Thursday, January 15, 2009
அகிலமன்னிப்புச்சபை இந்தியாவிடம் வேண்டுகோள்
ஆயுதம் கொடுப்பவனையே காக்கச் சொல்லும் அன்நாஸ்ரி.
காத்துக் காத்திருப்பவன் காக்கவா பார்ப்பான்?
http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/india-urged-raise-human-rights-issues-sri-lanka-20090115
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA20/001/2009/en
Amnesty International writes to Indian Foreign secy urging protection for civilians in the Wanni, Sri Lanka
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
OPEN LETTER
AI Index: ASA 20/001/2009
Date: 14 January 2009
Open letter to Indian Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon urging protection for civilians in the Wanni, Sri Lanka
Mr. Shivshankar Menon
Secretary
Ministry for External Affairs
South Block, Raisina Hill,
New Delhi – 110011
India
Dear Mr. Menon
On the occasion of your upcoming visit to Sri Lanka, Amnesty International calls on you to raise, with your Sri Lankan counterparts, concerns about the safety of civilians trapped in the Wanni, as government forces close in on Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) bases in the north-eastern part of the island. We also ask that you discuss the general deterioration of human rights in the country, even in areas not directly affected by the conflict.
More than a quarter of a million people, mostly Tamils, face immense hardship and are running out of safe space in the face of intensified fighting between the two sides. This population of internally displaced persons (IDPs) is trapped between the approaching Sri Lankan security forces and the LTTE, which has imposed restrictions on their ability to leave and is using them as an involuntary pool of recruits and labourers. With the Sri Lankan government’s recent recapture of Killinochchi, hundreds of thousands of people have been compressed into a smaller area and are increasingly vulnerable. As the fighting encroaches on the trapped population, there are fears of a further mass exodus of civilians.
Lack of protection to civilians during fighting
Given the restrictions imposed by both sides on independent media and humanitarian aid workers, there is little independent verification of conditions in the conflict area. Available information suggests that over 300,000 people are experiencing tremendous insecurity and food shortages aggravated by the fact that many of these families have sold most of their possessions to cope with multiple displacements.
In November 2008, Amnesty International drew attention to acute food and shelter shortages facing this population (Amnesty International, Sri Lankan government must act now to protect 300,000 displaced, 19 November 2008). At the time, the organisation welcomed the food supplies that were sent by the Indian authorities. As humanitarian supplies, including those sent by the Indian government, have since dwindled, aid workers express fears that many of the displaced are vulnerable to potential public health problems and are receiving far less calories than the daily recommended allowance. Also, civilians injured in the fighting cannot be transported outside the Wanni for urgent treatment due to road closures by the security forces.
As hostilities have intensified, the LTTE have stepped up its recruitment, especially of younger people. LTTE continue to hinder people from moving to safer places by imposing a strict pass system. In some instances they have forced family members to stay behind to ensure the return of the rest of the family.
Despite assurances by the government of Sri Lanka that the situation is under control, there is evidence to suggest that the authorities lack the capacity to provide the required humanitarian relief to displaced people. Humanitarian access to the Wanni continues to be restricted. Only government-approved food convoys are allowed to enter the area since the authorities ordered the United Nations, and nearly all humanitarian agencies, to withdraw from the Wanni on 9 September 2008.
On 29 and 30 December 2008, an Inter-Agency support mission accompanied the World Food Program-led convoy in order to monitor implementation of United Nations (UN) funded programmes and conduct a needs assessment. The mission noted increased vulnerability of the civilian population due to several factors including: ongoing fighting, new and repeated displacements into an increasingly compressed area, flood damage and reduced capacity and material to address urgent shelter and sanitation needs.
Attacks on media
Away from the front lines, the general human rights situation in government-controlled areas has deteriorated (Amnesty International has previously criticized the LTTE for severely curtailing civil and political rights in areas under their control). Amnesty International is appalled at the increasing instances of attacks on the media, including the recent assassination of the editor of the Sunday Leader, Lasantha Wickramatunge in Colombo and attack on the privately owned Maharaja television/MTV studios in Colombo which was ransacked by a gang who used claymore bombs to damage property.
During your upcoming discussions with the Government of Sri Lanka, you should pay special attention to the severe difficulties facing the people of Sri Lanka. Amnesty International urges you:
To raise issue of the civilian protection and press for urgently needed humanitarian assistance to reach civilians who are trapped between the two sides. Pressure must also be put on the LTTE to allow free passage of displaced families from the Wanni with immediate effect.
To press for international monitors to assess the humanitarian needs of quarter of a million people trapped in the Wanni and to ensure proper distribution of food and other humanitarian assistance, particularly as the fighting pproaches the trapped civilian population.
To raise the issue of attacks on the media and press for impartial investigation into the same.
Thank you for your consideration for the above recommendations, and we look forward to your response at the earliest.
Sincerely,
Sam Zarifi
Program Director
Asia-Pacific Program
END/
Public Document
****************************************
For more information please call Amnesty International's press office in London, UK, on +44 20 7413 5566 or email: press@amnesty.org
International Secretariat, Amnesty International, 1 Easton St., London WC1X 0DW, UK www.amnesty.org
India urged to raise human rights issues in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
© Amnesty International
15 January 2009
As the Indian Foreign Secretary visits Sri Lanka this week, he has been urged to raise concerns over the safety of displaced civilians trapped in the Wanni, in discussions with the Government of Sri Lanka.
In an open letter to Shivshankar Menon, Amnesty International has asked him to pay special attention to the severe difficulties facing the people caught in the middle of the fighting. The letter points to government forces closing in on Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) bases in the north-eastern part of the island.
The letter also calls on him to discuss the general deterioration of human rights in the country, even in areas not directly affected by the conflict.
More than a quarter of a million people, mostly Tamils, face immense hardship and are running out of safe space in the face of intensified fighting between the two sides.
These displaced persons are trapped between the approaching Sri Lankan security forces and the LTTE, which has imposed restrictions on their ability to leave and is using them as an involuntary pool of recruits and labourers.
With the Sri Lankan government’s recent recapture of Killinochchi, hundreds of thousands of people have been compressed into a smaller area and are increasingly vulnerable. As the fighting encroaches on the trapped population, there are fears of a further mass exodus of civilians.
Amnesty International highlighted the situation in November 2008, drawing attention to the acute food and shelter shortages facing the displaced.
At the time, the organization welcomed the food supplies that were sent by the Indian authorities. Humanitarian supplies, including those sent by the Indian government, have since dwindled.
The letter says aid workers fear that many of the displaced are "vulnerable to potential public health problems and are receiving far less calories than the daily recommended allowance.
"Also, civilians injured in the fighting cannot be transported outside the Wanni for urgent treatment due to road closures by the security forces."
Despite assurances by the Government of Sri Lanka that the situation is under control, there is evidence to suggest that the authorities lack the capacity to provide the required humanitarian relief to displaced people.
"Humanitarian access to the Wanni continues to be restricted," says the letter, "Only government-approved food convoys are allowed to enter the area since the authorities ordered the United Nations, and nearly all humanitarian agencies, to withdraw from the Wanni on 9 September 2008."
On 29 and 30 December 2008, an Inter-Agency support mission accompanied the World Food Program-led convoy in order to monitor implementation of United Nations (UN) funded programmes and conduct a needs assessment.
"The mission noted increased vulnerability of the civilian population due to several factors including: ongoing fighting, new and repeated displacements into an increasingly compressed area, flood damage and reduced capacity and material to address urgent shelter and sanitation needs," according to the letter.
Another issue that Amnesty International has asked Mr Menon to address is the increasing number of attacks on the media. The editor of the Sunday Leader, Lasantha Wickramatunge was assassinated in Colombo recently. There was also an attack on the privately owned Maharaja television/MTV studios in Colombo which was ransacked by a gang who used claymore bombs to damage property.
The main recommendations Amnesty International's letter made to Mr Menon were to:
raise the issue of civilian protection and press for urgently needed humanitarian assistance to reach civilians who are trapped between the two sides. Pressure must also be put on the LTTE to allow free passage of displaced families from the Wanni with immediate effect.
press for international monitors to assess the humanitarian needs of quarter of a million people trapped in the Wanni and to ensure proper distribution of food and other humanitarian assistance, particularly as the fighting approaches the trapped civilian population.
raise the issue of attacks on the media and press for impartial investigation into the same.
discuss the general deterioration of human rights in the country, even in areas not directly affected by the conflict.
காத்துக் காத்திருப்பவன் காக்கவா பார்ப்பான்?
http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/india-urged-raise-human-rights-issues-sri-lanka-20090115
http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA20/001/2009/en
Amnesty International writes to Indian Foreign secy urging protection for civilians in the Wanni, Sri Lanka
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
OPEN LETTER
AI Index: ASA 20/001/2009
Date: 14 January 2009
Open letter to Indian Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon urging protection for civilians in the Wanni, Sri Lanka
Mr. Shivshankar Menon
Secretary
Ministry for External Affairs
South Block, Raisina Hill,
New Delhi – 110011
India
Dear Mr. Menon
On the occasion of your upcoming visit to Sri Lanka, Amnesty International calls on you to raise, with your Sri Lankan counterparts, concerns about the safety of civilians trapped in the Wanni, as government forces close in on Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) bases in the north-eastern part of the island. We also ask that you discuss the general deterioration of human rights in the country, even in areas not directly affected by the conflict.
More than a quarter of a million people, mostly Tamils, face immense hardship and are running out of safe space in the face of intensified fighting between the two sides. This population of internally displaced persons (IDPs) is trapped between the approaching Sri Lankan security forces and the LTTE, which has imposed restrictions on their ability to leave and is using them as an involuntary pool of recruits and labourers. With the Sri Lankan government’s recent recapture of Killinochchi, hundreds of thousands of people have been compressed into a smaller area and are increasingly vulnerable. As the fighting encroaches on the trapped population, there are fears of a further mass exodus of civilians.
Lack of protection to civilians during fighting
Given the restrictions imposed by both sides on independent media and humanitarian aid workers, there is little independent verification of conditions in the conflict area. Available information suggests that over 300,000 people are experiencing tremendous insecurity and food shortages aggravated by the fact that many of these families have sold most of their possessions to cope with multiple displacements.
