Continuous street protest brings lung disease, trauma to Keappaa-pulavu families

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 18 July 2017, 23:28 GMT]
138 uprooted Eezham Tamil families from Keappaa-pulavu, situated west of Nanthik-kadal lagoon in Mullaiththeevu, have been on the street 24 hours a day for more than 5 months waging a continuous protest demanding their lands seized by the occupying SL military to be released for their resettlement. There were only attempts to contain their struggle. None of the promises have been fulfilled, the families told TamilNet in utter frustration. Most of them have become ill due to the dust from the road primarily used by the occupying military. Suffering from trauma, the families have also witnessed exploitation of their resources by the Sinhala military corporatism. 50-year-old Arumugam Velauthapillai said the occupying military, despite getting millions of rupees from Swaminathan's ministry to find alternative lands for itself, has not been prepared to release original lands, he said.
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SL Minister Bathiudeen escalates disunity between Tamils, Muslims in Mullaiththeevu

[TamilNet, Monday, 17 July 2017, 17:27 GMT]
More than a hundred Tamil youth, predominantly males, mobilized through social media took to the streets on Sunday in Mullaiththeevu, opposing controversial SL minister Rishad Bathiudeen, who is pushing ahead with a colony for Muslim settlers in Mullaiththeevu. At a time when Muslims and Tamils should stand together confronting the genocidal Sinhala occupation to the north and to the south of Kokku’laay lagoon, which links the northern and eastern provinces, the SL minister’s scheme attempts to set the Tamils against Muslims in Mullaiththeevu, Tamil activists in Vanni said. The protest by Tamil youth comes after Northern Provincial Council Chief Minister C.V.Wigneswaran walked out of a District Coordinating Committee meeting 7 days ago as Mr Bathiudeen was insisting on his colony declining to honour the proposal from the Justice Wigneswaran of a proportional formula for resettlement.
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Mayiliddi people will not succumb to SL military resettlement farce: Subramaniyam

[TamilNet, Monday, 10 July 2017, 13:07 GMT]
It doesn't matter which regime was in power in Colombo. But, it was a Colombo government that created the mind-set in the ranks of SL military that in turn of war victories, it was ‘rewarded’ with all kinds of abuse of power such as raping Tamil women and seizing the lands of Eezham Tamils. This mindset still prevails in the ranks of the SL military and is the main attitude also behind the deceptive ‘resettlement’ farce in Valikaamam North, says Suntharam Subramaniam, the chairman of Mayiliddi Uprooted Peoples’ Organisation. The 58-year-old father of four, who resides in the so-called welfare camp at Koa'nappulam in Mallaakam in Jaffna, systematically deconstructs the destructive trends of the military-led, international community abetted and ITAK-contained resettlement farce in a video interview to TamilNet.
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Tamil youth in UK protest against BJP-triggered detention of Thirumurugan Gandhi

[TamilNet, Sunday, 09 July 2017, 23:27 GMT]
A group of young Eezham Tamil diaspora activists as well as progressive activists of older generation, numbering around 30, got together in front of the Indian High Commission in London stressing the need to mobilise against the arrest of May 17 Movement Coordinator Thirumurugan Gandhi and three activists of Thamizh Vidiyal Kadchi who have been detained under draconian Goondas Act in Tamil Nadu after they organised a candle vigil remembrance in May for those who perished in Mu’l’livaaykkaal genocide. Thirumurugan Gandhi has been targeted not only for voicing against the genocide of Eezham Tamils. He has been one of the key articulators against the economic exploitation of resources by India’s ruling BJP backed corporate Establishments. The activists who gathered in front of the India House in London said the protest was particularly intended as an awareness campaign among Eezham Tamils.
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Muslims next target of demographic, structural genocide in northern Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Saturday, 08 July 2017, 11:10 GMT]
After waging physical, economic and demographic genocide against the Eezham Tamil villages surrounding the Kokku’laay lagoon for decades, genocidal Colombo has intensified a systematic demographic genocide against Tamil-speaking Muslims of ilmenite-rich Pulmoaddai (புல்மோட்டை/Pulmōṭṭai/Pulmoddai) since 2010, say Muslim activists who have been confronting the occupation in all directions. In a recent in-depth interview to TamilNet, former Village Officer (GS) Abdul Salam narrates how the land grab has been systematically stepped up and jointly waged by SL ministries, departments, Sinhala Army, Navy, STF commandos, Buddhist monks, ‘home guards’ paramilitary and the encroachers from bordering divisions of Trincomalee and Anurahapura since 2010. The occupation is relentlessly crushing the Tamil-speaking Muslims regardless of the regime change and change of the guard in Colombo.
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Redefining modernity as alternative to extractivist Capitalism: Houtart in 2016

