Friday, May 01, 2009
செய்திகளும் பார்வைகளும்: 1 மே 2009 வெள்ளி - 1
SRI LANKA: Nationalists call for the use of choppers and machetes
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AHRC-STM-091-2009
[Asian Human Rights Commission]
April 30, 2009
A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission
SRI LANKA: Nationalists call for the use of choppers and machetes
http://www.ahrchk.net/statements/mainfile.php/2009statements/1999/
"We may have to take choppers and machetes, we will have to attack
with choppers those who jump over the boundaries," chanted a group of
people from Hela Urumaya, (a Sinhala heritage party), gathered in
front of the British High Commission to protest the visits of the
British Foreign Secretary, David Milliband and his French counterpart,
Bernard Kouchner. The Swedish Foreign Minister, Carl Bildt, was denied
a visa to join the delegation. Photographs of the protest show
Buddhist monks seated in front of the slogan chanting crowd. Meanwhile
a large poster exhibited the photographs of David Milliband, Hilary
Clinton, American Secretary of State and Erik Solheim the Norwegian
minister for the Environment and Development with the slogan: Wanted
for Aiding and Abetting Terrorism.
The purpose of the visit of the British and French foreign secretaries
was to inspect the humanitarian situation of the civilians trapped in
the no-fire zone where the LTTE and the government forces are engaged
in fierce battles. The concerns expressed by these foreign politicians
was on behalf of the civilians whose numbers are estimated to be
around 80,000 to 140,000 including women, children and the elderly.
The call for humanitarian concern has been portrayed in the media and
by extremist racist elements as an attempt to extend a lifeline to the
LTTE. One of the placards read: 'Gordon Brown would you give a
humanitarian lifeline to Osama Bin laden?'
Full Text is at
http://www.ahrchk.net/statements/mainfile.php/2009statements/1999/
-----
[Guardian]
IMF under pressure to delay Sri Lanka's $1.9bn aid loan
• Calls for ceasefire against Tamil Tigers rejected
• Military offensive is humanitarian - Rajapaksa
Peter Beaumont The Guardian, Friday 1 May 2009
http://tinyurl.com/c5ynm8
The International Monetary Fund came under growing pressure yesterday
to delay a $1.9bn (£1.3bn) emergency loan to Sri Lanka, as Colombo
emphatically rejected British and French calls for a ceasefire in its
campaign against the Tamil Tigers.
A day after David Miliband, the foreign secretary, and his French
counterpart Bernard Kouchner called for a truce on a visit to the
country, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said that he "did not need
lectures from western representatives".
Despite clear evidence of suffering among the tens of thousands of
civilians who remain trapped with the Tamil Tigers in an increasingly
small pocket of land, Rajapaksa described the military offensive in
the country's north as a "humanitarian operation".
Full Text is at
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/may/01/imf-aid-sri-lanka-tamil-tigers
-----
[ReliefWeb]
Sri Lanka: Vanni Emergency OCHA Situation Report No. 4
Source: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian
Affairs (OCHA)
Date: 30 Apr 2009
Full_Report (pdf* format)
http://tinyurl.com/dd3tuf
This report covers the period from 29 to 30 April 2009. The next
report will be issued on or around 01 May.
I. Highlights
- British Foreign Secretary David Miliband and French Foreign Affairs
Minister Bernard Kouchner have concluded their visit on the Island.
They met Government officials and visited Vavuniya.
- The British Under-Secretary of State for International Development
told the British House of Commons during a debate on Sri Lanka that
the UK will call for an early investigation as to whether crimes have
been committed against civilians during the current crisis.
- The Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC), John Holmes, has expressed
his concern over the plight of an estimated 50,000 people trapped in
the conflict zone. "These people are not only in danger from the
shelling and the shooting, but they are suffering extensively due to
shortages of medical supplies, food and water," Mr. Holmes told
journalists after returning from a two day mission to Sri Lanka.
- During his meetings with the Government the ERC stressed the need
for a humanitarian pause to enable access for UN humanitarian staff to
the combat zone to assess the conditions and needs of the civilians
and to provide assistance. However, Government officials rejected the
request.
- The ERC called on the Government to exercise restraint in the
conflict zone, particularly the use of heavy weapons which they had
said earlier in the week that they would not use. He added that it is
vital that the LTTE release the civilians who they are holding against
their will and allow them to leave the conflict zone.