In November 2008, Amnesty International drew attention to acute food and shelter shortages facing this population (Amnesty International, Sri Lankan government must act now to protect 300,000 displaced, 19 November 2008). At the time, the organisation welcomed the food supplies that were sent by the Indian authorities. As humanitarian supplies, including those sent by the Indian government, have since dwindled, aid workers express fears that many of the displaced are vulnerable to potential public health problems and are receiving far less calories than the daily recommended allowance. Also, civilians injured in the fighting cannot be transported outside the Wanni for urgent treatment due to road closures by the security forces.
As hostilities have intensified, the LTTE have stepped up its recruitment, especially of younger people. LTTE continue to hinder people from moving to safer places by imposing a strict pass system. In some instances they have forced family members to stay behind to ensure the return of the rest of the family.
Despite assurances by the government of Sri Lanka that the situation is under control, there is evidence to suggest that the authorities lack the capacity to provide the required humanitarian relief to displaced people. Humanitarian access to the Wanni continues to be restricted. Only government-approved food convoys are allowed to enter the area since the authorities ordered the United Nations, and nearly all humanitarian agencies, to withdraw from the Wanni on 9 September 2008.
On 29 and 30 December 2008, an Inter-Agency support mission accompanied the World Food Program-led convoy in order to monitor implementation of United Nations (UN) funded programmes and conduct a needs assessment. The mission noted increased vulnerability of the civilian population due to several factors including: ongoing fighting, new and repeated displacements into an increasingly compressed area, flood damage and reduced capacity and material to address urgent shelter and sanitation needs.
Attacks on media
Away from the front lines, the general human rights situation in government-controlled areas has deteriorated (Amnesty International has previously criticized the LTTE for severely curtailing civil and political rights in areas under their control). Amnesty International is appalled at the increasing instances of attacks on the media, including the recent assassination of the editor of the Sunday Leader, Lasantha Wickramatunge in Colombo and attack on the privately owned Maharaja television/MTV studios in Colombo which was ransacked by a gang who used claymore bombs to damage property.
During your upcoming discussions with the Government of Sri Lanka, you should pay special attention to the severe difficulties facing the people of Sri Lanka. Amnesty International urges you:
To raise issue of the civilian protection and press for urgently needed humanitarian assistance to reach civilians who are trapped between the two sides. Pressure must also be put on the LTTE to allow free passage of displaced families from the Wanni with immediate effect.
To press for international monitors to assess the humanitarian needs of quarter of a million people trapped in the Wanni and to ensure proper distribution of food and other humanitarian assistance, particularly as the fighting pproaches the trapped civilian population.
To raise the issue of attacks on the media and press for impartial investigation into the same.
Thank you for your consideration for the above recommendations, and we look forward to your response at the earliest.
Sincerely,
Sam Zarifi
Program Director
Asia-Pacific Program
END/
Public Document
****************************************
For more information please call Amnesty International's press office in London, UK, on +44 20 7413 5566 or email: press@amnesty.org
International Secretariat, Amnesty International, 1 Easton St., London WC1X 0DW, UK www.amnesty.org
India urged to raise human rights issues in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
© Amnesty International
15 January 2009
As the Indian Foreign Secretary visits Sri Lanka this week, he has been urged to raise concerns over the safety of displaced civilians trapped in the Wanni, in discussions with the Government of Sri Lanka.
In an open letter to Shivshankar Menon, Amnesty International has asked him to pay special attention to the severe difficulties facing the people caught in the middle of the fighting. The letter points to government forces closing in on Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) bases in the north-eastern part of the island.
The letter also calls on him to discuss the general deterioration of human rights in the country, even in areas not directly affected by the conflict.
More than a quarter of a million people, mostly Tamils, face immense hardship and are running out of safe space in the face of intensified fighting between the two sides.
These displaced persons are trapped between the approaching Sri Lankan security forces and the LTTE, which has imposed restrictions on their ability to leave and is using them as an involuntary pool of recruits and labourers.
With the Sri Lankan government’s recent recapture of Killinochchi, hundreds of thousands of people have been compressed into a smaller area and are increasingly vulnerable. As the fighting encroaches on the trapped population, there are fears of a further mass exodus of civilians.
Amnesty International highlighted the situation in November 2008, drawing attention to the acute food and shelter shortages facing the displaced.
At the time, the organization welcomed the food supplies that were sent by the Indian authorities. Humanitarian supplies, including those sent by the Indian government, have since dwindled.
The letter says aid workers fear that many of the displaced are "vulnerable to potential public health problems and are receiving far less calories than the daily recommended allowance.
"Also, civilians injured in the fighting cannot be transported outside the Wanni for urgent treatment due to road closures by the security forces."
Despite assurances by the Government of Sri Lanka that the situation is under control, there is evidence to suggest that the authorities lack the capacity to provide the required humanitarian relief to displaced people.
"Humanitarian access to the Wanni continues to be restricted," says the letter, "Only government-approved food convoys are allowed to enter the area since the authorities ordered the United Nations, and nearly all humanitarian agencies, to withdraw from the Wanni on 9 September 2008."
On 29 and 30 December 2008, an Inter-Agency support mission accompanied the World Food Program-led convoy in order to monitor implementation of United Nations (UN) funded programmes and conduct a needs assessment.
"The mission noted increased vulnerability of the civilian population due to several factors including: ongoing fighting, new and repeated displacements into an increasingly compressed area, flood damage and reduced capacity and material to address urgent shelter and sanitation needs," according to the letter.
Another issue that Amnesty International has asked Mr Menon to address is the increasing number of attacks on the media. The editor of the Sunday Leader, Lasantha Wickramatunge was assassinated in Colombo recently. There was also an attack on the privately owned Maharaja television/MTV studios in Colombo which was ransacked by a gang who used claymore bombs to damage property.
The main recommendations Amnesty International's letter made to Mr Menon were to:
raise the issue of civilian protection and press for urgently needed humanitarian assistance to reach civilians who are trapped between the two sides. Pressure must also be put on the LTTE to allow free passage of displaced families from the Wanni with immediate effect.
press for international monitors to assess the humanitarian needs of quarter of a million people trapped in the Wanni and to ensure proper distribution of food and other humanitarian assistance, particularly as the fighting approaches the trapped civilian population.
raise the issue of attacks on the media and press for impartial investigation into the same.
discuss the general deterioration of human rights in the country, even in areas not directly affected by the conflict.
Labels: amnesty international, eelam, india, Tamils
பிபிசியில் ஸ்ரீலங்கா & ஈழமக்கள் கருத்துகள்
பிபிசியில் ஸ்ரீலங்கா & ஈழமக்கள் கருத்துகள்
Kantharubi Sivanathan, 28, mother-of-two, Paranthan
On the night of 9 January my family was among a group of 58 people trying to cross over to army-controlled area.
We came into army-controlled areas for safety but I have lost my husband
It was night-time when we were going and I think that we ran into some army people who were lying there. Suddenly there were reports of gun fire and suddenly we all fell down.
A bullet hit my husband and he was instantly killed.
Everyone was crying and shouting. After half an hour, the soldiers came to help us and they took us and the injured and the dead bodies to Kilinochchi hospital and from there we were taken to the IDP camp.
I escaped without any injuries but I lost my husband. We came into army-controlled areas for safety but I have lost my husband. I don't know what I am going to do with my two small children.
I don't know what is going to happen to my family in the future. I am all alone without my husband. As it was too dark I don't know who fired the shots but the army helped us."
------------------------------
Anura Shaminda Kumarasingham, shipping worker
I am a patriotic person but I come from both sides of the conflict. My father is Tamil and my mother is Sinhalese. I was brought up in the south but we went on holidays to Jaffna.
Most Sinhalese people worship Tamil Gods. Even the military, before they go to the north to fight, worship in Hindu temples in Kataragama. I am a Buddhist. But in this one country people are fighting each other. Both sides are killing innocent people.
I feel caught by the conflict. Even when the military operation is over, there will still be hardship. I can't support the killing of innocent people - Tamil or Sinhalese. So many people are going through hardship in the [northern] Wanni [region].
I am totally against a separate state but Tamils must have a chance to get some recognition, to show their identity.
All places captured are part of Sri Lanka. Why is it such a big thing? If the government captured Tamil Nadu, then I could see why they might celebrate. Not for Kilinochchi.
for the full text
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7828883.stm
Kantharubi Sivanathan, 28, mother-of-two, Paranthan
On the night of 9 January my family was among a group of 58 people trying to cross over to army-controlled area.
We came into army-controlled areas for safety but I have lost my husband
It was night-time when we were going and I think that we ran into some army people who were lying there. Suddenly there were reports of gun fire and suddenly we all fell down.
A bullet hit my husband and he was instantly killed.
Everyone was crying and shouting. After half an hour, the soldiers came to help us and they took us and the injured and the dead bodies to Kilinochchi hospital and from there we were taken to the IDP camp.
I escaped without any injuries but I lost my husband. We came into army-controlled areas for safety but I have lost my husband. I don't know what I am going to do with my two small children.
I don't know what is going to happen to my family in the future. I am all alone without my husband. As it was too dark I don't know who fired the shots but the army helped us."
------------------------------
Anura Shaminda Kumarasingham, shipping worker
I am a patriotic person but I come from both sides of the conflict. My father is Tamil and my mother is Sinhalese. I was brought up in the south but we went on holidays to Jaffna.
Most Sinhalese people worship Tamil Gods. Even the military, before they go to the north to fight, worship in Hindu temples in Kataragama. I am a Buddhist. But in this one country people are fighting each other. Both sides are killing innocent people.
I feel caught by the conflict. Even when the military operation is over, there will still be hardship. I can't support the killing of innocent people - Tamil or Sinhalese. So many people are going through hardship in the [northern] Wanni [region].
I am totally against a separate state but Tamils must have a chance to get some recognition, to show their identity.
All places captured are part of Sri Lanka. Why is it such a big thing? If the government captured Tamil Nadu, then I could see why they might celebrate. Not for Kilinochchi.
for the full text
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7828883.stm
Labels: eelam, loss, sri lanka, Sri Lankan Army, tamil, தமிழ்
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
மலேசியாவிலே ஈழத்தவர் நிலை நினைவூட்டப்பட்டது
மலேசியாவிலே ஈழத்தமிழர் நிலை நினைவூட்டப்பட்டது
Thursday January 15, 2009 MYT 9:05:00 AM
'Don’t forget Sri Lanka, other conflicts'
By ANDREA FILMER
GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Government threw some focus on the conflict in Sri Lanka, reminding Malaysians that violence and war were also occurring in other parts of the world alongside Gaza.
