, the appeasers and the fence-sitters — and these are not one and the same — all forfeit the chance to place their values, ideas and programs as the leading ones of the social order that follows the great test.

Continue reading "Three potential sources of pluralist reform in post war Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

By Niro Dissanayake

All that was predicted and feared/anticipated depending where you are standing has come to pass. The ‘Dutugemunu Principle’ has peaked and the policy of 60 years has come to fruition. The Sinhalese have come a full circle and stand victorious and united with their writ running from North to South, East to West, as was in the time of the great king 2000 years ago. History has repeated itself in eerie fashion.

King Dutugemunu himself is said to be reborn – albeit in the form of President Mahinda Rajapakse. The mindless sycophants and hangers-on are already proclaiming the ‘Return of the King’ and requesting all parliamentary democratic practices be put asunder and He be the ‘Ruler for the next 25 years’ no less. If this is to be another golden age of Sinhalese Buddhists is yet to be seen.

Continue reading "Sinhala and Tamil people of Sri Lanka: Where do we go from here?" »

Posted by transCurrents at 01:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (16)

The head of the Anglican Church of Canada has urged the Canadian prime minister to lead international efforts to protect the civil liberties of Sri Lankans following a government victory over the rebel Tamil Tigers.

In a letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper dated June 23, Archbishop Fred Hiltz called on the Canadian government to respond generously to the humanitarian needs of Tamils in the island nation's Vanni district.

Continue reading "Anglican Archbishop bishop urges Canadian government action on Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 01:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The astrologer made one prediction too far

The authorities in Sri Lanka have arrested a popular astrologer who predicted that the president will be ejected from office, police say.

Chandrasiri Bandara announced last week that the government would flounder in September and October because of political and economic problems.

The opposition have condemned the arrest and warned that the country is heading towards a dictatorship.

Astrology is taken seriously by numerous Sri Lankan politicians.

Continue reading "Sri Lanka arrests astrologer over political prediction" »

Posted by transCurrents at 08:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (21)

by: Amjad Mohamed-Saleem

Ever since the final days of Sri Lanka's offensive against the Tamil Tigers sent hundreds of thousands of people fleeing, aid agencies have been struggling to cope with the needs of the displaced. Add to that the operational restrictions imposed by the authorities, and it has been a challenging environment to work in.

Continue reading "Not a pretty sight: the row over Sri Lanka's camp toilets" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

By: Dr.Rajasingham Narendran

The war between the LTTE and the government of Sri Lanka is over. The pursuit of an independent Tamil Eelam- an illusion- initially floated by the democratic political leadership of the Tamils, thereafter passionately pursued by various militant-terrorist groups, including the LTTE and finally carried forward in a highly organized, but fatally flawed manner by the LTTE, has proved to be just what it was- just an illusion!

Continue reading "Sinhalese, Tamils and Sri Lanka: Need for a paradigm shift" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (24)

By Anjana Pasricha

In Sri Lanka, media groups have asked the government to scrap moves to re-establish a media panel which could jail journalists. The reactivation of the Press Council is being seen as a means to control the media in a country where concerns have been voiced about intimidation and pressure on reporters critical of the government.

Continue reading "Sri Lankan Media Groups Ask Government Not to Re-establish Powerful Media Council" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Michael Jackson, the singer, songwriter and dancer who earned the title “King of Pop” in a career that reached unprecedented peaks of sales and attention, died Thursday at 1:07 p.m. Pacific time, a Los Angeles city official confirmed. He was 50.

Continue reading "Michael Jackson, 50, Is Dead" »

Posted by transCurrents at 06:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Maya Arulpragasam is an anomaly in many ways. As M.I.A., she has had a lightning-fast rise. From her early singles “Galang” and “Sun­showers,” which spread virally through the Web in 2004, to her 2005 debut album, Arular (named after her father), and 2007’s Kala (named after her mom), she has garnered nothing but critical acclaim.

Major fame struck in 2008 with the song “Paper Planes,” after its use in the trailer for the Seth Rogen stoner flick Pineapple Express and in the Academy Award-winning Slumdog Millionaire. For the latter, M.I.A. received an Oscar nomination along with the film’s composer, A.R. Rahman—Best Original Song for the track “O...Saya.” In February, on the actual due date of her baby, she performed at the Grammys.

Politically, she’s a tireless advocate of the Tamil people, who’ve suffered in the recent civil war in Sri Lanka between the majority Sinhalese and the Tamil Tigers (the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, also known as the LTTE). Life has certainly changed from her early days living in London public housing to her recent engagement to fellow musician and Seagram heir Ben Brewer (né Bronfman, son of former Seagram CEO Edgar Bronfman).