- In addition to the importance of meeting the immediate material
humanitarian needs of over 170,000 displaced in camps and hospitals,
the ERC also cited the need to address issues such as family
reunification in the IDP camps, removal of the military presence from
the camps, freedom of movement for the IDPs and planning for the early
return to their home areas as demining is completed.
- The UNHCR Representative has welcomed the first Government organized
return of IDPs to Musali in Mannar district, after they had been
displaced for approximately two years. UNHCR has expressed that they
"hope that IDP return to other areas in Northern Sri Lanka will soon
also be possible."
full Text is at
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/MUMA-7RM2HX?OpenDocument
Full Report is at
http://tinyurl.com/dd3tuf
------
[Reuters] (Embedded Army Excursion)
WITNESS: A fleeting glimpse of Sri Lanka's hidden war zone
Fri May 1, 2009 3:27am BST
David Gray
David Gray is an Australian photographer who has covered everything
from earthquakes, to wars, to major sports events across the Asia-
Pacific region. He won Australia's top press photography award last
year with his portfolio of 10 images from the Sichuan earthquake in
China, the Olympic Games, Tibet and daily life in China. Based in
Beijing, he has been on assignment in Sri Lanka for the past few
weeks.
PUTUMATTALAN, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - Getting to the frontline of the
Sri Lankan army's war with the Tamil Tigers entailed a hair-rising
helicopter trip over the jungle and a bone-jarring ride past scorched
homes to the war zone.
Foreign journalists and aid groups have generally been kept away from
the area where government troops have battled the Liberation Tigers of
Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for months.
On those rare occasions when the government permits a trip to the
front, the hazardous journey there and back takes just one day. Yet,
as I found out, it could be a world away
Full Text is at
http://uk.reuters.com/article/burningIssues/idUKTRE54004720090501
----
[BBC]
07:10 GMT, Friday, 1 May 2009 08:10 UK
Sri Lankan Army Website Hacked
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8028288.stm
The website of the Sri Lankan army has been attacked by suspected
Tamil Tiger hackers, government officials said.
Material on the site - www.army.lk - was removed and replaced with
graphic photographs of what were said to be civilian victims of the
civil war.
The army website is now being restored by technicians.
The government and Tamil Tigers are engaged in a fierce propaganda war
as the conflict in the north-east rages in a small stretch of land
Full Text is at
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8028288.stm
Also Read
[பதிவு]
30/04/2009, 16:01 [ஆசிரியர்]
தமிழ் தேசிய ஊடகங்களை குறிவைத்து அழிக்கும் கூட்டுச்சதி
http://www.pathivu.com/news/1595/54//d,view.aspx
-----
[KBC] (old)
Terror on the Tamils
15-02-09
http://tinyurl.com/dazv3s
Video is at
http://www.kbcchannel.tv/index.php?option=com_hwdvideoshare&task=viewvideo&Itemid=125&video_id=50
-----
[Relief Web]
UNHCR sends emergency team as first group of civilians returns to Sri
Lanka’s north
Source: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
Date: 01 May 2009
http://tinyurl.com/cpgyf2
This is a summary of what was said by the UNHCR spokesperson at
today's Palais des Nations press briefing in Geneva. Further
information can be found on the UNHCR websites, www.unhcr.org and
www.unhcr.fr, which should also be checked for regular media updates
on non-briefing days.
A second team of UNHCR emergency experts is scheduled to arrive today
in Sri Lanka. The team of four includes specialists on community
services, protection and other essential field functions. They follow
the earlier deployment of five UNHCR experts to Sri Lanka's north in
February and March.
About 171,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) have fled the
conflict zone, mostly during the last 10 days. They are accommodated
in 38 sites in four districts of the north and east of the country.
UNHCR and its partners have mounted a massive humanitarian operation
in support of the Government to assist these displaced people.
While thousands of displaced people continue to arrive to Vavuniya,
Jaffna and Trincomalee, others are returning to their homes in the
first Government organised return operation in northern Sri Lanka for
years. The area to where they are returning, Musali in Mannar
district, was for a long time the frontline in the fighting between
Government forces and LTTE rebels.