While expressing its anger at Israel for the deaths of innocent Palestinians, Penang said it was also concerned about the deaths of innocent victims due to attacks launched by the Sri Lankan Government on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) or Tamil Tigers.
full text is at
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/1/15/nation/20090115090312
also read
http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/96456
Thursday January 15, 2009 MYT 9:05:00 AM
'Don’t forget Sri Lanka, other conflicts'
By ANDREA FILMER
GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Government threw some focus on the conflict in Sri Lanka, reminding Malaysians that violence and war were also occurring in other parts of the world alongside Gaza.
While expressing its anger at Israel for the deaths of innocent Palestinians, Penang said it was also concerned about the deaths of innocent victims due to attacks launched by the Sri Lankan Government on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) or Tamil Tigers.
full text is at
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/1/15/nation/20090115090312
also read
http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/96456
Labels: eelam, lanka, ஈழம், தமிழர்
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
கவனம்
from the mail my friend forwarded
குளோபன் குளோப்: யார் வெற்றி பெற்றார்கள்?
சென்னைப்புத்தகக்கண்காட்சி: எந்தப்புத்தகம் அதிகம் விற்பனையானது?
பதிவு: வில்லு வெல்லுமா?
Twitter: Today I fucked at 4:30 am, got sucked at 8:30 pm before licked... Oh! almost forgot. Satyam in trouble and Hayden bowed out
http://tamilweek.com/news-features/archives/1501
Kilinochchi Doctors seek support to treat civilians
January 13, 2009 at 10:21 am · ~ News
Dr.T.Sathyamoorthy, Regional Director of Health Services in Kilinochchi District has written to Health Officials in Colombo seeking assistance to improve health care services to civilians being hit in Sri Lanka Army artillery fire in Northern Sri Lanka.
Full Text of Dr.T.Sathyamoorthy’s letters to officials in Colombo as follows:
_____________________________________________________________
Secretary Health Ministry of Health
Colombo
Through
DGH
Ministry of Health
Colombo
Dear Sir
Hospitals need protection from attack
Displaced hospitals are functioning in the following places
• Visuvamadhu
• Tharmapam
• Kallaru
• Punnaineeravi
• Kannaginagar
• Redbarna
Surrounding above places is heavily congested with IDPs. The recent days many IDPs places hit by shell. Up to today 213 civilians were injured and 28 civilians died.
The following supports are urgently needed.
1. Should be opened to transfer injured civilians to vavuniya hospital.
2. Hospitals are hospital near by side should be attack free zone.
3. Medicines including surgical items should be sent to hospitals from MSD.
Thank you
Yours sincerely
Dr.T.Sathyamoorthy
RDHS
Kilinochchi
Copy: Secretary Health/ North Province
_________________________________________________________
Dr.U.A.Mendis.
DGHS, Ministry of Health Care, Nutrition & Uva Wellasssa Development
Dear Sir,
Re: ensuring Security of the Doctors and Patients in Wani region.
This is to inform you that, our doctors and patients are now in a pathetic situation as we heard blasts and gun fire near to Wiswamadu area. We received 9 injured civilians on 11th and 5 today at the Wisamadu maternity unit and all are transferred to PTK BH with the help of ICRC.
The ground situation is the same at Puthukudiyirupu BH.
So ultimately we are now not having a secure place to keep our patients for the treatment in Wanni. Adding to this worst ambulance transports between Wani and Vavuniya are frequently interrupted and Due to this condition we had lost 2 patients including one maternal death.
Especially for the maternity care all Wani region now depended in Wisamadu maternity unit and PTK BH. If we dope our services in both places, it will lead more maternal and neonatal mortalities.
Taking this into your kind consideration we are requesting you to locate a secure place in Wani to continue our services.
Also we want to get the official stand of the Ministry of health in regarding to our health services as the war is now spread through out the Wanni. Specifically we are asking whether we have to continue our service or to stop and leave from the area for a period.
We hope that you will give us the clear reply as soon as possible.
………………………………..
President
KMA
C.C:
1. Dr. V. Jeganathan
Consultant Health Care Development, North and East
Ministry of Health Care, Nutrition & Uva Wellasssa Development
குளோபன் குளோப்: யார் வெற்றி பெற்றார்கள்?
சென்னைப்புத்தகக்கண்காட்சி: எந்தப்புத்தகம் அதிகம் விற்பனையானது?
பதிவு: வில்லு வெல்லுமா?
Twitter: Today I fucked at 4:30 am, got sucked at 8:30 pm before licked... Oh! almost forgot. Satyam in trouble and Hayden bowed out
http://tamilweek.com/news-features/archives/1501
Kilinochchi Doctors seek support to treat civilians
January 13, 2009 at 10:21 am · ~ News
Dr.T.Sathyamoorthy, Regional Director of Health Services in Kilinochchi District has written to Health Officials in Colombo seeking assistance to improve health care services to civilians being hit in Sri Lanka Army artillery fire in Northern Sri Lanka.
Full Text of Dr.T.Sathyamoorthy’s letters to officials in Colombo as follows:
_____________________________________________________________
Secretary Health Ministry of Health
Colombo
Through
DGH
Ministry of Health
Colombo
Dear Sir
Hospitals need protection from attack
Displaced hospitals are functioning in the following places
• Visuvamadhu
• Tharmapam
• Kallaru
• Punnaineeravi
• Kannaginagar
• Redbarna
Surrounding above places is heavily congested with IDPs. The recent days many IDPs places hit by shell. Up to today 213 civilians were injured and 28 civilians died.
The following supports are urgently needed.
1. Should be opened to transfer injured civilians to vavuniya hospital.
2. Hospitals are hospital near by side should be attack free zone.
3. Medicines including surgical items should be sent to hospitals from MSD.
Thank you
Yours sincerely
Dr.T.Sathyamoorthy
RDHS
Kilinochchi
Copy: Secretary Health/ North Province
_________________________________________________________
Dr.U.A.Mendis.
DGHS, Ministry of Health Care, Nutrition & Uva Wellasssa Development
Dear Sir,
Re: ensuring Security of the Doctors and Patients in Wani region.
This is to inform you that, our doctors and patients are now in a pathetic situation as we heard blasts and gun fire near to Wiswamadu area. We received 9 injured civilians on 11th and 5 today at the Wisamadu maternity unit and all are transferred to PTK BH with the help of ICRC.
The ground situation is the same at Puthukudiyirupu BH.
So ultimately we are now not having a secure place to keep our patients for the treatment in Wanni. Adding to this worst ambulance transports between Wani and Vavuniya are frequently interrupted and Due to this condition we had lost 2 patients including one maternal death.
Especially for the maternity care all Wani region now depended in Wisamadu maternity unit and PTK BH. If we dope our services in both places, it will lead more maternal and neonatal mortalities.
Taking this into your kind consideration we are requesting you to locate a secure place in Wani to continue our services.
Also we want to get the official stand of the Ministry of health in regarding to our health services as the war is now spread through out the Wanni. Specifically we are asking whether we have to continue our service or to stop and leave from the area for a period.
We hope that you will give us the clear reply as soon as possible.
………………………………..
President
KMA
C.C:
1. Dr. V. Jeganathan
Consultant Health Care Development, North and East
Ministry of Health Care, Nutrition & Uva Wellasssa Development
Labels: doctors, eelam, hospitals, kilinochchi, lanka, tamil
Monday, January 12, 2009
Washington’s criminal role in the Sri Lankan state’s anti-Tamil war
இன்னொரு பார்வை
Washington’s criminal role in the Sri Lankan state’s anti-Tamil war
12 January 2009
Last Wednesday, the US embassy in Colombo issued a statement that welcomed the Sri Lankan state's recent victories in the war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and urged Sri Lanka's government and military to press forward with the annihilation of the LTTE. The key passage in the statement read: "The United States does not advocate that the Government of Sri Lanka negotiate with the LTTE, a group designated by America as a Foreign Terrorist Organization since 1997."
Within hours of Washington formally renouncing its support for a negotiated settlement to the 25 year-old civil war, the Sri Lankan government banned the LTTE.
The Sri Lankan state has now arrogated to itself the power to jail for up to 20 years those it accuses of "supporting" the LTTE. Since resuming offensive operations against the organization in 2006, the government and military have leveled this charge against virtually anyone opposed to the war or even the government's right-wing socio-economic policies, from socialists and striking workers to the Tamil National Alliance, a 20-strong parliamentary grouping that considers the LTTE the only legitimate representative of the Tamils in negotiations with the government.
Colombo had previously outlawed the organization, but lifted the ban in 2002 when a truce was declared and the Sri Lankan state and LTTE agreed to enter into peace talks.
The brief interval between the US's repudiation of the "peace process" and the Sri Lankan government's ban on the LTTE exemplifies Washington's criminal role—as both instigator and facilitator—in the communal war mounted by Sri Lanka's Sinhalese bourgeois elite.
Washington encouraged Colombo to resume the civil war in 2006 and has aided and abetted every step of the Sri Lankan military's bloody advance. The new-found prowess of the Sri Lanka military is due almost entirely to the support it has received from Washington directly or from key US allies.
The Pentagon admits to having provided counter-insurgency training to Sri Lankan troops, as well as intelligence and "non-lethal" weapons. The latter includes sophisticated maritime radar equipment that has enabled Colombo to disrupt key LTTE supply routes from India. Meanwhile, Israel and Pakistan, whose governments and militaries are close US partners, have provided the Sri Lankan military with an expanded and technologically-enhanced arsenal.
US pressure was critical in getting Canada, the states of the European Union, and other countries to proscribe the LTTE. These bans have deprived the LTTE of financial support from the hundreds of thousands of Tamils chased from their island homes by the civil war.
[snipped]
full text is at
http://wsws.org/articles/2009/jan2009/pers-j12.shtml
Washington’s criminal role in the Sri Lankan state’s anti-Tamil war
12 January 2009
Last Wednesday, the US embassy in Colombo issued a statement that welcomed the Sri Lankan state's recent victories in the war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and urged Sri Lanka's government and military to press forward with the annihilation of the LTTE. The key passage in the statement read: "The United States does not advocate that the Government of Sri Lanka negotiate with the LTTE, a group designated by America as a Foreign Terrorist Organization since 1997."
