High SL military intelligence protection marks Chinese envoy visit to Jaffna

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 October 2012, 19:50 GMT]
The visit of the Chinese ambassador in Colombo, Wu Jianghao, to Jaffna on Thursday was conspicuous of the SL military intelligence protection he was getting, perhaps the highest a foreign visitor to Jaffna was getting in recent times, news sources in Jaffna said. Usually, SL police in the peninsula or ministerial level security officials provide security to visiting foreign dignitaries. But, top officials of the SL military were looking after the security arrangements to the Chinese envoy. In giving protection, he was surrounded by more than 6 SL military intelligence officers, clad in civil clothes. The SL military intelligence personnel did not allow journalists to get closer or to interact with the visiting envoy.
Full story >>

SL military appropriates Tamil lands in Ampaa'rai to construct cantonment

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 October 2012, 22:34 GMT]
The occupying Sri Lanka Army has been constructing a permanent cantonment in an area in extent of 60 to 100 acres, whch is situated in Va'laththaap-piddi in Chammanthu'rai DS division of Ampaa'rai district. The militarisation of the Tamil area targets Sinhalicisation, say Tamil leaders pointing that there is an elite commando unit of the Special Task Force (STF) already stationed 2 km near the area at Sadayanthalawa and another SLA camp is situated 7 km away.
Full story >>

Occupying China announces informant rewards to counter Tibetan self-immolations

[TamilNet, Thursday, 25 October 2012, 19:13 GMT]
China occupying Tibet and committing genocide there for more than six decades, announced on Thursday that it would ‘reward’ anyone who provide prior information of a self-immolation protest in future and anyone who correctly informs on the “black hands” behind the four self-immolation protests that already took place recently. The former will get 50,000 Yuan and the latter, 200,000 Yuan. Nearly 60 Tibetans, many of them Buddhist monks and nuns, have set themselves on fire in China since February 2009, to protest against Beijing’s rule in Tibet, AFP said on Thursday. The Tibetans essentially protest the demographic, cultural and structural genocide of their nation, committed by China through colonisation and military occupation of their historical territory.
Full story >>

Colombo discriminates Ampaa'rai Tamil villages in fund allocations: TNA councilor

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 October 2012, 17:26 GMT]
The Sri Lankan state in Colombo continues to systematically ignore development of Tamil areas in the Ampaa'rai district of the Eastern Province under the district development programme, says A. Kalaiyarasan, a Tamil National Alliance (TNA) elected councilor at the Eastern Provincial Council. The SL authorities show interest in implementing development programmes by allocating more funds to Sinhalese and Muslim villages, excluding Tamil areas, Kalaiarasan says further adding that only 9.8 percent (131.4 million rupee) of the total funds, allocated for the implementation of ‘national development programme’ in the district, has been allocated for Tamil villages in Thirukkoayil Tamil division, Aalaiyadivempu, Chaainthamaruthu, Kaaraitheevu, and Naavithanve'li.
Full story >>

New Delhi knows better about Pakistan in Jaffna: TNA parliamentarian

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 October 2012, 17:38 GMT]
Answering a question put by media in Jaffna on Monday, whether a Pakistani intelligence outfit is in the making in Jaffna, the TNA parliamentarian and one of its leaders, Maavai Senadhirajah said that they are aware of the news, but New Delhi knows more about it. During the talks in New Delhi earlier this month, the TNA was able to sense that India knew more on the matter, the Tamil parliamentarian said. The TNA will come out with its views once the details are known and verified, Mr Senadhirajah further said, when the media asked him about unconfirmed reports that Pakistan’s intelligence plans to open an official outfit in Jaffna city, named as Pakistan Information Centre.
Full story >>

Jaffna protests Sri Lanka’s oppression of Tamil civic bodies

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 23 October 2012, 12:51 GMT]
13 elected civic bodies in the Jaffna Peninsula organized parallel agitations in their respective offices on Monday, protesting against occupying Sri Lanka’s violent intimidation and machinations blocking the mandated functions of the elected bodies. The protestors condemned the recent brutal attack on the Nalloor divisional council (Predeasa Sapai) chairperson Vasanthakumar, allegedly by SL military intelligence operatives, while he was attending legal procedures for recovering a civic body land occupied by the SL military. When even the grassroot institutions are treated in this way, Sri Lanka has nothing at all in its agenda to offer as solutions to Tamils, accused TNA parliamentarian Maavai Senadhiraja, addressing the demonstration that took place in front of the divisional secretariat at Nalloor.
Full story >>

Fighter plane gift to British in WWI: diaspora mindset of Jaffna Tamils revisited