Full Text is at
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/PSLG-7RMFFM?OpenDocument
-----
[AFP]
Sri Lanka urges civilians to flee war zone
By RAVI NESSMAN – 1 May 2009
http://tinyurl.com/dhotos
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka's government dropped leaflets
across the northern war zone Friday urging civilians to flee the
fighting amid accusations the military pounded the area with artillery
shells that killed at least 10 civilians.
Government forces have cornered the Tamil Tiger rebels in a 3-mile (5
kilometer) -long strip along the northeast coast and appear poised to
end the quarter-century civil war.
However, international pressure has grown for a cease-fire to protect
tens of thousands of ethnic Tamil civilians trapped in the area. The
government accuses the Liberation Tiger of Tamil Eelam rebels of
holding the civilians hostage.
In a brief leaflet dropped by aircraft on the area, President Mahinda
Rajapaksa appealed to the civilians to flee across the front lines,
according to the government.
"Your suffering is prolonged by this action of the LTTE who are
holding you as a human shield for their own safety and security," the
leaflet said. "I appeal to every one of you to come over to the
cleared areas."
Full Text is at
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gVoaDFmbCYS-Usz9ACDRIengj21QD97TDPT80
-----
[Global Post]
In peace, Sri Lankans still disappear
Even in areas government forces have controlled since 2007, Tamil
civilians continue to go missing.
By Maura R. O'Connor — Special to GlobalPost
Published: May 1, 2009 07:12 ET
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1311840
BATTICALOA, Sri Lanka (Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting) — When the
Venkatesans recall how many of their family members have disappeared,
the husband and wife look down at their hands and begin counting
fingers. Four of their relations are missing, each abducted in the
night by unmarked white vans. Three were taken in the last four
months.
For any other family around the world, this number would be shocking.
But for an ethnic Tamil family in Sri Lanka’s Eastern Province, it is
unremarkable. For decades the region’s civilians have been traumatized
by widespread disappearances, and they believe the majority of them
are perpetrated by government security forces or government-backed
paramilitary groups.
“We are powerless and don’t know what to do,” said Mrs. Venkatesan
(the name has been changed at her request). Her only son was abducted
last year and held in a prison for 11 months without charge. The 27-
year-old said the police tortured him by beating the bottom of his
feet. “When you are 40 years old, you will never walk again,” he said
they told him. Last December he was released without explanation,
narrowly escaping becoming another finger to count on his mother’s
hand.
Full Text is at
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1311840
-----
[Global Post]
East offers glimpse of post-war Sri Lanka
Civilians still suffer from fear two years since conflict ended.
By Maura R. O'Connor — Special to GlobalPost
Published: May 1, 2009 07:08 ET
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1312517
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting) — As the Sri
Lankan government enters its final battle with the Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the country's north, little attention is
being paid to the Eastern Province.
The government won control of this territory nearly two years ago,
after a long military battle, and has since touted the region as a
political and humanitarian success story.
The East has in fact become the government’s blueprint for future
plans in the North. “The people of the Northern Province must have the
opportunity to enjoy the fruits of democracy and development that the
people of the Eastern Province are enjoying today,” Secretary of
Foreign Affairs Palitha T.B. Kohona said last month.
During a talk at the Mt. Lavinia Hotel, a colonial-era behemoth rising
above the Indian Ocean outside of Colombo, the capital, Kohona
portrayed the East as a community which has “started to sense and feel
the true spirit of freedom, absence of fear and the joy of living that
was not theirs during the last three decades.”
Many residents of the Eastern Province would not recognize this
description of their homeland. Their daily lives remain wracked with
fears of violence, abductions, rape, illegal taxation and ongoing
oppression by government security forces and government-supported
paramilitary groups, such as the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal
(TMVP).
“This is almost worse than before,” said one resident of Trincomalee,
referring to the period until mid-2007 when the East was under the
control of the LTTE. “We are not living, we are still surviving. We
know anytime, anything can happen to us.”
Full Text is at
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1312517
-----
[Global Post]
Tamil civilians endured horror
As Tamils flee Sri Lanka's conflict zone, details of their situation
emerge.
By Maura R. O'Connor — Special to GlobalPost
Published: April 24, 2009 08:40 ET
Updated: April 30, 2009 19:25 ET
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1208598
This week an estimated 100,000 ethnic Tamils fled from the no-fire
zone turned battlefield between Sri Lanka's government and the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the country's northern
Vanni region.