Within hours of Washington formally renouncing its support for a negotiated settlement to the 25 year-old civil war, the Sri Lankan government banned the LTTE.
The Sri Lankan state has now arrogated to itself the power to jail for up to 20 years those it accuses of "supporting" the LTTE. Since resuming offensive operations against the organization in 2006, the government and military have leveled this charge against virtually anyone opposed to the war or even the government's right-wing socio-economic policies, from socialists and striking workers to the Tamil National Alliance, a 20-strong parliamentary grouping that considers the LTTE the only legitimate representative of the Tamils in negotiations with the government.
Colombo had previously outlawed the organization, but lifted the ban in 2002 when a truce was declared and the Sri Lankan state and LTTE agreed to enter into peace talks.
The brief interval between the US's repudiation of the "peace process" and the Sri Lankan government's ban on the LTTE exemplifies Washington's criminal role—as both instigator and facilitator—in the communal war mounted by Sri Lanka's Sinhalese bourgeois elite.
Washington encouraged Colombo to resume the civil war in 2006 and has aided and abetted every step of the Sri Lankan military's bloody advance. The new-found prowess of the Sri Lanka military is due almost entirely to the support it has received from Washington directly or from key US allies.
The Pentagon admits to having provided counter-insurgency training to Sri Lankan troops, as well as intelligence and "non-lethal" weapons. The latter includes sophisticated maritime radar equipment that has enabled Colombo to disrupt key LTTE supply routes from India. Meanwhile, Israel and Pakistan, whose governments and militaries are close US partners, have provided the Sri Lankan military with an expanded and technologically-enhanced arsenal.
US pressure was critical in getting Canada, the states of the European Union, and other countries to proscribe the LTTE. These bans have deprived the LTTE of financial support from the hundreds of thousands of Tamils chased from their island homes by the civil war.
[snipped]
full text is at
http://wsws.org/articles/2009/jan2009/pers-j12.shtml
Labels: eelam, sri lanka, war, washington
Sunday, December 07, 2008
கேட்டேளா இங்கே? அதைப் பாத்தேளா அங்கே? எதையோ நெனைச்சு...
Pro_Sri Lankan Government Daily The Hindu will never provide its readers the news of the following kind.
Thank you for இடியப்பம்சொதி கி(ழக்கிங்கை). அ(னல்). அ(டிக்கும்) அனானி for sending this post in the mail.
எதுக்கு இந்த மறைப்பு? இந்து வெளியிடும் ஆசிரியர் தலையங்கங்களோ, டக்ளஸ் தேவானந்தா, மற்றைய ஸ்ரீலங்கா அமைச்சர்களின் இந்துவுக்கான பிரத்தியேகச்செவ்விகள், ஆனந்தசங்கரி ஐயாவின் மடை திறந்த வெள்ளமான மடல்கள் எல்லாம் கிழக்கிலங்கை மக்களின் துயரைச் சொல்லாதது எதற்கு? இத்தனைக்குப் பிறகும் ராஜேஸ்வரி அம்மையார் பேசாமடந்தையாக ஊமையாக ரெலிபோன் போடாமல் இருப்பது எதற்கு? பாரிஸிலிருந்து போன ஞானம் அட்வைசர் மட்டுமக்கள் துயர் துடைப்பானாகாதது எதற்கு? புட்டும் தேங்காய்ப்பூவும் உதிரமாய் உதரம் குலைந்து குடல் விழுந்து உதறவும் ஒளித்திருப்பது எதற்கு?
East: Anything but 'liberated'
By Frederica Jansz
The government says that the 'liberated' east is an example of democracy in action and a model for areas recaptured from the LTTE. The reality is anything but. Killings and abductions are rife, and there is total impunity for horrific abuses.
On November 25, 18 people were killed within 24 hours in Batticaloa District alone. Following a claymore mine attack which killed two Sri Lankan military personnel in Eruvil, three members from the same family were killed (grandmother, father and a son) in the village.
On the same day, in Kaluthawali, a village close to Eruvil four members from another family were shot dead (young parents with their two kids). A vegetable vendor was killed in Kurukalmadam and a young woman was shot dead in Karuwakkerny.
A youth from Kimpankerney (Karadiannatu) was shot and later declared as a LTTE suspect. Another youth from Selvanagar Arayampathy was shot by the road side. Later that day in Manmunai West there were three incidents reported: A youth killed in Monkeycattu (Vavunatheevu) and three youth killed in Karravetti. A farmer was shot dead in the paddy field in Maheladditheevu. This - is a day in the 'liberated east.'
text snipped
Governance
At one level, there has been no fundamental change in the form of governance since the time of LTTE control, real or perceived. 'Taxation' has abated but kidnappings for ransom, crude intimidation by armed youth, and the spectre of abductions of children and adults continue. Killings in homes, paddy fields, by the road side or seaside, near check points, by temples, mosques, universities and hospitals continue.
Nor has there been any attempt at building upon the goodwill of the people following the elections on the part of the government. On the contrary, the government to all appearances has been actively promoting violent groups and political forces and alliances that are seeking to increase hostility among people.
Instead of encouraging the TMVP to embrace democratic politics and shed its LTTE practices, the government is determined to keep the TMVP as a paramilitary group.
It also appears the government is determined to divide the TMVP by setting up Karuna as an alternate eastern leader to Pillayan. As the two factions battle it out for control in the east, we can only expect the fratricide in the Tamil community to worsen.
The killing of Pillayan's Secretary Kumaraswamy Nandagopan, alias Ragu on November 14 is perhaps the most telling instance of this vicious struggle for power. The government seems to fundamentally distrust its own ally, which might end up forcing the TMVP back into the arms of the LTTE.
A region under siege
The LTTE in particular has been responsible for decimating rivals in other militant groups, political parties and allies of the state, and independent Tamils. This bloodbath has left a deep scar on Tamil society.
With the split in the LTTE in 2004, Eastern Tamils found themselves under attack as the two groups eliminated perceived enemies. This state sponsored fratricide may get worse as the internal struggle within the TMVP is hitting a crisis point, particularly with Karuna attempting to re-establish control.
The CMTPC maintains the violence following the provincial council elections in May this year demonstrated a possible trajectory that ethnic relations could take. The killing of two TMVP cadres in Kathankudi resulted in the TMVP retaliating in a brutal manner against Muslim civilians. The violence rapidly escalated with both Tamils and Muslims becoming subject to violence and displacement.
Some instances included attacks on Muslim shops in Batticaloa Town; Tamils living in Saukadu displacement camps were forced to flee; a Muslim woman was shot dead in Eravur.
Pattern
A day before Ramazan a grenade went off near the mosque by the main road injuring 24 persons. A month later, on October 24, another grenade set off near Hussainmiyah Mosque near the Kathankudy-Manjanthoduvai border injured about six persons, one critically.
While the violence seems mindless, there is an insidious pattern, logic, to its ethnicised nature. The logic of violence pivots on the logic of ethnic divide, calculated to aggravate the fragile peace that exists between communities.
In recent months there have been targeted killings of Sinhalese in the east. On October 20 three Sinhala youth involved in construction work, part of the Negenahira Navodaya programme were shot dead in Kokkaddichcholia, Batticaloa. Why were they killed? Was it just because they happened to be Sinhalese?
On October 16 two Muslim and two Tamil men were killed in a paddy field in Waddamadu, Akkaraipattu. It remains unclear as to who killed them and why. Was it the LTTE, TMVP, military or another interested party? Was it because they had crossed an ethnic boundary which prevents certain ethnic communities from accessing lands which they claim?
Under siege
The Eastern Province is under siege from all sides. While the government is showcasing the region as one that is returning to normal, the people are still caught in a vicious cycle of violence.
The harthal called by Karuna to protest Indian intervention is part of the circus of intimidation and a show put on by forces allied to the government. In a throwback to the Pongu Thamil events organised by the LTTE in the north and east, the TMVP forced large numbers of people from far flung areas like Komari and Thirukovil into buses for a rally in Batticaloa on October 26 as a show of strength.
This time though the state is backing the intimidation of Tamil civilians - the buses are state-owned and armed forces and police watched as TMVP cadres forced people at gun point to close shops. The state's connivance in this abuse is absolute.
'Colonial' Development
Within this context the idea of development such as building roads, and rebuilding tanks are critical for the rehabilitation and development of the east. There are other ambitious plans of constructing factories, coal power stations and highways.
But where the local people fit into this programme of Negenahira Navodaya is still open to question. Concerned parties have been told construction companies are from the south, and bring their work force along with them.
Add to this the proposals for providing land for Sinhalese and the restoration of Buddhist sites and the scene is set for unnecessary tension. In two previous reports the CMTPC focused on the fears of the local communities of state sponsored colonisation efforts in the militarised region.
The government website carries a page on its programme for the next three years for cultural and archaeological preservation which is almost wholly of Buddhist sites. The CMTPC says not a single Muslim site has been earmarked for cultural preservation or as a heritage site. Also, the omission of Koneswaram Temple in Trincomalee, parts of which ancient Pallava structure lie destroyed in the nearby sea bed is telling.
Boundaries marked in blood
Boundaries are being marked in blood. Individuals who have crossed ethnic borders and administrative divisions to carry out livelihoods as they have or had done for years pay the ultimate price.
The identity of the killers and their motives may remain unknown but it is speculated that four farmers were killed in Akkaraipattu, two Tamil and two Muslim for trying to cultivate paddy land which had been declared off bounds by one or other of the Tamil militant groups.
A group of 26 Muslim wood collectors from Pottuvil found themselves at the mercy of the STF. There are rumours that they were beaten up in the camp and were accused of assisting the LTTE. On September 24, one of the incarcerated Muslims died in jail.
Militarising education
On November 16 Palithakumara Pathmakumar, a doctor serving in Naavatkaadu Hospital in Vavunatheevu was killed within the hospital premises. As a result the GMOA went on strike demanding better protection for doctors in the north and east.
This killing highlighted the crisis of violence in the east. At the same time it also showed how security is understood by the various actors.