Continue reading "Turn It Up - Tete-a-Tete:MIA" »

Posted by transCurrents at 12:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

by Rohini Hensman

Throughout the gruesome finale of the civil war, the government of Sri Lanka claimed to be engaged in the largest hostage rescue mission ever, to release civilians in the Vanni who were being held against their will by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Yet the vast majority of these civilians are still not free. So what exactly has been happening?

Continue reading "Why are displaced Wanni civilians being penalised like this?" »

Posted by transCurrents at 12:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)

by Vasantha Raja

Sri Lanka’s present administration is a “dictatorship masquerading as democracy” observed Prof. John Neelsen from the Institute of Sociology in Tuebingen, Germany. His judgement is not far from the truth. In this paper I shall argue that a virtual ‘Sinhala-Buddhist dictatorship’ has emerged in Sri Lanka as the outcome of the brutish military campaign that resulted in a humanitarian tragedy of scandalous proportions. Also, I shall show the colonial connection, particularly the British rule that sowed the seeds for the present political impasse in Sri Lanka.

Let me start with a brief description of the war that culminated in the destruction of the Tamil Tiger leadership along with its Tamil mini-state in Sri Lanka’s Tamil habitat.

Continue reading "Setting up a Sinhala Buddhist Dictatorship Masquerading as Democracy" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (22)

By our correspondents

24 June 2009

It is now more than one month since the Sri Lankan military detained the final batch of Tamil refugees fleeing the northern war zone on May 19. They joined more than a quarter of a million civilians already incarcerated in camps set up near Vavuniya and on the Jaffna Peninsula during the last phase of the war. About 160,000 people are interned in four units in the biggest camp, known as Manik Farm.

Continue reading "Sri Lankan Tamil detainees give eye-witness accounts" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)

The United Nations Security Council should make sure that its existing commitments to protect civilians during armed conflict are actually carried out, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to council member states.

Even though there is no fighting in Sri Lanka's "no fire zone", HRW said: "There is still a need, however, for the council to urgently address the continuing humanitarian and human rights crisis and help undo some of the damage that its previous inaction helped foster.

In its letter, Human Rights Watch identified the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, Chad, and Sri Lanka as examples of nations in which the Security Council has failed to take meaningful action to address and prevent civilian suffering during armed conflict. Persistent problems needing attention in those countries include: sexual violence, lack of justice and accountability for abuses, continuing violence toward internally displaced people and refugees, and violations of international humanitarian law.

Full text re: Sri Lanka, in HRW's Letter to UN Security Council Regarding the Debate on Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict

Continue reading "UNSC must help undo some of the damage that its previous inaction helped foster-HRW" »

Posted by transCurrents at 08:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

"We are concerned about the Tamils in living in Sri lanka. And not any other organization....and we do everything possible and suitable for Tamils living in Sri Lanka," but "not according to the people outside of Sri Lanka needs," said Sri Lanka's Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya.

Sri Lanka's Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya to the United States stated this when responding to a question at the "talk" he gave on "Bringing an End to A Quarter Century of Civil War," at The Center for Human Rights and Democracy at the Georgia State University recently.

Continue reading ""We do everything possible and suitable for Tamils living in Sri Lanka"- Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (22)

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

A harsh fact of life is the hiatus between rhetoric and reality.

One is starkly reminded of the chasm between promise and performance as we see current developments unfolding.

On the one hand there is the very discernible yearning of ordinary people from all ethnicities to put the past behind us and move forward to reconciliation, justice,amity and unity.

But there are other forces obstructing this natural process by obstinately sticking to obscurantist ideology. [click here to read the article in full ~ on dbsjeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 07:39 PM | Permalink

by Dayan Jayatilleka

Father’s Day this year falls on the eve of the tenth anniversary of the death of my father, Mervyn de Silva, journalist and editor, literary critic and satirist, broadcaster and commentator on world affairs, or as Godfrey Gunatilleke put it in a sixth anniversary revaluation, “literary critic, intellectual, political analyst and media communicator all in one”. The founder editor of the Editor’s Guild of Sri Lanka, the award instituted in his name by the industry is the pinnacle prize of the annual Journalism Awards ceremony.

Continue reading "10th death Anniversary – June 22: Mervyn de Silva and the Lankan condition" »

Posted by transCurrents at 04:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)

Technical solutions based on quick impact and do no-harm

by Herald Vervoorn

1. Introduction

Water and sanitation are vital for human health, generates economic benefits, helps the environment and contributes to dignity and social development. Irrefutably, water, sanitation and health are interrelated. Thus access to adequate sanitation and quality water is essential for better health and overall living conditions.