This dramatic mass exodus comes after civilians survived for four
months on a 17 kilometer (10.5 mile) strip of land abutting the Indian
Ocean. There the civilians were reportedly kept hostage at gunpoint
and used as a human shield by the LTTE, while being shelled repeatedly
by military forces.
According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC),
4,500 civilians were killed in the last three months.
The war is not over for the civilians who still remain trapped in the
combat zone. Estimates of the exact number vary wildly: A government
source said Thursday that there were no more than 15,000 people, while
aid agencies estimate that at least 50,000 remained. A Sri Lankan
medical doctor still in the combat zone said he believes 200,000 were
stuck there.
Full text is at
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1208598
-----
[Express Buzz]
Tragedy accompanies Tamils to safety
P V Krishna Rao
First Published : 01 May 2009 03:14:35 PM IST
http://tinyurl.com/cas33f
KAKINADA: It was a nightmare,’’ says Mary Joseph Beny (55) of
Malletivu in Sri Lanka, one of the party comprising three families
that fled the island on April 20 and fetched up at Uppada in East
Godavari district only last night.
Sitting in the Government General Hospital here by the bedside of her
traumatised daughter, Potima (25), she recalls the tragic and
agonising journey of the three families comprising 22 people, half of
whom, including children, perished to dehydration and hunger on the
“fibre’’ boat. Racked with sobs, she says the bodies -- including
those of her husband, three sons, a daughter and a four-year-old
grandson -- had to be thrown into the sea.
Two others, Kaladevi (70) and Santa (33), are undergoing treatment.
Full Text is at
http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Tragedy+accompanies+Tamils+to+safety&artid=ldVRha/G1aM=&SectionID=e7uPP4%7CpSiw=&MainSectionID=oHSKVfNWYm0=&SectionName=EH8HilNJ2uYAot5nzqumeA==&SEO=
-----
[AM640 Toronto Radio]
John Oaklay Show - Canada (Audio)
30 April 2009
Debate BANDULA JAYASEKARA, Sri Lankan Consulate General in Toronto &
MANJULA SELAVARAJAH
http://www.640toronto.com/HostsandShows/JohnOakley/Audio.aspx
(Temporary Link)
-----
[Livenews.com.au]
Tamil protesters causes chaos in Sydney CBD
Friday, 1 May 2009 7:12 PM
Olivia Suzanski
http://www.livenews.com.au/news/tamil-protesters-causes-chaos-in-sydney-cbd/2009/5/1/204860
There is traffic chaos in Sydney's CBD tonight as Tamil Tiger
supporters protest.
Tamil protesters are stepping up their campaign for the federal
government to take action in Sri Lanka, blocking traffic in George
street, between Park and Bathurst streets.
The protesters want the government to to support a ceasefire in the
civil war in the north of the Indian Ocean island nation.
Protester Adrian Francis has told 2GB's Ross Greenwood they are not
going to budge until the Australian government enters talks with the
Sri Lankan government.
"We haven't had any affirmative action from anybody, from any
government officials. We haven't had anything."
text is at
http://www.livenews.com.au/news/tamil-protesters-causes-chaos-in-sydney-cbd/2009/5/1/204860
-----
[Toronto Star]
Tamil protest tiny price for freedom
May 01, 2009 04:30 AM
Rosie DiManno
http://www.thestar.com/News/Columnist/article/627146
An officer pinches the bridge of his nose, rubs his temples.
Gets to hurtin' the head, these raucous street-level demonstrations,
bullhorns blaring in the ears, and there's been five days of it,
already.
It was the noise that local law enforcement addressed first, Wednesday
night into yesterday morning, disabling the generator and sound system
that had so resoundingly amplified a protest by Toronto-area Tamils
along a stretch of elegant University Ave.
Hospitals had complained. Courthouse officials had complained. Nearby
residents had complained. That cacophony of objections must have
registered with higher decibels than the griping of motorists
attempting to navigate traffic snarls.
Since the demonstrators assembled Sunday evening, shortly thereafter
forcing the closure of University between Queen and Dundas, appeals by
the public to city officials had fallen on deaf ears.