[TamilNet, Friday, 07 July 2017, 08:47 GMT]
In a tribute to the Belgiam-born Marxist sociologist Emeritus Professor Rev. Francois Houtart who recently passed away, TamilNet publishes an interview recorded with him last year when 2016 Mu'l'livaaykkaal Remembrance was commemorated in Quito, Ecuador. In the interview, which centred on his experiences on Latin American discourses, Rev Houtart said: “We need to redefine modernity, a modernity absorbed by the capitalist system, a mistake done by socialist countries of Europe and China, who have not redefined the definition of modernity and have thus taken to afflicting the people”. He pointed out that radical change of the capitalist system in place in a region was not easy, as it alerted and brought about the US interventions to destroy it as witnessed in Grenada, Panama, the Dominican Republic, and Cuba.
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Indian mission in Jaffna entertains Sinhala monk engaged in controversial Vihara project

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 05 July 2017, 20:47 GMT]
Consul General of India in Jaffna A. Natarajan was visiting the Chief Incumbent monk of Nagadeepa vihara in Naiyinaa-theevu, Navadagala Paduma Kiththi Tissa Thero on Wednesday. The CGI visiting the Sinhala-Buddhist monk at Nayinaatheevu, who is treated by the occupying Sinhala Navy as a commander as standing above the executive SL President, is sending wrong signals to Eezham Tamils and the people of Tamil Nadu State in India, commented Tamil political activists in Jaffna. The extremist monk who doesn't adhere to the civic rule or the provincial council in North has recently recommenced the controversial construction of 67-feet Buddha statue. The visit also comes after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the island on International Vesak Day two months ago.
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Understanding ‘Quisling politics’ and facing it with ‘Navaratnam School of Thought’

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 04 July 2017, 23:31 GMT]
The internal and external proponents of unitary constitution of genocidal ‘Sri Lanka’ want to remove Justice C.V. Wigneswaran from the position of Chief Minister in the NPC at whatever price before selling the Singapore principle-based SL Constitution to Eezham Tamils. The proponents want to preserve the unitary character of SL State. This means preserving the genocidal character of the SL State as far as Eezham Tamils are concerned. All the previous constitutions in the island have been rejected by Tamils. Knowing the Tamil discourse of the past very well, the external powers, particularly the West, is currently promoting ‘Quisling politics’ among Tamils. It is therefore vital to grasp the synthesis of the Quisling politics and regain the strength to address it through the approach embraced by enlightened leaders of Eezham Tamils in the past.
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No land-route to released pocket of land in Mayiliddi in Valikaamam North

[TamilNet, Monday, 03 July 2017, 23:12 GMT]
The SL military on Monday released 27 acres along the fishing jetty in Mayiliddi in Valikaamam North and another lot of 27 acres surrounding a Hindu temple near the locality. Amidst the big propaganda, no residential lands were released. All those who wanted to witness the ‘release’ of lands were taken by the occupying SL Army in military vehicles across the ‘High Security Zone’ and later brought back in the same vehicles. There is no land link for the people to access the released pocket of lands.
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Nullified ownership of lands not revoked by Colombo: resettled Champoor Tamils

[TamilNet, Friday, 30 June 2017, 23:40 GMT]
Occupying Colombo has once again proved its systematic violation of traditional land ownership rights of Eezham Tamils to their private lands in Champoor, complain representatives of Vinaayakar Community Centre (Chana-chamooka-nilaiyam) from Champoor in Moothoor East of Trincomalee district. The families in Champoor had residential and agricultural lands as combined tracts of lands that measured from 0.5 acre to 2 acres per family before they were uprooted from their village in September 2006. Now, the occupying Colombo wants to limit their ownership rights to just 20 perches per family, the representatives of Vinaayakar Community Centre told TamilNet on Friday.
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Diaspora should conceive institutions in homeland based on native paradigm of nation-building