This is applicable in general, but above in (post) conflict situations. People in such circumstances do already have a difficult time and are often more vulnerable. As well in emergencies during a conflict period (or disaster like the tsunami) as in the recovery phase specific water and sanitation options need to be provided.

Figure 1a Need for basic facilities (shelter and watsan) in (post) conflict areas

Continue reading "Water and sanitation in (post) conflict areas of N-East Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

By Naveen Kanapathipillai

Events that happened in the Vanni theatre of war in the middle of the month of May came as a shock for most of the Diaspora Tamils. Despite the fact that the LTTE was cornered in a narrow strip of land and a chance for the top level leaders to escape and regroup was minimal, many Tamils hoped for a miracle. During the peak of the fighting that resulted in carnage where thousands of civilians and tigers killed, the concern was whether the legendary Tiger leader Velupillai Prabhakaran was still in the fighting area. Speculations were many.

[Protesters wear masks of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) leader Vellupillai Prabhakaran during a rally against Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapaksa in the southern Indian city of Chennai May 28, 2009-Reuters pic]

Continue reading "Waiting for the command to Grieve: Controversy over the death announcement of Prabhakaran" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (19)

by Indira Ravindran

June 20th marks World Refugee Day, and this affords us an opportunity to remember the 80, 000 Sri Lankan Tamils who have sought refuge in Tamilnadu over the past quarter-century. These refugee children, men and women are housed in 117 guarded camps across the state. They struggle to survive with available camp resources that range from modest to meager, and many are still traumatized by memories of the violence and unrest that caused them to flee their country. Yet, the most disturbing aspect of refugee life is not the daily struggle, nor the past trauma, rather it is the debilitating uncertainty of the future. Refugees do not know when they will return home, or what they will find there, once they return. Almost every one of them longs to return home.

[Sahanagama IDP site, Pulmoddai 13th Mile Post - pic: drs. Sarajevo]

Continue reading "Sri Lankan Refugees: Time to Honor their Courage, Restore their Rights" »

Posted by transCurrents at 06:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

More than 20,000 pro-Tamil protesters swelled the streets of London around Parliament today, Jun 20th as campaigners compared the Tamils' plight in Sri Lanka to Nazi Germany.

Demonstrators pretend to be in a concentration camp to show how Tamils in Sri Lanka are currently being treated.

Continue reading "Sri Lanka Tamils' plight compared to Nazi Germany in London Protest" »

Posted by transCurrents at 01:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

A noteworthy feature of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) has been the special manner in which it glorifies death and pays homage to dead tiger fighters.

Fallen LTTE members were eulogized as martyrs and referred to as “Maaveerar” or Great heroes.

The departed tigers were buried in cemeteries known as “Maaveerar Mayaanangal” (great hero cemeteries) and memorials called “Maaveerar Thuyilum Illangal” (sleeping abodes of great heroes) were constructed. [click here to continued ~ dbsjeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 11:55 AM | Permalink

Full text of statement by Kathirkamathamby Arivazhakan, Head, External Affairs Wing, Department of Intelligence, released on June 18, 2009:

Our Beloved Tamil Speaking People!

Department of Intelligence of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has now confirmed that the Leader and the Commander–in–Chief of our organisation, Tamil Eelam National Leader His Excellency V. Pirabaharan has attained Martyrdom.

The Leader’s Martyrdom has been confirmed through sources including our Intelligence cadres in the know of the final incidents concerning attempts to move the National Leader to a safer location who have now reached safety, Fighters of other departments and our informants with links to the High Command of the Sri Lankan armed forces.

Continue reading "tatement from the Department of Intelligence of the LTTE" »

Posted by transCurrents at 08:12 PM | Permalink

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

A Christian clergyman who inspired many of us during our student days was the Anglican Bishop of Kurunegala Rt. Rev Lakshman Wickremasinghe.

This eminent theologian known popularly as Bishop Lakshman was a practical man of action when it came to the question of human rights violations and inter-ethnic justice and unity.

Bishop Lakshman was one of those who pioneered the Civil Rights Movement in Sri Lanka when the State unleashed massive repression during the time of the first Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) insurgency in 1971.

[click here to read the article in full ~ in dbsjeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 07:56 PM | Permalink

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

Opening up this Blog for people to express their views on national reconciliation, ethnic amity and inter-racial justice seems to have created a vibrant forum.

I am particularly heartened by the positive responses of so many people from different walks in life.

Of course a web – based forum in English is naturally confined to a particular socio-economic background. Nevertheless many people of this strata too have been estranged due to recent events. So let them converse too. [click here to read the article in full ~ in dbsjeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 07:33 PM | Permalink

by Matthew Russell Lee

It was projected as a light evening of honor for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, to receive from the Foreign Policy Association a Global Humanitarian Award, along with former US president Bill Clinton.