Full Text is at
http://www.thestar.com/News/Columnist/article/627146
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AHRC-STM-091-2009
[Asian Human Rights Commission]
April 30, 2009
A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission
SRI LANKA: Nationalists call for the use of choppers and machetes
http://www.ahrchk.net/statements/mainfile.php/2009statements/1999/
"We may have to take choppers and machetes, we will have to attack
with choppers those who jump over the boundaries," chanted a group of
people from Hela Urumaya, (a Sinhala heritage party), gathered in
front of the British High Commission to protest the visits of the
British Foreign Secretary, David Milliband and his French counterpart,
Bernard Kouchner. The Swedish Foreign Minister, Carl Bildt, was denied
a visa to join the delegation. Photographs of the protest show
Buddhist monks seated in front of the slogan chanting crowd. Meanwhile
a large poster exhibited the photographs of David Milliband, Hilary
Clinton, American Secretary of State and Erik Solheim the Norwegian
minister for the Environment and Development with the slogan: Wanted
for Aiding and Abetting Terrorism.
The purpose of the visit of the British and French foreign secretaries
was to inspect the humanitarian situation of the civilians trapped in
the no-fire zone where the LTTE and the government forces are engaged
in fierce battles. The concerns expressed by these foreign politicians
was on behalf of the civilians whose numbers are estimated to be
around 80,000 to 140,000 including women, children and the elderly.
The call for humanitarian concern has been portrayed in the media and
by extremist racist elements as an attempt to extend a lifeline to the
LTTE. One of the placards read: 'Gordon Brown would you give a
humanitarian lifeline to Osama Bin laden?'
Full Text is at
http://www.ahrchk.net/statements/mainfile.php/2009statements/1999/
-----
[Guardian]
IMF under pressure to delay Sri Lanka's $1.9bn aid loan
• Calls for ceasefire against Tamil Tigers rejected
• Military offensive is humanitarian - Rajapaksa
Peter Beaumont The Guardian, Friday 1 May 2009
http://tinyurl.com/c5ynm8
The International Monetary Fund came under growing pressure yesterday
to delay a $1.9bn (£1.3bn) emergency loan to Sri Lanka, as Colombo
emphatically rejected British and French calls for a ceasefire in its
campaign against the Tamil Tigers.
A day after David Miliband, the foreign secretary, and his French
counterpart Bernard Kouchner called for a truce on a visit to the
country, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said that he "did not need
lectures from western representatives".
Despite clear evidence of suffering among the tens of thousands of
civilians who remain trapped with the Tamil Tigers in an increasingly
small pocket of land, Rajapaksa described the military offensive in
the country's north as a "humanitarian operation".
Full Text is at
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/may/01/imf-aid-sri-lanka-tamil-tigers
-----
[ReliefWeb]
Sri Lanka: Vanni Emergency OCHA Situation Report No. 4
Source: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian
Affairs (OCHA)
Date: 30 Apr 2009
Full_Report (pdf* format)
http://tinyurl.com/dd3tuf
This report covers the period from 29 to 30 April 2009. The next
report will be issued on or around 01 May.
I. Highlights
- British Foreign Secretary David Miliband and French Foreign Affairs
Minister Bernard Kouchner have concluded their visit on the Island.
They met Government officials and visited Vavuniya.
- The British Under-Secretary of State for International Development
told the British House of Commons during a debate on Sri Lanka that
the UK will call for an early investigation as to whether crimes have
been committed against civilians during the current crisis.
- The Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC), John Holmes, has expressed
his concern over the plight of an estimated 50,000 people trapped in
the conflict zone. "These people are not only in danger from the
shelling and the shooting, but they are suffering extensively due to
shortages of medical supplies, food and water," Mr. Holmes told
journalists after returning from a two day mission to Sri Lanka.
- During his meetings with the Government the ERC stressed the need
for a humanitarian pause to enable access for UN humanitarian staff to
the combat zone to assess the conditions and needs of the civilians
and to provide assistance. However, Government officials rejected the
request.
- The ERC called on the Government to exercise restraint in the
conflict zone, particularly the use of heavy weapons which they had
said earlier in the week that they would not use. He added that it is
vital that the LTTE release the civilians who they are holding against
their will and allow them to leave the conflict zone.