The Health Minister called for only Tamil doctors to serve in the north and east while the GMOA called for more security. The presence of police officers or armed military personnel or militant groups do not result in greater confidence as each community has fears and violent memories of each of the armed actors.
Political violence permeates and controls the actions of civil society. The Eastern Province boasts two universities; one in the Batticaloa District, located in Vantharamullai and the other, South Eastern University in Oluvil in the Ampara District.
Site of conflict
The Eastern University has been a site of conflict and battleground for long years now. Over the years various armed groups attempted to establish their presence in the university, with the LTTE taking extreme measures to control the expression of staff and students.
During the split in 2004 in the ranks of the LTTE, academics and others came under extreme scrutiny; academics, journalists and others suspected of being loyal to this or the other side were abducted, cautioned and on occasion murdered.
With the establishment of control by the army and police and TMVP, the university has come under increased surveillance from these quarters aligned to the state. In an effort to establish control of the Eastern University the TMVP abducted the Dean of the Arts Faculty in late 2006. Then the Vice Chancellor, Prof. V. Raveendranath disappeared in broad daylight from the heart of Colombo city, from an area marked for its high security check points. The TMVP is believed to be behind this abduction. The Vice Chancellor is believed to be dead.
The South Eastern University is also facing similar problems. The university has a 90% Muslim majority student population. During the Ramadan holiday in September, the government placed a new security system in the university, with many checkpoints and over 60 police personnel guarding the entrance alone in addition to STF and armed military patrolling the surrounding area round the clock.
Outside force
It is within this situation, that on August 22 of this year Sucharitha Pasan Samarasinghe, a fourth year Sinhalese student at the Eastern University was killed, purportedly by a force from outside the university.
A Tamil student was taken in for questioning after this incident and to date he is being detained by the CID without any charges.
When the University Grants Commission Chairman visited the Eastern University in August this year he talked to the Sinhala students and assured them of their safety. He did not see the need to allay the fears of the Tamils or Muslim students.
full text at
http://www.thesundayleader.lk/20081207/Issues.htm
====
Thank you for இடியப்பம்சொதி கி(ழக்கிங்கை). அ(னல்). அ(டிக்கும்) அனானி for sending this post in the mail.
எதுக்கு இந்த மறைப்பு? இந்து வெளியிடும் ஆசிரியர் தலையங்கங்களோ, டக்ளஸ் தேவானந்தா, மற்றைய ஸ்ரீலங்கா அமைச்சர்களின் இந்துவுக்கான பிரத்தியேகச்செவ்விகள், ஆனந்தசங்கரி ஐயாவின் மடை திறந்த வெள்ளமான மடல்கள் எல்லாம் கிழக்கிலங்கை மக்களின் துயரைச் சொல்லாதது எதற்கு? இத்தனைக்குப் பிறகும் ராஜேஸ்வரி அம்மையார் பேசாமடந்தையாக ஊமையாக ரெலிபோன் போடாமல் இருப்பது எதற்கு? பாரிஸிலிருந்து போன ஞானம் அட்வைசர் மட்டுமக்கள் துயர் துடைப்பானாகாதது எதற்கு? புட்டும் தேங்காய்ப்பூவும் உதிரமாய் உதரம் குலைந்து குடல் விழுந்து உதறவும் ஒளித்திருப்பது எதற்கு?
East: Anything but 'liberated'
By Frederica Jansz
The government says that the 'liberated' east is an example of democracy in action and a model for areas recaptured from the LTTE. The reality is anything but. Killings and abductions are rife, and there is total impunity for horrific abuses.
On November 25, 18 people were killed within 24 hours in Batticaloa District alone. Following a claymore mine attack which killed two Sri Lankan military personnel in Eruvil, three members from the same family were killed (grandmother, father and a son) in the village.
On the same day, in Kaluthawali, a village close to Eruvil four members from another family were shot dead (young parents with their two kids). A vegetable vendor was killed in Kurukalmadam and a young woman was shot dead in Karuwakkerny.
A youth from Kimpankerney (Karadiannatu) was shot and later declared as a LTTE suspect. Another youth from Selvanagar Arayampathy was shot by the road side. Later that day in Manmunai West there were three incidents reported: A youth killed in Monkeycattu (Vavunatheevu) and three youth killed in Karravetti. A farmer was shot dead in the paddy field in Maheladditheevu. This - is a day in the 'liberated east.'
text snipped
Governance
At one level, there has been no fundamental change in the form of governance since the time of LTTE control, real or perceived. 'Taxation' has abated but kidnappings for ransom, crude intimidation by armed youth, and the spectre of abductions of children and adults continue. Killings in homes, paddy fields, by the road side or seaside, near check points, by temples, mosques, universities and hospitals continue.
Nor has there been any attempt at building upon the goodwill of the people following the elections on the part of the government. On the contrary, the government to all appearances has been actively promoting violent groups and political forces and alliances that are seeking to increase hostility among people.
Instead of encouraging the TMVP to embrace democratic politics and shed its LTTE practices, the government is determined to keep the TMVP as a paramilitary group.
It also appears the government is determined to divide the TMVP by setting up Karuna as an alternate eastern leader to Pillayan. As the two factions battle it out for control in the east, we can only expect the fratricide in the Tamil community to worsen.
The killing of Pillayan's Secretary Kumaraswamy Nandagopan, alias Ragu on November 14 is perhaps the most telling instance of this vicious struggle for power. The government seems to fundamentally distrust its own ally, which might end up forcing the TMVP back into the arms of the LTTE.
A region under siege
The LTTE in particular has been responsible for decimating rivals in other militant groups, political parties and allies of the state, and independent Tamils. This bloodbath has left a deep scar on Tamil society.
With the split in the LTTE in 2004, Eastern Tamils found themselves under attack as the two groups eliminated perceived enemies. This state sponsored fratricide may get worse as the internal struggle within the TMVP is hitting a crisis point, particularly with Karuna attempting to re-establish control.
The CMTPC maintains the violence following the provincial council elections in May this year demonstrated a possible trajectory that ethnic relations could take. The killing of two TMVP cadres in Kathankudi resulted in the TMVP retaliating in a brutal manner against Muslim civilians. The violence rapidly escalated with both Tamils and Muslims becoming subject to violence and displacement.
Some instances included attacks on Muslim shops in Batticaloa Town; Tamils living in Saukadu displacement camps were forced to flee; a Muslim woman was shot dead in Eravur.
Pattern
A day before Ramazan a grenade went off near the mosque by the main road injuring 24 persons. A month later, on October 24, another grenade set off near Hussainmiyah Mosque near the Kathankudy-Manjanthoduvai border injured about six persons, one critically.
While the violence seems mindless, there is an insidious pattern, logic, to its ethnicised nature. The logic of violence pivots on the logic of ethnic divide, calculated to aggravate the fragile peace that exists between communities.
In recent months there have been targeted killings of Sinhalese in the east. On October 20 three Sinhala youth involved in construction work, part of the Negenahira Navodaya programme were shot dead in Kokkaddichcholia, Batticaloa. Why were they killed? Was it just because they happened to be Sinhalese?
On October 16 two Muslim and two Tamil men were killed in a paddy field in Waddamadu, Akkaraipattu. It remains unclear as to who killed them and why. Was it the LTTE, TMVP, military or another interested party? Was it because they had crossed an ethnic boundary which prevents certain ethnic communities from accessing lands which they claim?
Under siege
The Eastern Province is under siege from all sides. While the government is showcasing the region as one that is returning to normal, the people are still caught in a vicious cycle of violence.
The harthal called by Karuna to protest Indian intervention is part of the circus of intimidation and a show put on by forces allied to the government. In a throwback to the Pongu Thamil events organised by the LTTE in the north and east, the TMVP forced large numbers of people from far flung areas like Komari and Thirukovil into buses for a rally in Batticaloa on October 26 as a show of strength.
This time though the state is backing the intimidation of Tamil civilians - the buses are state-owned and armed forces and police watched as TMVP cadres forced people at gun point to close shops. The state's connivance in this abuse is absolute.
'Colonial' Development
Within this context the idea of development such as building roads, and rebuilding tanks are critical for the rehabilitation and development of the east. There are other ambitious plans of constructing factories, coal power stations and highways.
But where the local people fit into this programme of Negenahira Navodaya is still open to question. Concerned parties have been told construction companies are from the south, and bring their work force along with them.
Add to this the proposals for providing land for Sinhalese and the restoration of Buddhist sites and the scene is set for unnecessary tension. In two previous reports the CMTPC focused on the fears of the local communities of state sponsored colonisation efforts in the militarised region.
The government website carries a page on its programme for the next three years for cultural and archaeological preservation which is almost wholly of Buddhist sites. The CMTPC says not a single Muslim site has been earmarked for cultural preservation or as a heritage site. Also, the omission of Koneswaram Temple in Trincomalee, parts of which ancient Pallava structure lie destroyed in the nearby sea bed is telling.
Boundaries marked in blood
Boundaries are being marked in blood. Individuals who have crossed ethnic borders and administrative divisions to carry out livelihoods as they have or had done for years pay the ultimate price.
The identity of the killers and their motives may remain unknown but it is speculated that four farmers were killed in Akkaraipattu, two Tamil and two Muslim for trying to cultivate paddy land which had been declared off bounds by one or other of the Tamil militant groups.
A group of 26 Muslim wood collectors from Pottuvil found themselves at the mercy of the STF. There are rumours that they were beaten up in the camp and were accused of assisting the LTTE. On September 24, one of the incarcerated Muslims died in jail.
Militarising education
On November 16 Palithakumara Pathmakumar, a doctor serving in Naavatkaadu Hospital in Vavunatheevu was killed within the hospital premises. As a result the GMOA went on strike demanding better protection for doctors in the north and east.
This killing highlighted the crisis of violence in the east. At the same time it also showed how security is understood by the various actors.
The Health Minister called for only Tamil doctors to serve in the north and east while the GMOA called for more security. The presence of police officers or armed military personnel or militant groups do not result in greater confidence as each community has fears and violent memories of each of the armed actors.
Political violence permeates and controls the actions of civil society. The Eastern Province boasts two universities; one in the Batticaloa District, located in Vantharamullai and the other, South Eastern University in Oluvil in the Ampara District.