[pic: by Aquaview]

Continue reading "UN's Ban Tips Hat to Protesters from High Above NY, Claims He Met With Tamils" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

International Investigation Needed

The Sri Lankan government’s announcement that it was ending its special inquiry into conflict-related abuses underscores the need for an international commission to investigate violations of international law by government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Human Rights Watch said today.

“Sri Lanka’s presidential commission of inquiry started with a bang and ended with a whimper,” said Elaine Pearson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The need for an international inquiry into abuses by both sides is greater than ever.”

Continue reading "End of Government Commission on Wartime Abuses Puts Justice at Risk" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

Initiatives by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties, India, in collaboration with other like minded organisations and civil society personalities, in raising the issue of Human Rights violations in Sri Lanka and also initiating an effort to investigate crimes against humanity and war crimes;

This effort in fact is the best documented effort by any organisation in articulating the legal framework on which the present SL regime could be investigated into on both those crimes. It carries substantial information relevant to the accusations:

Continue reading "PUCL India initiatives on the SL conflict and petition to the UN" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

By Jonathan Miller

A doctor working with injured and displaced Tamils in northern Sri Lanka tells Channel 4 News that there may be as many as 20,000 amputees among those who fled last month's routing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

Continue reading "Channel 4 Video: Fresh claims over Tamil casualties" »

Posted by transCurrents at 04:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

The International Commission of Jurists says the Sri Lanka Government is in breach of the Geneva Convention in its treatment of displaced Tamils held in government-run camps.

Almost 300-thousand Tamils have been displaced since the Sri Lankan military defeated the rebel Tamil Tigers in May. Thousands of former fighters are thought to be held but their whereabouts and fate is unknown. Foreign governments are being urged to pressure Colombo to allow independent aid agencies into the camps and observe the Geneva Conventions that relate to prisoners of war.

"If Sri Lanka wants to be treated seriously internationally and in the former British Commonwealth. It needs to comply with the laws and treaties."

[click here to listen mp3 audio]

[Presenter: Karon Snowdon
Speaker: John Dowd, President of the Australian section of the International Commission of Jurists, a former Attorney General and Supreme Court judge]

Continue reading "International Commission of Jurists urges Sri Lanka to comply with laws and treaties" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)

By National security correspondent Matt Brown - abc.net.au

The Australian Government has sent a team of officials to northern Sri Lanka to look at the camps where hundreds of thousands of Tamil civilians are being held by the Sri Lankan government.

More than 280,000 Tamils have been held in camps guarded by the Sri Lankan military ever since the military smashed the Tamil Tigers more than a month ago.

[click for ~ mp 3 audio-courtesy : abc.net.au]

Continue reading "Sri Lankan camps breach convention against genocide" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A young Sri Lankan wonders if there were any true victors.

by M. Junaid Levesque-Alam

Critics bemoan the United States and its allies' failure to decisively defeat Islamist militant movements, casting a pall over the policy debate and ceaseless invoking the ghosts of Vietnam. Meanwhile, a fierce insurgency that has haunted Asia for decades conceded defeat last month to the Sri Lankan government, which trumpeted its apparent victory over the Tamil Tigers by holding celebrations in the capital.

But is this a victory for peace, or merely a victor's peace?

Continue reading "A Tamil Reflection" »

Posted by transCurrents at 08:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (11)

By Charles Haviland [Related interview with D.B.S. Jeyaraj ~ Aired on BBC Thamilosai, June 15th, 2009]

Sri Lankan rebel group the Tamil Tigers say they are forming a "provisional transnational government" to pursue self-rule for the Tamil minority.

In a statement released from an unknown location, a Tigers' spokesman said the new body would advance what he said was the next phase of the struggle.

Continue reading "LTTE forming "provisional transnational government" to pursue self-rule for the Tamils" »

Posted by transCurrents at 12:22 AM | Permalink

Comment~Editorial - Edmonton Sun, June 15, 2009

by Lorrie Goldstein

Sri Lanka is a sovereign nation. It had the right to bar Liberal MP Bob Rae and Conservative MP Deepak Obhrai, parliamentary secretary for foreign affairs, from entering the country.

Canada, after all, recently barred British MP George Galloway for the same reason Sri Lanka says it did Rae -- security concerns. Which just goes to show countries can act within their rights and still be wrong.

Canada argued Galloway gave "material support" to Hamas.

Sri Lanka banned Rae because of his alleged sympathy for the terrorist Tamil Tigers.