- In addition to the importance of meeting the immediate material
humanitarian needs of over 170,000 displaced in camps and hospitals,
the ERC also cited the need to address issues such as family
reunification in the IDP camps, removal of the military presence from
the camps, freedom of movement for the IDPs and planning for the early
return to their home areas as demining is completed.
- The UNHCR Representative has welcomed the first Government organized
return of IDPs to Musali in Mannar district, after they had been
displaced for approximately two years. UNHCR has expressed that they
"hope that IDP return to other areas in Northern Sri Lanka will soon
also be possible."
full Text is at
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/MUMA-7RM2HX?OpenDocument
Full Report is at
http://tinyurl.com/dd3tuf
------
[Reuters] (Embedded Army Excursion)
WITNESS: A fleeting glimpse of Sri Lanka's hidden war zone
Fri May 1, 2009 3:27am BST
David Gray
David Gray is an Australian photographer who has covered everything
from earthquakes, to wars, to major sports events across the Asia-
Pacific region. He won Australia's top press photography award last
year with his portfolio of 10 images from the Sichuan earthquake in
China, the Olympic Games, Tibet and daily life in China. Based in
Beijing, he has been on assignment in Sri Lanka for the past few
weeks.
PUTUMATTALAN, Sri Lanka (Reuters) - Getting to the frontline of the
Sri Lankan army's war with the Tamil Tigers entailed a hair-rising
helicopter trip over the jungle and a bone-jarring ride past scorched
homes to the war zone.
Foreign journalists and aid groups have generally been kept away from
the area where government troops have battled the Liberation Tigers of
Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for months.
On those rare occasions when the government permits a trip to the
front, the hazardous journey there and back takes just one day. Yet,
as I found out, it could be a world away
Full Text is at
http://uk.reuters.com/article/burningIssues/idUKTRE54004720090501
----
[BBC]
07:10 GMT, Friday, 1 May 2009 08:10 UK
Sri Lankan Army Website Hacked
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8028288.stm
The website of the Sri Lankan army has been attacked by suspected
Tamil Tiger hackers, government officials said.
Material on the site - www.army.lk - was removed and replaced with
graphic photographs of what were said to be civilian victims of the
civil war.
The army website is now being restored by technicians.
The government and Tamil Tigers are engaged in a fierce propaganda war
as the conflict in the north-east rages in a small stretch of land
Full Text is at
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8028288.stm
Also Read
[பதிவு]
30/04/2009, 16:01 [ஆசிரியர்]
தமிழ் தேசிய ஊடகங்களை குறிவைத்து அழிக்கும் கூட்டுச்சதி
http://www.pathivu.com/news/1595/54//d,view.aspx
-----
[KBC] (old)
Terror on the Tamils
15-02-09
http://tinyurl.com/dazv3s
Video is at
http://www.kbcchannel.tv/index.php?option=com_hwdvideoshare&task=viewvideo&Itemid=125&video_id=50
-----
[Relief Web]
UNHCR sends emergency team as first group of civilians returns to Sri
Lanka’s north
Source: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
Date: 01 May 2009
http://tinyurl.com/cpgyf2
This is a summary of what was said by the UNHCR spokesperson at
today's Palais des Nations press briefing in Geneva. Further
information can be found on the UNHCR websites, www.unhcr.org and
www.unhcr.fr, which should also be checked for regular media updates
on non-briefing days.
A second team of UNHCR emergency experts is scheduled to arrive today
in Sri Lanka. The team of four includes specialists on community
services, protection and other essential field functions. They follow
the earlier deployment of five UNHCR experts to Sri Lanka's north in
February and March.
About 171,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) have fled the
conflict zone, mostly during the last 10 days. They are accommodated
in 38 sites in four districts of the north and east of the country.
UNHCR and its partners have mounted a massive humanitarian operation
in support of the Government to assist these displaced people.
While thousands of displaced people continue to arrive to Vavuniya,
Jaffna and Trincomalee, others are returning to their homes in the
first Government organised return operation in northern Sri Lanka for
years. The area to where they are returning, Musali in Mannar
district, was for a long time the frontline in the fighting between
Government forces and LTTE rebels.