[TamilNet, Thursday, 29 June 2017, 23:30 GMT]
Many of the NGOs of the West and India that operate in the occupied country of Eezham Tamils want to de-politicize the social institutions of Eezham Tamils in the homeland and in the diaspora. They are deployed with the agenda of de-linking the nationhood politics of Eezham Tamils from their social institutions. The Tamil diaspora has a moral duty to counter this destructive trend through self-awakening, said Tamil Nadu activist Thirumugan Gandhi, while responding to a question from TamilNet in a video interview in March. His response to the question is being published in full for the perusal of Tamils in the homeland and in the diaspora. The coordinator of May 17 Movement has been jailed along with three other activists of Thamizhar Vidiyal Kadchi under the notorious ‘Goondas Act’ after they organised a candlelight vigil on May 21 in remembrance of those who perished in Vanni in 2009.
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Uprooted Mu'l'lik-ku'lam fishermen blocked from fresh-water fishing

[TamilNet, Sunday, 25 June 2017, 23:12 GMT]
The uprooted families of Mu'l'lik-ku'lam, who are languishing without access to their village, which has been seized by the occupying Sinhala Navy, complain that the SL fisheries authorities were also blocking them from fishing in the Mudar-kaama-aa'ru river, where they use to fish when the winds were not in favour of fishing in the high seas in the Gulf of Mannaar. Two representatives of Mu'l'lik-ku'lam fishermen, Anthony Cruze and Antony Lambert, addressed media in Jaffna on Saturday detailing the destitute situation of the uprooted people of Mu'l'lik-ku'lam.
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Colombo's erasing of “Eezham” from Tamil philosophical poet’s statue evokes strong reactions

[TamilNet, Saturday, 24 June 2017, 23:21 GMT]
SL Military Intelligence officers, who came from Colombo, were harassing the Divisional Secretary of Karaichchi division in Ki'linochchi, demanding the latter to erase the term "Eezham" from the base of the statue of Tamil Poet and Philosopher Thiruva'l'luvar. The statue was raised inside the premises of Karaichchi DS office on 17 June. The organisation, coordinating the raising of the statue in the district, the Tamil Sangam in Ki'linochchi, was asked by the DS to erase the term, leaving behind the other term “Ilangkai”. The Sinhlala military-instructed removal of the main Tamil term Eezham has evoked strong reactions from all the sections of Eezham Tamils in the island. The initiative-taker of the move, Mara'vanpulavu K. Satchithananthan, reminded the readers that even the Sinhala term ‘Hela’ was originating from the same root and called the removal of the word an act of cowardice.
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SL State Intelligence targets families of Diaspora Tamil activists in North-East

[TamilNet, Friday, 23 June 2017, 23:27 GMT]
SL Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe's State Intelligence Service (SIS), which was formerly known as the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB), is now going after the families of Tamil diaspora activists, who are living in the island, particularly in the North and East. Instead of operating white-vans and issuing TID notices, the SIS interrogators send couple of Sinhala policemen prior to their arrival. After reaching a house, the interrogators, who are in civil, start to ask questions filling out the details to the questions they have with them. Often, they come up with direct threats creating conditions of mental torture. 72-year-old Kumarasamy Navaratnarajah, from Navaali West in Maanippaay, Jaffna, was assaulted on 04 June.
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Global ‘environment funds’ deployed by Colombo to seize lands in North-East

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 20 June 2017, 17:26 GMT]
Global Establishments seem to be extensively involved in channelling funds to Colombo through the so-called ‘environmental’ and ‘forest preservation’ projects that are conceived by the SL State and Colombo- and Sinhala-centric NGOs, which derive their funds from global programmes associated with the programmes being promoted by global Establishments, particularly the outfits of the West. In order to secure such funds, the agent-State in Colombo is relentlessly seizing the lands of Tamil-speaking peoples in the North and East. Retired Land Commissioner of Eastern Province, Mr Kathirkamathamby Kurunathan, in an interview to TamilNet this week was citing Gazetted seizure of lands from Musali in Mannaar to Ampaa'rai in the East and illustrated how these appropriations were circumventing even the safeguards of the SL Constitution and the principles of natural justice.
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Colombo regime, West-funded CEPA, ITAK minister behind causing disunity in NPC