Site of conflict
The Eastern University has been a site of conflict and battleground for long years now. Over the years various armed groups attempted to establish their presence in the university, with the LTTE taking extreme measures to control the expression of staff and students.
During the split in 2004 in the ranks of the LTTE, academics and others came under extreme scrutiny; academics, journalists and others suspected of being loyal to this or the other side were abducted, cautioned and on occasion murdered.
With the establishment of control by the army and police and TMVP, the university has come under increased surveillance from these quarters aligned to the state. In an effort to establish control of the Eastern University the TMVP abducted the Dean of the Arts Faculty in late 2006. Then the Vice Chancellor, Prof. V. Raveendranath disappeared in broad daylight from the heart of Colombo city, from an area marked for its high security check points. The TMVP is believed to be behind this abduction. The Vice Chancellor is believed to be dead.
The South Eastern University is also facing similar problems. The university has a 90% Muslim majority student population. During the Ramadan holiday in September, the government placed a new security system in the university, with many checkpoints and over 60 police personnel guarding the entrance alone in addition to STF and armed military patrolling the surrounding area round the clock.
Outside force
It is within this situation, that on August 22 of this year Sucharitha Pasan Samarasinghe, a fourth year Sinhalese student at the Eastern University was killed, purportedly by a force from outside the university.
A Tamil student was taken in for questioning after this incident and to date he is being detained by the CID without any charges.
When the University Grants Commission Chairman visited the Eastern University in August this year he talked to the Sinhala students and assured them of their safety. He did not see the need to allay the fears of the Tamils or Muslim students.
full text at
http://www.thesundayleader.lk/20081207/Issues.htm
====
Labels: eelam, northeast, ஈழம், வடகிழக்கிலங்கை
Friday, November 16, 2007
சுரண்டிக்காட்டிய பிரதேசவாதம் துருப்பிடித்தது
சாந்தி சச்சிதானந்தத்தின் இந்தக்கட்டுரை கருணா அம்மான் கட்டி எழுப்பிய கிரான்வாதத்தையும் அதன் வீழ்ச்சியையும் காட்டுகிறது. கருணா தனது தலைக்கே மண்ணை அள்ளிப்போட்டது தெரிகின்றதல்லவா?
சாந்தி சச்சிதானந்தம், பெண்கள் தொடர்பான ஆய்வுகளை நீண்டகாலமாக நிறையச் செய்கிறவர். ஐரோப்பியப்பெண்கள் மகாநாடுகள், அவற்றோடு தொடர்புள்ள ஊடறு சஞ்சிகை போன்றவற்றிலே இவரின் கட்டுரைகளைக் காணலாம். பெண்களின் சுவடுகளில் என்ற நூலையும் தமிழியல் வெளியீடாக வெளியிட்டிருக்கிறார்.
groundviews is a Sri Lankan citizen journalism initiative
A requiem by Karuna: The death of sub-regionalism?
November 16, 2007 at 3:27 pm
Shanthi Sachithanandam
....
It was somewhere in December 1995; I was in the middle of conducting a meeting at a village called Paalchenai, in Vakarai, when suddenly a visibly distraught man from the same area burst into our meeting with a tiny transistor in his hand. “Amma, the army has entered Jaffna town,” he blurted out.
All of us, the Paalchenai villagers and I, exclaimed in horror. We quickly gathered round him to listen to the news of the conclusion of the first leg of the Riviresa operations that captured Jaffna town.
Nationalism
Whenever I recollect this incident, I cannot help but marvel at the power of the idea of nationalism that is able to mobilise such a diverse group of communities. There are no perceptible common links between the people of Jaffna and Vakarai in terms of class, caste, kinship, education, traditions or any of the generally referred to classifications based on primarily economic and cultural interests.
Both people would most probably have never visited each others’ localities. Yet, there in Vakarai, we saw them join on the basis of a nationality that was under threat of extinction.
...
Desecration
If we say that the Military Intelligence tripped a falling Karuna into a coffin, the Sri Lanka Army drove the final nail. As soon as areas of east were captured, they mowed down hundreds of tombs of LTTE cadres both in Vakarai and in Tharavai. These graves were of the sons and daughters of Batticaloa who had fought along with Karuna, for the liberation of their people.
Even as he was instrumental in helping the army to capture the district, Karuna appeared powerless to prevent this desecration. All his tough talk (remember his Derana interview?) and his boast of being able to bring development to Batticaloa ended right there. He was finished. Karuna sang his own requiem.
Therefore, the purported expelling of Karuna from his party, Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Puligal (TMVP) in early October is a mere ritual of a fact that had concluded some time ago.
The only Leader
Pillaiyan, his deputy who has replaced him, is now busy calling traders, NGOs and others in the districts of Batticaloa and Trincomalee for meetings to explain the present status quo.
“Karuna embezzled money within TMVP. That is the reason for which Thalaivar (Leader) also had to sack him before,” he is reported to have said.
Thalaivar? But is that not the term LTTE cadres and other supporters use for Prabhakaran? On being asked for clarifications, he is supposed to have stated, “Then and now and always he is the only Leader (Ore Thalaivar).”
I have always marvelled at the power of the idea of nationalism.
முழுக்கட்டுரையையும் வாசிக்க இங்கே போங்கள்
http://www.groundviews.org/2007/11/16/a-requiem-by-karuna-the-death-of-sub-regionalism/
சாந்தி சச்சிதானந்தம், பெண்கள் தொடர்பான ஆய்வுகளை நீண்டகாலமாக நிறையச் செய்கிறவர். ஐரோப்பியப்பெண்கள் மகாநாடுகள், அவற்றோடு தொடர்புள்ள ஊடறு சஞ்சிகை போன்றவற்றிலே இவரின் கட்டுரைகளைக் காணலாம். பெண்களின் சுவடுகளில் என்ற நூலையும் தமிழியல் வெளியீடாக வெளியிட்டிருக்கிறார்.
groundviews is a Sri Lankan citizen journalism initiative
A requiem by Karuna: The death of sub-regionalism?
November 16, 2007 at 3:27 pm
Shanthi Sachithanandam
....
It was somewhere in December 1995; I was in the middle of conducting a meeting at a village called Paalchenai, in Vakarai, when suddenly a visibly distraught man from the same area burst into our meeting with a tiny transistor in his hand. “Amma, the army has entered Jaffna town,” he blurted out.
All of us, the Paalchenai villagers and I, exclaimed in horror. We quickly gathered round him to listen to the news of the conclusion of the first leg of the Riviresa operations that captured Jaffna town.
Nationalism
Whenever I recollect this incident, I cannot help but marvel at the power of the idea of nationalism that is able to mobilise such a diverse group of communities. There are no perceptible common links between the people of Jaffna and Vakarai in terms of class, caste, kinship, education, traditions or any of the generally referred to classifications based on primarily economic and cultural interests.
Both people would most probably have never visited each others’ localities. Yet, there in Vakarai, we saw them join on the basis of a nationality that was under threat of extinction.
...
Desecration
If we say that the Military Intelligence tripped a falling Karuna into a coffin, the Sri Lanka Army drove the final nail. As soon as areas of east were captured, they mowed down hundreds of tombs of LTTE cadres both in Vakarai and in Tharavai. These graves were of the sons and daughters of Batticaloa who had fought along with Karuna, for the liberation of their people.
Even as he was instrumental in helping the army to capture the district, Karuna appeared powerless to prevent this desecration. All his tough talk (remember his Derana interview?) and his boast of being able to bring development to Batticaloa ended right there. He was finished. Karuna sang his own requiem.
Therefore, the purported expelling of Karuna from his party, Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Puligal (TMVP) in early October is a mere ritual of a fact that had concluded some time ago.
The only Leader
Pillaiyan, his deputy who has replaced him, is now busy calling traders, NGOs and others in the districts of Batticaloa and Trincomalee for meetings to explain the present status quo.
“Karuna embezzled money within TMVP. That is the reason for which Thalaivar (Leader) also had to sack him before,” he is reported to have said.
Thalaivar? But is that not the term LTTE cadres and other supporters use for Prabhakaran? On being asked for clarifications, he is supposed to have stated, “Then and now and always he is the only Leader (Ore Thalaivar).”
I have always marvelled at the power of the idea of nationalism.
முழுக்கட்டுரையையும் வாசிக்க இங்கே போங்கள்
http://www.groundviews.org/2007/11/16/a-requiem-by-karuna-the-death-of-sub-regionalism/
Labels: eelam, nationalism
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
சென்னை தமிழ்ச்செல்வன் நினைவுதின உரைகள்
தமிழ்ச்செல்வன் நினைவுதினத்தின்போது சுப வீரபாண்டியன் உரை
தமிழ்ச்செல்வன் நினைவுதினத்தின்போது வேல்முருகன் உரை
தமிழ்ச்செல்வன் நினைவுதினத்தின்போது வேல்முருகன் உரை
Labels: eelam, speech, youtube
Thursday, November 08, 2007
found in the net
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
ஸ்ரீலங்கா அரசு கருணா அம்மானுக்குப் வழங்கிய பொய் கடவுச்சீட்டு
ஸ்ரீலங்கா அரசே கருணா அம்மானுக்கு பொய்யான கடவுச்சீட்டு வழங்கியதாக மோர்னிங் லீடர் பத்திரிகையிலே லசந்த விக்கிரமதுங்க புலனாய்ந்து எழுதியிருக்கிறார்.
அந்தக்கட்டுரையைக் கனடியன் தமிழ்ச்செய்தி இங்கே வெளியிட்டிருக்கிறது
Govt smuggled Karuna to London on forged DPL passport
The Morning Leader
November 7, 2007
Lasantha Wickrematunge
Damning evidence has surfaced that the Government smuggled LTTE renegade commander Karuna to Great Britain on a forged diplomatic passport.
An investigation by The Morning Leader revealed that the forged diplomatic passport was issued by the Immigration Department on the orders of higher authorities in the name of Kokila Gunawardena on August 30, 2007.
It has been further revealed that Karuna was issued a valid British visa in the name of Kokila Gunawardena by the High Commission in Colombo on September 5 on a recommendation by Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry.
The Morning Leader investigation revealed that the Foreign Ministry had sent a Third Party Note to the British High Commission in Colombo together with a number of passports recommending visas for a group of persons to attend a climate change conference in Britain and included in the set of passports was a diplomatic passport in the name of Kokila Gunawardena.