Continue reading "Why international observers are needed in Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 05:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (13)

By Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai

"Displaced societies are of value. Their issues are our issues." - Cynthia Basinet - (b. 1971-)- American Singer, Social Change Activist (1,000 Women for the Nobel Peace Prize-2005)

A kid at play in Khan Colony

Pakistan's estimated population was 172,800,000 in July 2008. It's the World's sixth most populous country. By the end of this decade it is expected to be nearly 180 million according to wikipedia. Pakistan has hosted one of the world's largest refugee populations since 1978. Almost two million Afghan refugees remain there according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The refugees who fled the fighting in Afghnaistitan are scatted in the cities of Islamabad, Lahore, Quetta, Rawalpindi, and other cities.

Continue reading "In Pictures: Displaced Afghans in Khan Colony, Lahore" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sharmini Peries speaks to Sunila Abeysekera award-winning human rights defender and the Executive Director of INFORM, an organization working to spread the word on Sri Lankan human rights violations.

The speak about the history of the ongoing torture allegations in Sri Lanka and the so-called "internment camps" where roughly 300,000 refugees of the recent conflict linger.

Continue reading "The disappearing act in Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)

The disappeared

Murdered, missing, imprisoned in camps...The guns may be silent in Sri Lanka for the first time in 26 years, but the price of peace for the innocent Tamils caught up in the fighting could not be higher ... Dan McDougall travels from the Tamils' UK protest in Parliament Square to the killing fields of Sri Lanka

by Dan McDougall

Continue reading "Price of peace for the innocent Tamils" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)

by Rajan Philips

In the beginning, the Rajapakse government characterized its war against the LTTE as part of the global war on terrorism. In the middle, and muddle, it became the war to liberate the Tamil civilians from the clutches of the LTTE. In the end, the war morphed into a despotic assertion of Sri Lanka’s sovereignty against Western interference. In the aftermath of the war, the plight of the Tamil civilians in the Vanni has not improved in spite of their liberation, and the controversies between the Sri Lankan government and the Western world show no sign of abating.

[Tamil civilians stand in line to collect water in the Manik Farm refugee camp located on the outskirts of northern Sri Lankan town of Vavuniya Tuesday, May 26, 2009]

Continue reading "The aftermaths of the war" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (17)

by Dayan Jayatilleka

The warning about the risk of triumphalism came days before the 65th anniversary celebration of D Day, by the leaders of the US , UK and France . In the USA there are annual re-enactments of the battles of the American Revolution – the War of Independence against Britain —and of the Civil War against the Secessionist Confederacy. While the risk of triumphalism does indeed exist and must be cautioned against, I think there is yet another risk, an opposite one, which we must avoid. The USSR which triumphed over the bulk of the Nazi fascist army, collapsed without a shot being fired, and that collapse was preceded by an ideological surrender in which everything positive in its history was turned upside down and held up for derision. In the recovery of its self-respect under President Putin, one of the first steps was to restore pride in the wartime achievements of the Red Army. Sri Lanka must learn this lesson.

Continue reading "Our Post-War Relationship With India Depends on Implementation of 13th Amendment" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (65)

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

The thoughtful letter on the rise of triumphalism in Sri Lanka written by “podi seeya” Upali Cooray to his grand nephew was posted on this blog under the heading “Chauvinist fever following military defeat of LTTE”.

The piece was well-received and evoked a wide range of responses.

Most of them if not all appreciated the analytical advice proffered by Upali Cooray a veteran leftist with a Trotskyite background.

Though I had to edit some comments and respond personally to a few all comments were released with the exception of one that viciously attacked Upali Cooray personally while expressing a contrary viewpoint. [click here to read the article in full~in dbsjeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 08:13 PM | Permalink

Nearly 300,000 Tamils Enduring Poor Conditions in Camps

The Sri Lankan government should end the illegal detention of nearly 300,000 ethnic Tamils displaced by the recently ended conflict in Sri Lanka, Human Rights Watch said today.

Continue reading "End Illegal Detention of Displaced Population - HRW" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Turning away Liberal Foreign Affairs Critic Bob Rae is more than an insult to a distinguished Canadian, it is an affront to Canada itself

Editorial, From Globe and Mail, Thursday, Jun. 11, 2009:

The decision by Sri Lanka to turn away Liberal Foreign Affairs Critic Bob Rae is more than an insult to a distinguished Canadian who has worked at some personal risk to end violence in that country, but is an affront to Canada itself, a Commonwealth friend that has supported Sri Lankan peace efforts and which in 2006 strengthened the Sri Lankan government's hand by listing, correctly if belatedly, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam as a terrorist organization.