[TamilNet, Monday, 22 October 2012, 03:27 GMT]
On special requests sent to colonial communities by the British to support them in the war against Germany, on 22 Dec 1915, Jaffna Tamils living in Malaya, donated the cost of a fighter plane and named it “Jaffna,” says an informed source, adding that it shows the ‘characteristic of Eezham Tamils supporting the war efforts of guardians of safety, justice and economic prosperity.’ But almost during the time, poet Bharathi in Tamil Nadu welcomed the Russian Revolution of 1917. During WWII, a number of Eezham Tamils joined the Tamil Nadu Tamils in Malaya in supporting the Indian National Army of Subhas Chandra Bose, aligned with the Japanese. Some among them saw the imperialist games and joined the Malayan Communist Party led by Chinese in Malaya. What is the ideological course of the diaspora today, in response to the establishments-led genocide, ask Eezham Tamil activists in the island.
Full story >>

Sinhalicised division formalised in Mullaiththeevu district

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 October 2012, 22:41 GMT]
A newly created division, Sinhalicised in demograhpy and acquired a name ‘Weli Oya’ changed from the Tamil name Ma'nal-aa'ru, has been formalised with a divisional secretariat of the civil administrative structure of occupying Sri Lanka in the Mullaith-theevu district of the country of Eezham Tamils. This is an explicit move of colonisation and structural genocide aiming for the annihilation of the territoriality of the nation of Eezham Tamils in the island for the edification of those who ask for evidence, commented civil society activists in Vanni. Why should the Tamils have territoriality in the island is a question raised by the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime that opts genocide as means and argues that anyone could settle anywhere in the island, under the blessings of the powers that insist on treating the island as one unit whether there is genocide or not, said civil society activists.
Full story >>

US institute honours genocide-accused SLA’s Demining Unit

[TamilNet, Sunday, 21 October 2012, 17:11 GMT]
The Marshall Legacy Institute (MLI), an American non-profit organization based in Virginia, has honoured a ‘Humanitarian Demining Unit’ team of the genocide-accused SLA as the best Mine Detection Dog team for the year 2012 at its annual “Clearing the Path” event, at Washington on October 10. Eezham Tamil activists, however, criticized the move as a legitimization of the structural genocide occurring in the occupied Tamil homeland in which SLA’s demining unit also plays a part.
Full story >>

Colombo’s claims of diaspora dialogue challenged in the diaspora

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 October 2012, 13:45 GMT]
None of the Tamil diaspora bodies that have democratic or institutional mandate of Eezham Tamils have opted to engage in talks with the Sri Lankan government, which continues to negate the nationhood and right to self-determination of Eezham Tamils, said Dr Panchakulasingam Kandiah, the president of the democratically elected Norwegian Council of Eezham Tamils and a director in the board of the Global Tamil Forum. He was responding to a question by TamilNet on Saturday, on the statement of Sri Lanka's cabinet spokesperson and minister Keheliya Rambukwela telling that Colombo was “making headway in its dialogue with the Tamil Diaspora”. The ‘dialogue’ will be held in Colombo shortly under the direct patronage of SL President Mahinda Rajapaksa, media reports from Colombo said.
Full story >>

Pannai-vedduvaan

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 October 2012, 12:03 GMT]
The open land of Pannai shrubs
Full story >>

Eezham Tamils in Canada launch petition campaign demanding referendum

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 October 2012, 09:32 GMT]
On October 12 the National Council of Canadian Tamils (NCCT) organized the launch of a petition campaign directed towards the United Nations to conduct a referendum amongst Eezham Tamils originating from the North-East of the island to determine their political aspirations. Launched at the Scarborough Civic Centre in Toronto, the event saw participation from community members, elected officials and human rights activists. Most notable was the endorsement for the campaign by the Member for Provincial Parliament, Glen Murray endorsing the campaign through a letter addressed to the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon.
Full story >>

TNA seeks bearings while Gotabhaya proves futility of Indo-US cosmetic solutions

[TamilNet, Friday, 19 October 2012, 16:09 GMT]
Genocidal Sri Lanka’s presidential sibling Gotabhaya Rajapaksa on last Thursday called for the abolition of the New Delhi-architected 13th Amendment to the constitution without further delays, reported The Island, last Friday. Gotabhaya compared the Amendment to the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement (CFA) in facilitating separatism. Rejecting SL military pullout from the Tamil territories and upholding ‘majoritarian’ rule of the island, he also implied what course would be taken by the LLRC implementation legitimised by the USA at Geneva. Meanwhile, writing to The Island on Thursday, TNA’s nominated parliamentarian Mr Sumanthiran, asked what hope is there in TNA participating the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) of Rajapaksa regime to discuss solutions.
Full story >>

Tamil politicians, activists protest against SL military attacks on civic leaders in Jaffna

[TamilNet, Thursday, 18 October 2012, 01:20 GMT]
Tamil politicians and civil activists on Wednesday protested condemning the brutal attack Sunday on Paramsothy Vasanthakumar, the elected chairman of Nalloor Piratheasa Chapai (PS). Vasanthakumar was on his way to prepare a legal suit after lodging a formal complaint against the illegal SL military occupation of 5 acres of land belonging to the civic body when he was attacked. The attackers, alleged to be the operatives of the SL military intelligence, had followed Mr Vasanthakumar in motorbikes, assaulted him using sharp iron rods at Kokkuvil and forcibly removed the legal documents on the SL military occupied land together with a sum of money. The protestors on Wednesday openly blamed the SL military intelligence in Jaffna for carrying out a systematic campaign of terror, targeting elected civic leaders in the peninsula.
Full story >>