Full Text is at
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/PSLG-7RMFFM?OpenDocument
-----
[AFP]
Sri Lanka urges civilians to flee war zone
By RAVI NESSMAN – 1 May 2009
http://tinyurl.com/dhotos
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka's government dropped leaflets
across the northern war zone Friday urging civilians to flee the
fighting amid accusations the military pounded the area with artillery
shells that killed at least 10 civilians.
Government forces have cornered the Tamil Tiger rebels in a 3-mile (5
kilometer) -long strip along the northeast coast and appear poised to
end the quarter-century civil war.
However, international pressure has grown for a cease-fire to protect
tens of thousands of ethnic Tamil civilians trapped in the area. The
government accuses the Liberation Tiger of Tamil Eelam rebels of
holding the civilians hostage.
In a brief leaflet dropped by aircraft on the area, President Mahinda
Rajapaksa appealed to the civilians to flee across the front lines,
according to the government.
"Your suffering is prolonged by this action of the LTTE who are
holding you as a human shield for their own safety and security," the
leaflet said. "I appeal to every one of you to come over to the
cleared areas."
Full Text is at
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gVoaDFmbCYS-Usz9ACDRIengj21QD97TDPT80
-----
[Global Post]
In peace, Sri Lankans still disappear
Even in areas government forces have controlled since 2007, Tamil
civilians continue to go missing.
By Maura R. O'Connor — Special to GlobalPost
Published: May 1, 2009 07:12 ET
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1311840
BATTICALOA, Sri Lanka (Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting) — When the
Venkatesans recall how many of their family members have disappeared,
the husband and wife look down at their hands and begin counting
fingers. Four of their relations are missing, each abducted in the
night by unmarked white vans. Three were taken in the last four
months.
For any other family around the world, this number would be shocking.
But for an ethnic Tamil family in Sri Lanka’s Eastern Province, it is
unremarkable. For decades the region’s civilians have been traumatized
by widespread disappearances, and they believe the majority of them
are perpetrated by government security forces or government-backed
paramilitary groups.
“We are powerless and don’t know what to do,” said Mrs. Venkatesan
(the name has been changed at her request). Her only son was abducted
last year and held in a prison for 11 months without charge. The 27-
year-old said the police tortured him by beating the bottom of his
feet. “When you are 40 years old, you will never walk again,” he said
they told him. Last December he was released without explanation,
narrowly escaping becoming another finger to count on his mother’s
hand.
Full Text is at
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1311840
-----
[Global Post]
East offers glimpse of post-war Sri Lanka
Civilians still suffer from fear two years since conflict ended.
By Maura R. O'Connor — Special to GlobalPost
Published: May 1, 2009 07:08 ET
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1312517
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting) — As the Sri
Lankan government enters its final battle with the Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the country's north, little attention is
being paid to the Eastern Province.
The government won control of this territory nearly two years ago,
after a long military battle, and has since touted the region as a
political and humanitarian success story.
The East has in fact become the government’s blueprint for future
plans in the North. “The people of the Northern Province must have the
opportunity to enjoy the fruits of democracy and development that the
people of the Eastern Province are enjoying today,” Secretary of
Foreign Affairs Palitha T.B. Kohona said last month.
During a talk at the Mt. Lavinia Hotel, a colonial-era behemoth rising
above the Indian Ocean outside of Colombo, the capital, Kohona
portrayed the East as a community which has “started to sense and feel
the true spirit of freedom, absence of fear and the joy of living that
was not theirs during the last three decades.”
Many residents of the Eastern Province would not recognize this
description of their homeland. Their daily lives remain wracked with
fears of violence, abductions, rape, illegal taxation and ongoing
oppression by government security forces and government-supported
paramilitary groups, such as the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal
(TMVP).
“This is almost worse than before,” said one resident of Trincomalee,
referring to the period until mid-2007 when the East was under the
control of the LTTE. “We are not living, we are still surviving. We
know anytime, anything can happen to us.”
Full Text is at
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1312517
-----
[Global Post]
Tamil civilians endured horror
As Tamils flee Sri Lanka's conflict zone, details of their situation
emerge.
By Maura R. O'Connor — Special to GlobalPost
Published: April 24, 2009 08:40 ET
Updated: April 30, 2009 19:25 ET
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1208598
This week an estimated 100,000 ethnic Tamils fled from the no-fire
zone turned battlefield between Sri Lanka's government and the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the country's northern
Vanni region.