[Editorial page cartoon on Globe and Mail, June 11, 2009]

Continue reading "The Globe and Mail: Sri Lanka discredits itself" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)

From ~ The Economist Magazine

With the government's defeat of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE, or Tamil Tigers) and the end of the civil war, attention in Sri Lanka is turning to the future. Beyond the need for economic development in former war zones, and humanitarian support for civilians displaced by the conflict, the peacetime political role of the country's large Tamil minority is of key importance. Devolving powers to the provinces may go some way toward addressing Tamil grievances, though separatist violence—albeit on a much smaller scale than during the war—will remain a threat.

Continue reading "The uncertain future of Tamils in Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

by Nirmala Chandrahasan

Today we are told that there are 300,000 internally displaced persons from what is called the Vanni regions of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka, who are in camps which are surrounded by barbed wire and armed guards. The Government has stated that they will be kept in these camps and resettled in their original towns and villages after a period of six months and that security concerns i. e. screening and registration, together with the need for demining tracts of land in the Vanni, are the factors which make it necessary to keep them in these camps.

Continue reading "The Wanni IDPs-The path to reconciliation and reintegration" »

Posted by transCurrents at 06:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Toronto Star Editorial, June 11, 2009:

Sri Lanka chooses wrong target in Rae

Bob Rae is no starry-eyed apologist for Sri Lanka's defeated Tamil Tiger guerrillas. Writing in the Star a few months ago, he described them as "ruthless at killing their opponents," undemocratic, suicide bombers and recruiters of child soldiers.

Yet in the eyes of Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa's regime, the Liberal foreign affairs critic and former Ontario premier is a Tiger supporter who must be barred from the country.

Continue reading "Toronto Star: "Harper government should pick up where Rae was rebuffed"" »

Posted by transCurrents at 12:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)

The federal government has formally registered its "dismay and displeasure" with the Sri Lankan government over the deportation of Liberal foreign affairs critic, Bob Rae.

Continue reading "Canada rips Sri Lanka for deporting 'security threat' Rae" »

Posted by transCurrents at 12:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

People are not being released from camps until they have been screened

Most of Sri Lanka's displaced people could still be kept in government-run camps in one year's time, a UN official has told the BBC quoting army sources.

But the government rejected the suggestion, saying that it aimed to resettle most by the end of this year.

About 250,000 people fled the final bloody phase of the civil war between the government and Tamil Tiger rebels.

Meanwhile, a human rights group accused the government of failing to probe rights abuses during the conflict.

Continue reading "UN "worried" over Govt. plans to replace tents with permanent structures" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Bob Rae on CBC As it Happens, Wed, Jun 10 ~ hosted by Barbara Budd and Carol Off

Sri Lanka is a hot country. The weather's hot. The food's hot. And the country has just seen the bloody end of a terrifyingly hot civil war. But there was no warmth in the reception Bob Rae received when his flight touched down in Colombo yesterday.

[ "If you say sorry, we'll let you in" ~ Click here for mp3 audio~ 10 mts]

Continue reading "CBC Audio: Bob Rae on "As it happens" from London, Heathrow" »

Posted by transCurrents at 12:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (14)

by Amnesty International

Amnesty International has accused the Sri Lankan government of trapping the country in a vicious cycle of abuse and impunity. A new report published on Thursday by the organization details the Sri Lankan government’s failure to deliver justice for serious human rights violations over the past twenty years.

[Dr. Manoharan's son Rajihar was killed in Sri Lanka in January 2006, but he is still waiting for justice-video: Amnesty International]

Continue reading "Injustice fuels Sri Lanka's cycle of abuse and impunity" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)

by Shanie

After over fifty years of worsening ethnic relations and an insurgency that has lasted for more than half that period, the task of reconciling a divided people is a monumental but not insurmountable one. Over the years, the people have been polarised by pseudo-nationalists and self-seeking politicians who have succeeded in creating a mind-set that demonised the ‘other’. This mind-set, unfortunately, is not confined to those who have had no opportunity of interacting with those on the other side of the ethnic divide.

Continue reading "The task of reconciling a divided people is not insurmountable" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

By Rohantha Athukorala

In my tenure of fifteen years of business experience in some of the leading multinationals in the world and managing some of the most powerful brands globally like Dettol could not even come close to the excitement that I have experienced in the last 3 years of working in the largest team for the country in its war against the LTTE.

LTTE on the work table

Coming from a business background, I suddenly found that the daily agenda included countering the LTTE strategies. Traveling on military aircrafts became a way of life; Chartering vessels to carry essential goods to Jaffna after the closure of the A9 due to LTTE attacks, Staging the business exhibitions and trade visits in Jaffna to defy that the LTTE cannot stop the economy functioning, convincing the private sector in the south that business is possible with Jaffna even with a war in the North, moving from the Palaly camp to the Jaffna town in armored cars, sometimes as late as 8.30pm became part of daily routine.