[TamilNet, Sunday, 18 June 2017, 21:04 GMT]
There has been a systematic move by Colombo regime, particularly its foreign ministry, health ministry and the NGO outfits such as the Center for Poverty Analysis (CEPA), causing a division within the NPC by making its Health Minister Dr P. Sathiyalingam to collaborate along a Colombo-centric line of engineering so-called ‘development’, said Vinthan Kanagaratnam, an NPC councillor in an interview to TamilNet on Sunday. The move also aimed to divert external assistance to other provinces, particularly the North Central Province. The same move also seeks to involve sections of the Tamil diaspora, he said. NPC Health Minister was operating secretly, circumventing the routines and the democratically constituted NPC mechanisms. ‘Advisors’ appointed by Mr Sathiyalingam to his ministry and sections of the ITAK, are also complicit in the engineering of divisions, Mr Kanagaratnam further said.
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Time is running out for ITAK to re-orientate itself to basic fundamentals of Tamil struggle

[TamilNet, Saturday, 17 June 2017, 22:30 GMT]
The guarantees and promises given so far by R. Sampanthan on crucial matters such as de-militarisation, resettlement, tracing the enforced disappeared, international investigations and on achieving a federal solution have not been materialised. The Eezham Tamils in the North-East are losing faith on Opposition Leader. Instead, the Tamil people look upon Justice Wigneswaran as their leader, said Suresh Premachandran, the leader of the EPRLF, one of the constituent parties of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA). Three of the four parties comprising the TNA stand with Wigneswaran. Tamil people have delivered their message to the ITAK through the shutdown and agitations in Jaffna, Ki'linochchi, Mullaiththeevu and Vavuniyaa. There was also much support coming from Eastern province, the former TNA parliamentarian told TamilNet on Saturday after a joint meeting with Justice C.V. Wigneswaran.
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SL military-run preschool children in Vanni forced to wear ‘CSD uniforms’ again

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 13 June 2017, 22:04 GMT]
The controversial practice of making the children attending certain pre-schools in the Sinhala military-occupied Vanni to wear uniforms of the so-called Civil Security Department, a military outfit of genocidal Sri Lanka, has surfaced again, Tamil rights activists in Ki’linochchi told TamilNet on Tuesday. The CSD, which is an official SL military-outfit, is still operating the farms and pre-schools, where it has deployed around 10,000 enslaved ex-members of the LTTE as a slave workforce. Following strong criticisms, there was a brief period where the SL military kept a low profile in the practice of enforcing the uniform on pre-school children for some time. Now, there is another attempt of promoting CSD branded uniforms in the preschools in Mullaiththeevu and Ki'linochchi districts.
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Deeds, not mere words, count: Families of enforced disappeared

[TamilNet, Monday, 12 June 2017, 21:14 GMT]
The representatives of the families of enforced disappeared from the 8 districts in the North-East, who met the SL President Maithiripala Sirisena at SL Governor’s office in Jaffna, told media after their meeting with Mr Sirisena that they would continue their protests until the SL President fulfills what he had assured them on Monday. “The protest continues for the 114th day and we want to see SL President fulfilling what he promised us today. He loudly read out our demands and said he agreed with all of the demands and promised to instruct the three armed forces at the security council meeting on Tuesday evening to act upon them,” Kanagaranjani Yogarasa, who represented the protesting families from Ki’linochchi district told TamilNet.
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Women on protest vow to sail and seize Ira'nai-theevu with white-flags

[TamilNet, Sunday, 11 June 2017, 23:12 GMT]
Forty-two days have elapsed. Tamil politicians come and go. No officials of the SL State have showed themselves. There has been no solution to the struggle of 500 families from Ira'nai-theevu, who wage a continues protest near the coast of Muzhangkaavil, facing the Palk Strait from the Vanni mainland, 12 nautical miles away from their native twin-islands of Ira'nai-theevu. The women, who used to be actively engaged in five different means of livelihood before 1992, stay in the protest site during the day time and their husbands continue the protest during the nights after coming from the seas. “This protest, launched on May 01, will continue even if it reaches 100 days. Finally, if there is no solution, we will enter Ira’nai-theevu disregarding the warnings of SL Navy, carrying white flags in our boats,” 54-year-old Atputharany Anton told TamilNet in a video interview on Sunday.
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