This dramatic mass exodus comes after civilians survived for four
months on a 17 kilometer (10.5 mile) strip of land abutting the Indian
Ocean. There the civilians were reportedly kept hostage at gunpoint
and used as a human shield by the LTTE, while being shelled repeatedly
by military forces.
According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC),
4,500 civilians were killed in the last three months.
The war is not over for the civilians who still remain trapped in the
combat zone. Estimates of the exact number vary wildly: A government
source said Thursday that there were no more than 15,000 people, while
aid agencies estimate that at least 50,000 remained. A Sri Lankan
medical doctor still in the combat zone said he believes 200,000 were
stuck there.
Full text is at
http://www.globalpost.com/print/1208598
-----
[Express Buzz]
Tragedy accompanies Tamils to safety
P V Krishna Rao
First Published : 01 May 2009 03:14:35 PM IST
http://tinyurl.com/cas33f
KAKINADA: It was a nightmare,’’ says Mary Joseph Beny (55) of
Malletivu in Sri Lanka, one of the party comprising three families
that fled the island on April 20 and fetched up at Uppada in East
Godavari district only last night.
Sitting in the Government General Hospital here by the bedside of her
traumatised daughter, Potima (25), she recalls the tragic and
agonising journey of the three families comprising 22 people, half of
whom, including children, perished to dehydration and hunger on the
“fibre’’ boat. Racked with sobs, she says the bodies -- including
those of her husband, three sons, a daughter and a four-year-old
grandson -- had to be thrown into the sea.
Two others, Kaladevi (70) and Santa (33), are undergoing treatment.
Full Text is at
http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Tragedy+accompanies+Tamils+to+safety&artid=ldVRha/G1aM=&SectionID=e7uPP4%7CpSiw=&MainSectionID=oHSKVfNWYm0=&SectionName=EH8HilNJ2uYAot5nzqumeA==&SEO=
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[AM640 Toronto Radio]
John Oaklay Show - Canada (Audio)
30 April 2009
Debate BANDULA JAYASEKARA, Sri Lankan Consulate General in Toronto &
MANJULA SELAVARAJAH
http://www.640toronto.com/HostsandShows/JohnOakley/Audio.aspx
(Temporary Link)
-----
[Livenews.com.au]
Tamil protesters causes chaos in Sydney CBD
Friday, 1 May 2009 7:12 PM
Olivia Suzanski
http://www.livenews.com.au/news/tamil-protesters-causes-chaos-in-sydney-cbd/2009/5/1/204860
There is traffic chaos in Sydney's CBD tonight as Tamil Tiger
supporters protest.
Tamil protesters are stepping up their campaign for the federal
government to take action in Sri Lanka, blocking traffic in George
street, between Park and Bathurst streets.
The protesters want the government to to support a ceasefire in the
civil war in the north of the Indian Ocean island nation.
Protester Adrian Francis has told 2GB's Ross Greenwood they are not
going to budge until the Australian government enters talks with the
Sri Lankan government.
"We haven't had any affirmative action from anybody, from any
government officials. We haven't had anything."
text is at
http://www.livenews.com.au/news/tamil-protesters-causes-chaos-in-sydney-cbd/2009/5/1/204860
-----
[Toronto Star]
Tamil protest tiny price for freedom
May 01, 2009 04:30 AM
Rosie DiManno
http://www.thestar.com/News/Columnist/article/627146
An officer pinches the bridge of his nose, rubs his temples.
Gets to hurtin' the head, these raucous street-level demonstrations,
bullhorns blaring in the ears, and there's been five days of it,
already.
It was the noise that local law enforcement addressed first, Wednesday
night into yesterday morning, disabling the generator and sound system
that had so resoundingly amplified a protest by Toronto-area Tamils
along a stretch of elegant University Ave.
Hospitals had complained. Courthouse officials had complained. Nearby
residents had complained. That cacophony of objections must have
registered with higher decibels than the griping of motorists
attempting to navigate traffic snarls.
Since the demonstrators assembled Sunday evening, shortly thereafter
forcing the closure of University between Queen and Dundas, appeals by
the public to city officials had fallen on deaf ears.
Full Text is at
http://www.thestar.com/News/Columnist/article/627146
// posted by ஜூலியன் @ 5:58 AM 