Continue reading "Military Victory over LTTE Provides Twelve Lessons for Business" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)

"...after thirty years of public service at home and abroad I have to say this decision reflects on them, and not on me."

Personal statement by Hon. Bob Rae PC, MP, on being refused entry into Sri Lanka at the Colombo Airport:

On the evening of Tuesday, June 9, 2009, I arrived on a flight from Delhi to Colombo, Sri Lanka. I had successfully applied to the Sri Lankan High Commission for a visa and had discussed my visit with the Sri Lankan Commissioner, the Canadian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, and with officials from DFAIT.

[Liberal MP Bob Rae is seen in this December 2008 photo-TorontoStar]

When I arrived at immigration in the company of two Canadian High Commission officials, I was, after some delay, told that I was being refused entry "on the grounds of national intelligence."

Continue reading "Bob Rae: "If this is how they treat me, imagine how they treat people who can't speak out"" »

Posted by transCurrents at 09:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (50)

Sri Lanka on Wednesday, June 10th deported Bob Rae MP from Colombo. He was briefly detained at the airport.

"The government of Sri Lanka knew my views, and granted me a visa," Rae said in an emailed statement. "I have flown a very long way only to be told the door is firmly shut."

[Bobrae.ca]

Following is a Recent op-ed by Bob Rae MP:

If there is no magnanimity in victory, there is no victory
An article by MP Bob Rae, Liberal Foreign Affairs Critic

We are told that celebrations have broken out in the Sinhala community in Colombo. That is understandable, but it should be a celebration marked with sadness as well. "The war is over", the crowds will shout. But there is a difference between a war ended by agreement and a war ended by death and destruction.

Continue reading "Bob Rae: "I have flown a very long way only to be told the door is firmly shut."" »

Posted by transCurrents at 05:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (10)

We appeal to all concerned to attend to the pressing needs of the time. We appeal to the government of Sri Lanka and all other concerned parties to allay the fears of the Tamil people and to address the dire needs of all those affected by the recent onslaught of war. The end of the war is most welcome, but the enormous death toll is a cause for great concern, as also the condition of very many survivors. The immediate and most pressing needs in relation to close to 300,000 recent IDPs include the following:

Continue reading "Statement of Group of Concerned Tamils of Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 05:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

by. D.B.S. Jeyaraj

Hello Friends,

Several people both known and unknown have been forwarding a particular e-mail to me the last few days.

It consists of some moving pictorial images contrasting the pathetic existence of internally displaced Tamils on the one hand and the comfortable lifestyle of some Sinhala people on the other.

The pictures have Sinhala captions.

[click here to read the article in full~in dbs jeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 10:11 PM | Permalink

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

Hello Friends

Ajith Ratnarajah is one of the enthusiastic readers of this blog. Apart from posting some pertinent comments under pseudonyms Ajith also sends me e-mails frequently

I discovered to my delight that he and I had similar thoughts on matters concerning the long term future of Tamils in Sri Lanka.

I have gone on record that the destiny of Sri Lankan Tamils is inextractably inter-twined with that of the Sinhalese.

After reading a few of his recent comments I asked Ajith to write up his thoughts about the future of Sri Lankan Tamils as an article and send it for posting. [click here to continue reading on D.B.S. Jeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 10:06 PM | Permalink

Written by: A writer in Sri Lanka

She stood in the door frame of a former clothing factory in northern Sri Lanka. A tiny little woman with long, slightly grey hair pulled back in a ponytail. In her hand she held a small plastic photo album. She showed it to everyone who passed. There was no way I could understand what she said in Tamil but as I looked at the photos of three children, I understood the tone. It was one of absolute grief.

Continue reading "Grief and despondency in Sri Lanka's camps" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

U.N.Secretary-General Ban Ki moon has warned of the risk of rising triumphalism in Sri Lanka following the military defeat inflicted upon the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) by the Sri Lankan armed forces..

It is quite understandable that people suffering from what they perceived as terrorism would be relieved at the prospect of such acts ceasing and would celebrate what they think is an “end to terrorism”.

At the same time the Rajapakse regime is deriving maximum political mileage out of this victory and is therefore whipping up thinly guised triumphalist fervour to enhance its popularity.

Meanwhile the chauvinist, neo-fascist elements within the majority community are also climbing the pseudo-patriotic bandwagon to bolster its own fortunes and implement its sinister supremacist hidden agenda. [Click here to read in full ~ in dbsjeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 07:52 AM | Permalink

By Satya Sagar

In the ancient Indian epic Ramayana the Aryan Prince Rama goes all the way from north India to vanquish Ravana, the King of Lanka. Following a massive battle in which thousands are slaughtered Rama, with the help of the monkey god Hanuman, finally rescues his kidnapped wife Sita in a grand victory of ‘good' over ‘evil'.