முழுச்செய்தியையும் வாசிக்க இங்கே செல்லுங்கள்
http://www.tamilcanadian.com/page.php?cat=501&id=5260
அந்தக்கட்டுரையைக் கனடியன் தமிழ்ச்செய்தி இங்கே வெளியிட்டிருக்கிறது
Govt smuggled Karuna to London on forged DPL passport
The Morning Leader
November 7, 2007
Lasantha Wickrematunge
Damning evidence has surfaced that the Government smuggled LTTE renegade commander Karuna to Great Britain on a forged diplomatic passport.
An investigation by The Morning Leader revealed that the forged diplomatic passport was issued by the Immigration Department on the orders of higher authorities in the name of Kokila Gunawardena on August 30, 2007.
It has been further revealed that Karuna was issued a valid British visa in the name of Kokila Gunawardena by the High Commission in Colombo on September 5 on a recommendation by Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry.
The Morning Leader investigation revealed that the Foreign Ministry had sent a Third Party Note to the British High Commission in Colombo together with a number of passports recommending visas for a group of persons to attend a climate change conference in Britain and included in the set of passports was a diplomatic passport in the name of Kokila Gunawardena.
முழுச்செய்தியையும் வாசிக்க இங்கே செல்லுங்கள்
http://www.tamilcanadian.com/page.php?cat=501&id=5260
Labels: eelam, forged passport
Saturday, November 03, 2007
தமிழ்ச்செல்வன் பற்றி டி பி எஸ் ஜெயராஜ் குறிப்பு
தமிழ்ச்செல்வன் பற்றி தமிழ்வீக் ஜெயராஜ் ஒரு கட்டுரை எழுதியிருக்கிறார். எப்படி ஸ்ரீலங்கா அரசுச்செய்திகள் தமிழ்ச்செல்வனைச் சாதியடிப்படையிலே எழுதி நக்கல் செய்திருந்தன என்றும் சொல்லியிருக்கிறார். தமிழ்ச்செல்வனுக்குப் மெய்ப்பாதுகாவலராக ஒரு ஐயர்ப்போராளி இருந்தார் என்பதையும் சாதி அடிப்படையிலே ஜெயராஜ் எதற்கோ சொல்லியிருக்கிறார். புலிகள் சாதியை வளர்ப்பதாகச் சொல்லுகின்றவர்கள் இதைப் பற்றி என்ன சொல்வார்கள்?
“Brigadier” Thamilchelvan, The “Smiling” Face of LTTE
November 3rd, 2007
by D.B.S. Jeyaraj
The mood amidst cadres and supporters of the Tamil Eelam Liberation Tigers was on the ascendant after the successful attack on the Anuradhapura air base.
Thursday November 1st saw a special ceremony being held in the Wanni where tiger supremo Velupillai Prabakharan awarded four different types of military honours for those involved in various aspects of “Operation Ellalan”.
But this euphoria of victory over the Air force at Saliyapura was short lived. Within 24 hours of the award ceremony the Sri Lankan air force struck back.
The buoyant LTTE mood turned gloomy. The airforce down in the doldrums after the Anuradhapura debacle became chirpy again. Such are the fluctuating fortunes of this fratricidal fighting.
.....
The others killed along with Thamilchelvan in the Thiruvaiyaaru bombing were Muthukkumaru Soundarakrishnan alias Lt Col Anpumani , Dharmarajah Vijayakumar alias Major Mihuthan, Karunanidhi Vasanthakumar alias Capt. Kalaiyarasan, Panchatcharam Sajeeban alias Lt Aatchivel, and Muthukkumaarakkurukkal Srigayathrinatha Sarma alias Lt Maavaikumaran.
All of them were from villages in Jaffna district.Maavailkumaran is the son of a brahmin priest.
.....
In what seems a crude attempt to humiliate Thamilchelvan some government websites and state controlled media refer to Thamilchelvan being of the “ambattan” or barber caste and that he was a barber before joining the movement.
This reminds one of the “snide” methods used to ridicule Ranasinghe Premadasa on account of his caste.
Those who seek to demean a person on the basis of caste are only demeaning themselves. It also shows the “caste consciousness” in the corridors of power.
Yes, Thamilchelvan belonged to a traditional barber community regarded as “low” in the caste hierarchy of conservative Jaffna.His father ran a saloon in Chavakachcheri. But Thamilchelvan was a student when he joined the LTTE and did not work as a barber. There is no shame even if he did so but that did not happen.
Thamilchelvan’s growth and evolution within the LTTE was meteoric. It was also an illustration of how persons from the underprivileged sections of the Tamil community could rise to positions of authority within the LTTE .
......
His wedding was one of the first in a new scheme introduced by the LTTE supremo. Prabakharan evolved a plan whereby women cadres of the LTTE were to be paired off with male cadres through suitable matchmaking. Since arranged marriages are a part of Tamil social practice this scheme was seen as mass scale arranged marriage.
Prabakharan himself selected the bride for Thamilchelvan from an upper caste family in a deliberate bid to erase caste inequalities and bring about an egalitarian society. Sasirekha’s family hailing from Chulipuram in Jaffna once owned a lot of businesses in Bambalapitiya and sold them after July 1983.
.....
Thamilchelvan had his primary education at the Madduvil Maha Vidyalayam and secondary schooling at Chavakachcheri Hindu College. His family was politically conscious and was for long active supporters of Shanmugadasan’s pro - Beijing Communist party.
His father and elder brothers participated in many activities against caste discrimination. They were in the forefront of the protest demanding that the famous Pandrithalaichi Amman temple in Madduvil be throw open for all to worship. This was done in 1970.
With the escalation of the ethnic conflict Thamilchelvan’s family like many other Tamil families shed their marxism and became increasingly Tamil nationalistic.
....
முழுக்கட்டுரையையும் வாசிக்க இங்கே போங்கள்
http://transcurrents.com/tamiliana/archives/406
“Brigadier” Thamilchelvan, The “Smiling” Face of LTTE
November 3rd, 2007
by D.B.S. Jeyaraj
The mood amidst cadres and supporters of the Tamil Eelam Liberation Tigers was on the ascendant after the successful attack on the Anuradhapura air base.
Thursday November 1st saw a special ceremony being held in the Wanni where tiger supremo Velupillai Prabakharan awarded four different types of military honours for those involved in various aspects of “Operation Ellalan”.
But this euphoria of victory over the Air force at Saliyapura was short lived. Within 24 hours of the award ceremony the Sri Lankan air force struck back.
The buoyant LTTE mood turned gloomy. The airforce down in the doldrums after the Anuradhapura debacle became chirpy again. Such are the fluctuating fortunes of this fratricidal fighting.
.....
The others killed along with Thamilchelvan in the Thiruvaiyaaru bombing were Muthukkumaru Soundarakrishnan alias Lt Col Anpumani , Dharmarajah Vijayakumar alias Major Mihuthan, Karunanidhi Vasanthakumar alias Capt. Kalaiyarasan, Panchatcharam Sajeeban alias Lt Aatchivel, and Muthukkumaarakkurukkal Srigayathrinatha Sarma alias Lt Maavaikumaran.
All of them were from villages in Jaffna district.Maavailkumaran is the son of a brahmin priest.
.....
In what seems a crude attempt to humiliate Thamilchelvan some government websites and state controlled media refer to Thamilchelvan being of the “ambattan” or barber caste and that he was a barber before joining the movement.
This reminds one of the “snide” methods used to ridicule Ranasinghe Premadasa on account of his caste.
Those who seek to demean a person on the basis of caste are only demeaning themselves. It also shows the “caste consciousness” in the corridors of power.
Yes, Thamilchelvan belonged to a traditional barber community regarded as “low” in the caste hierarchy of conservative Jaffna.His father ran a saloon in Chavakachcheri. But Thamilchelvan was a student when he joined the LTTE and did not work as a barber. There is no shame even if he did so but that did not happen.
Thamilchelvan’s growth and evolution within the LTTE was meteoric. It was also an illustration of how persons from the underprivileged sections of the Tamil community could rise to positions of authority within the LTTE .
......
His wedding was one of the first in a new scheme introduced by the LTTE supremo. Prabakharan evolved a plan whereby women cadres of the LTTE were to be paired off with male cadres through suitable matchmaking. Since arranged marriages are a part of Tamil social practice this scheme was seen as mass scale arranged marriage.
Prabakharan himself selected the bride for Thamilchelvan from an upper caste family in a deliberate bid to erase caste inequalities and bring about an egalitarian society. Sasirekha’s family hailing from Chulipuram in Jaffna once owned a lot of businesses in Bambalapitiya and sold them after July 1983.
.....
Thamilchelvan had his primary education at the Madduvil Maha Vidyalayam and secondary schooling at Chavakachcheri Hindu College. His family was politically conscious and was for long active supporters of Shanmugadasan’s pro - Beijing Communist party.
His father and elder brothers participated in many activities against caste discrimination. They were in the forefront of the protest demanding that the famous Pandrithalaichi Amman temple in Madduvil be throw open for all to worship. This was done in 1970.
With the escalation of the ethnic conflict Thamilchelvan’s family like many other Tamil families shed their marxism and became increasingly Tamil nationalistic.
....
முழுக்கட்டுரையையும் வாசிக்க இங்கே போங்கள்
http://transcurrents.com/tamiliana/archives/406
Labels: eelam, sri lanaka, thamilchelvan, தமிழ்ச்செல்வன்
செனற்றர் பற்றிக் லெகியின் பேச்சு
செனற்றர் பற்றிக் லெகியின் பேச்சினை வாசியுங்கள். அமெரிக்காவின் செனற்றர் சொல்வது அமெரிக்காவிற்கும் ஸ்ரீலங்கா அரசைப் பற்றித் தெரிந்திருப்பதைக் காட்டுகிறது. நல்ல திருப்பம். இப்படியானவர்களுக்கு தமிழ்மண்ணிலே நடக்கிற நிகழ்ச்சிகள் தெரிந்துகொள்ளச் சந்தர்ப்பத்தை நாம் ஏற்படுத்த வேண்டும்.