Uprooted Maathakal residents file FR petition in SL Supreme Court

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 October 2012, 22:35 GMT]
Six uprooted residents of Maathakal from the Valikaamam district secretariat division of the Jaffna district have filed a fundamental rights violation petition in the Sri Lankan Supreme Court (SLSC) last week seeking an order that they should be allowed to resettle in their own lands and houses. They have cited the SL Defense Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Commander of the Sri Lanka Army Lt. Gen. Jagath Jayasuriya, Commander of the Jaffna Security Forces Maj. Gen. Mahinda Hathurusinghe and the Attorney General as respondents.
Full story >>

Colombo opts for anti-Tamil campaign to handle constitutional case

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 17 October 2012, 12:31 GMT]
The petitioners of a constitutional case against the ‘Divineguma’ Bill that will snatch away even grassroot development and social welfare powers of the provinces in genocidal Sri Lanka are currently targeted through a Sinhala poster campaign of ‘counterinsurgency’ style that collectively names the petitioners as ‘Paikiasothy Gang’ aiming ‘separation of the country’. The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA), headed by Colombo-based Tamil, Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, in a statement on Tuesday hinted at the connection between the posters and Sri Lanka Army coming for ‘investigations’ of the Centre on Monday. The SL Supreme Court on Monday decided for a separate hearing of the case filed by the TNA and has fixed it to next Monday, while four more writ petitions challenging the bill will be taken up for hearing by the court on Thursday.
Full story >>

German translation of NESoHR’s book on pre-2009 massacres released in Frankfurt

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 October 2012, 15:51 GMT]
The German translation of a compilation of large-scale massacres of Eezham Tamils by Sinhala forces from 1956 to 2008, brought out by the North East Secretariat on Human Rights (NESoHR), has been released at the famous Frankfurt Book Fair, reputed to be the largest book festival in the world, on Sunday. The book release of “Damit wir nicht vergessen” saw the participation of Peter Schalk, Professor Emeritus Uppasala University, Christian Weiss, the owner of the publishing house that brought out the book, apart from several Eezham Tamil activists. Speaking at the release, Prof. Schalk said that this book contained important evidence indicting the GoSL of human rights violations and genocide and it would be an asset in hauling the Sri Lankan state before the International Criminal Court.
Full story >>

Uprooted Champoor villagers file FR application in SL Supreme Court

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 October 2012, 15:03 GMT]
A Fundamental Rights Violation petition filed by uprooted villagers of Champoor in Trincomalee is to be taken up for further hearing on November 15, according to legal sources in Colombo. The petitioners have been challenging the Gazette Extraordinary issued on May 12 this year that a “Special Zone for Heavy Industries” had been demarcated in the areas formerly inhabited by them. Seven villagers in their petition filed on Friday before the Sri Lankan Supreme Court complained that the Gazette purportedly attempts to demarcate a “Special Zone for Heavy Industries” within the provision of the Section A of the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka Law No:4 of 1978.
Full story >>

TNA, New Delhi, harp on LLRC implementation

[TamilNet, Monday, 15 October 2012, 11:23 GMT]
The TNA parliamentary delegation that visited New Delhi last week thanked the Government of India for its consistent interaction with the SL President in bringing about reconciliation and political solution through implementation of LLRC recommendations. The complaints of the TNA were confined to the lack of progress in the implementation of ‘constructive’ recommendations of the LLRC and lack of commitment on the part of Colombo in evolving an acceptable political solution. The TNA earlier rejected the LLRC recommendations but was later made to harp on them for non-descript solutions. The TNA has also refused attending Rajapaksa’s all party process for solution, without guarantees. But last month, the genocide-accused President on a Buddhist visit to India told TNA that the matter would be pursued after his return from India.
Full story >>

UK Tamil tortured in Colombo, returned after payment of ransom to CID

[TamilNet, Monday, 15 October 2012, 07:46 GMT]
Sivasubramaniam Jeevan, an Eezham Tamil youth citizen of UK living in Scotland, who was on a visit to the island of Sri Lanka on 3 October, was detained by the notorious Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of Colombo from the day he landed to 9 October, and was allegedly tortured under suspicion of “LTTE links”, after taking away his passport and other documents. He was released last Tuesday after managing a payment of a sum of 1.5 million rupees, plus 325 pounds, as ransom money to the CID. Speaking to TamilNet from his residence in Scotland, 33 year old Jeevan, who is now undergoing psychological treatment owing to the trauma of interrogation, said that the CID officers tortured him by beating him, verbally abusing him, and threatening to kill him. He was also interrogated on diaspora activities in the UK, he said.
Full story >>