The Ramayana of the 21 st Century may need a little modification.

In the modern version the Indian Rama and the Lankan Ravana, who turn out to be long lost brothers, together stage the abduction of Sita and accuse the ‘terrorist' Hanuman of the crime. Finally with international support they use every means possible to kill him along with thousands of innocent bystanders.

Continue reading "The Ten Great Myths of Modern Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 04:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (15)

By Kshama Ranawana

A battered, bruised, cowed and polarized media is all that is left of the profession in Sri Lanka.

That is the result of three years of relentless attacks on reporters and media institutions that dared to uphold professional standards and protect the “publics' right to know”.

Since 2006, Sri Lanka's media and rights activists have been braving a ruthless campaign to silence them. As the battle against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam intensified, so did the governments bid to silence any reportage of the war, unless it toed the official version. While legislation introduced in December of that year effectively narrowed the space within which the war could be reported, those who dared highlight human rights abuses, criticized or commented on the war and protested the intimidation of the media were labeled “Kotiya” (Tigers) as the LTTE is referred to. Journalists and media institutions partisan to the government jumped on the bandwagon of tarnishing their colleagues with the “Koti” brush. Abductions and assault of journalists became commonplace, with no action taken by the government to arrest the trend.

Continue reading "Media in Sri Lanka: Battered, bruised, cowed and polarised" »

Posted by transCurrents at 02:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

by Col R Hariharan

[This article is in continuation of ‘Sri Lanka after the war –Part I’ published on 2 June 2009. Extracts of this article were included in a presentation the author had made at a panel discussion on “Sri Lanka after LTTE reverses” organised by the Centre for Asian Studies, Chennai and the Dept. of Political Science, Madras University, Chennai on May 26, 2009.]

Tamil politics of the North and East

Tamil speaking politicians are there in almost all parties including the two major political parties of Sri Lanka. Though most of the Tamil politicians talk of equitable rights for Tamils, they have never managed to make a united pitch for Tamil rights in recent times. That is how successive governments have continued to drag their feet on the issue of devolution of powers to Tamils. In this context, the emerging north-eastern Tamil political spectrum becomes important in the post war scene. They may be broadly divided into three types:

Continue reading "Sri Lanka After the War – Part II" »

Posted by transCurrents at 10:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)

Video and full Text of transcript, Secerteary General (SG) Ban-Ki-moon speaking to journalists in NY, Jun 5, 2009:

Continue reading "Video and full transcript: Ban calls for accountability and transparency in Sri Lanka" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

The witch hunt against journalists depicted as enemies of the State continues unabated in Sri Lanka.

The latest victim in this "officially sanctioned unofficial campaign" is Poddala Jayantha, a senior Journalist and prominent media rights activist.

[Poddala Jayantha was always at the forefront]

Jayantha, a senior journalist at "Dinamina" the Sinhala daily run by Lake House , is also the General Secretary of Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association (SLWJA) and a key activist of the Free media movement (FMM) in Sri Lanka. [click here to read the article in full ~ in dbsjeyaraj.com]

Posted by transCurrents at 07:04 PM | Permalink

by MSF

Ramachandra* was wounded in January during fighting in the Vanni, the former conflict zone in northeastern Sri Lanka. The 18-year-old underwent amputations at a hospital there, and eight days later, was evacuated by an International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) ambulance to the main hospital in Vavuniya, about 50 miles south. The young woman is missing her left hand and left leg, and half of her right foot. Without post-operative care and physiotherapy she would remain bedridden for the rest of her life.

Continue reading "War-Wounded Patients Receive Post-Operative Care and Rehabilitation" »

Posted by transCurrents at 11:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

[Singer M.I.A. has called on European governments to do more to help the Tamil people and has given her backing to Jan Jananayagam, an independent British candidate in the current Euro elections.]

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Posted by transCurrents at 08:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

BBC Sandeshaya reports CJ Sarath Nanda Silva has said that the war displaced are living under appalling conditions in camps in Vavuniya.

Full report from BBCSinhla.com as follows:

Over two hundred thousand people in refugee camps are not treated according to the law of the land, says the Chief Justice (CJ) of Sri Lanka.

CJ Sarath Nanda Silva says that the war displaced are living under appalling conditions.

The chief justice was speaking at the ceremonial opening of the new court complex in Marawila.

Continue reading "IDPs in Vavunia: "We are doing a great wrong to these people" - CJ Sarath Nanda Silva" »

Posted by transCurrents at 07:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (23)