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy On Sri Lanka
November 2, 2007
Mr. President, it has been a little over a year since I last spoke in this chamber about the fragile peace process in Sri Lanka. I want to take a moment to discuss the situation today, because in the past year we have seen human rights in that small island nation steadily deteriorate. I also want to correct some confusion that may have occurred as a result of statements reported in the press regarding the Senate’s action in connection with the Fiscal Year 2008 State, Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. That bill passed the Senate by a vote of 81 to 12 on September 6, 2007, and we are waiting to begin conference discussions with the House of Representatives.
Over the years, I have been a strong supporter of U.S.-Sri Lankan relations. A good friend, Ambassador James Spain, served there, and the American people acted quickly to provide emergency assistance for Sri Lanka after the December 2004 tsunami devastated Sri Lanka’s east, north and southern coasts, claiming tens of thousands of lives. Beyond that, we have long supported the Sri Lankan government’s efforts to respond to acts of terrorism by the LTTE, which has been designated by the Department of State and the European Union as a foreign terrorist organization because of its attacks against civilians, assassinations of political leaders, forced recruitment of children, and other crimes.
We deplore these tactics. However, we are also aware that the LTTE has, at times, shown a willingness to participate in serious negotiations, as well as to respond to human rights concerns. These overtures should be pursued. We also recognize that the LTTE should not be equated with the Tamil community. There are many ethnic Tamils living in and outside of Sri Lanka who do not condone acts of violence and terrorism against civilians. Many have been victims of the LTTE themselves.
At the same time, our aid to the Sri Lankan government is not a blank check. We have been increasingly concerned with reports of abuses by Sri Lankan government forces – not from the LTTE or their supporters as some have inaccurately claimed, but from the United Nations, the Department of State, and international human rights organizations. These reports are not “disinformation” or “misinformation” as some Sri Lankan officials have alleged. Rather, they contain specific, documented, consistent information indicating a steady increase in serious human rights violations by both Sri Lankan government forces and the LTTE since the collapse of the ceasefire. While the first acts of aggression were attributed to the LTTE, these reports also implicate government forces in attacks on civilians, extrajudicial executions, torture, and forced disappearances. There is also evidence that Sri Lankan government forces have stood by while allied paramilitary organizations have carried out abuses, including forcibly recruiting child soldiers. With few exceptions, the Sri Lankan government has yet to bring the perpetrators, including members of government security forces, to justice.
It is important to note that the Sri Lankan government’s respect for human rights and rule of law has deteriorated even outside conflict-affected areas. The Millennium Challenge Corporation suspended more than $11 million intended for Sri Lanka because of the deteriorating security situation and the government’s worsening performance on human rights. Freedom House, whose assessments of political rights and civil liberties are factored into the Millennium Challenge Corporation’s analysis, stated “The serious human rights abuses and excessive restrictions on freedom of speech and association by the government of Sri Lanka merit the country’s removal from a list of eligible recipients for U.S. Millennium Challenge Account assistance.” We want to see a Millennium Challenge compact for Sri Lanka, but these problems must first be recognized and effectively addressed.
An international human rights field presence, under the auspices of the United Nations, could do much to improve the situation. Given the gravity and scale of the violations witnessed in Sri Lanka, and particularly the inability of the Sri Lankan government to monitor the abuses taking place in areas held by the LTTE, such a presence would help protect lives, document abuses by all sides, and support the government and civil society in protecting the civilian population. The Department of State has publicly endorsed such a role for the United Nations.
It is due to this information, from reputable sources, that the Senate attached three conditions to our assistance to the Sri Lankan military in the Fiscal Year 2008 State, Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. Anyone who reviews those conditions should agree that they are reasonable and appropriate. They would require the Sri Lankan government to be bringing to justice members of the military who have been credibly alleged to have committed gross violations of human rights; end unreasonable restrictions on access in the country by humanitarian organizations and journalists; and agree to the establishment of a field presence of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Sri Lanka.
It is regrettable that rather than explain why the Sri Lankan government should not meet such reasonable standards when it is seeking millions of dollars in U.S. taxpayer assistance, some Sri Lankan officials have attacked our motives and falsely attributed our actions to LTTE propaganda. Others have insisted that they are meeting these standards already, when the facts clearly indicate that far more needs to be done.
We want Sri Lanka to succeed in stopping terrorism, and we recognize that military force can be necessary against terrorist tactics. But there is no military solution to the Sri Lankan conflict, which has dragged on for more than two decades. Thousands of innocent people, Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims, have been killed. More than 1,000 are reported to have “disappeared” in just the past twelve to eighteen months, and many more before that. Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been displaced by the fighting. Families on both sides of the conflict have suffered terribly, and the country remains divided and no closer to peace.
Every time a Sri Lankan soldier violates international humanitarian law it alienates the very people in the Tamil community whose support the government needs to combat terrorism. Our country has experienced a similar problem in Iraq, where killings of civilians have hurt our mission, tarnished our image and weakened the support of our allies.
Mr. President, I would hope that the Sri Lankan government would see our action for what it is. We want to help, but not unconditionally. I believe the United States could and should play a more active role, with other key partners, in helping to facilitate negotiations on a political settlement. But rhetoric about human rights and the appointment of ineffectual commissions of inquiry that have no credibility, only goes so far. The situation remains grave and those responsible for abuses are rarely punished, making a peace agreement more difficult to achieve. A field presence of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, with sufficient mandate and capability to conduct full and unfettered monitoring throughout the country, communicate its findings to all sides of the conflict and the public, and provide advice and technical assistance, is overdue. Also urgently needed is greater access for humanitarian organizations to assist civilians caught in the cross-fire and for journalists to report the facts.
The Sri Lankan people have suffered the consequences of ethnic discrimination, violence and injustice for the better part of their country’s history. We cannot solve Sri Lanka’s conflict; only the Sri Lankan people can. But we can and want to continue helping if the government demonstrates that it takes our concerns seriously.
Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy On Sri Lanka
November 2, 2007
Mr. President, it has been a little over a year since I last spoke in this chamber about the fragile peace process in Sri Lanka. I want to take a moment to discuss the situation today, because in the past year we have seen human rights in that small island nation steadily deteriorate. I also want to correct some confusion that may have occurred as a result of statements reported in the press regarding the Senate’s action in connection with the Fiscal Year 2008 State, Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. That bill passed the Senate by a vote of 81 to 12 on September 6, 2007, and we are waiting to begin conference discussions with the House of Representatives.
Over the years, I have been a strong supporter of U.S.-Sri Lankan relations. A good friend, Ambassador James Spain, served there, and the American people acted quickly to provide emergency assistance for Sri Lanka after the December 2004 tsunami devastated Sri Lanka’s east, north and southern coasts, claiming tens of thousands of lives. Beyond that, we have long supported the Sri Lankan government’s efforts to respond to acts of terrorism by the LTTE, which has been designated by the Department of State and the European Union as a foreign terrorist organization because of its attacks against civilians, assassinations of political leaders, forced recruitment of children, and other crimes.
We deplore these tactics. However, we are also aware that the LTTE has, at times, shown a willingness to participate in serious negotiations, as well as to respond to human rights concerns. These overtures should be pursued. We also recognize that the LTTE should not be equated with the Tamil community. There are many ethnic Tamils living in and outside of Sri Lanka who do not condone acts of violence and terrorism against civilians. Many have been victims of the LTTE themselves.
At the same time, our aid to the Sri Lankan government is not a blank check. We have been increasingly concerned with reports of abuses by Sri Lankan government forces – not from the LTTE or their supporters as some have inaccurately claimed, but from the United Nations, the Department of State, and international human rights organizations. These reports are not “disinformation” or “misinformation” as some Sri Lankan officials have alleged. Rather, they contain specific, documented, consistent information indicating a steady increase in serious human rights violations by both Sri Lankan government forces and the LTTE since the collapse of the ceasefire. While the first acts of aggression were attributed to the LTTE, these reports also implicate government forces in attacks on civilians, extrajudicial executions, torture, and forced disappearances. There is also evidence that Sri Lankan government forces have stood by while allied paramilitary organizations have carried out abuses, including forcibly recruiting child soldiers. With few exceptions, the Sri Lankan government has yet to bring the perpetrators, including members of government security forces, to justice.
It is important to note that the Sri Lankan government’s respect for human rights and rule of law has deteriorated even outside conflict-affected areas. The Millennium Challenge Corporation suspended more than $11 million intended for Sri Lanka because of the deteriorating security situation and the government’s worsening performance on human rights. Freedom House, whose assessments of political rights and civil liberties are factored into the Millennium Challenge Corporation’s analysis, stated “The serious human rights abuses and excessive restrictions on freedom of speech and association by the government of Sri Lanka merit the country’s removal from a list of eligible recipients for U.S. Millennium Challenge Account assistance.” We want to see a Millennium Challenge compact for Sri Lanka, but these problems must first be recognized and effectively addressed.
An international human rights field presence, under the auspices of the United Nations, could do much to improve the situation. Given the gravity and scale of the violations witnessed in Sri Lanka, and particularly the inability of the Sri Lankan government to monitor the abuses taking place in areas held by the LTTE, such a presence would help protect lives, document abuses by all sides, and support the government and civil society in protecting the civilian population. The Department of State has publicly endorsed such a role for the United Nations.
It is due to this information, from reputable sources, that the Senate attached three conditions to our assistance to the Sri Lankan military in the Fiscal Year 2008 State, Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. Anyone who reviews those conditions should agree that they are reasonable and appropriate. They would require the Sri Lankan government to be bringing to justice members of the military who have been credibly alleged to have committed gross violations of human rights; end unreasonable restrictions on access in the country by humanitarian organizations and journalists; and agree to the establishment of a field presence of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in Sri Lanka.
It is regrettable that rather than explain why the Sri Lankan government should not meet such reasonable standards when it is seeking millions of dollars in U.S. taxpayer assistance, some Sri Lankan officials have attacked our motives and falsely attributed our actions to LTTE propaganda. Others have insisted that they are meeting these standards already, when the facts clearly indicate that far more needs to be done.
We want Sri Lanka to succeed in stopping terrorism, and we recognize that military force can be necessary against terrorist tactics. But there is no military solution to the Sri Lankan conflict, which has dragged on for more than two decades. Thousands of innocent people, Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims, have been killed. More than 1,000 are reported to have “disappeared” in just the past twelve to eighteen months, and many more before that. Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been displaced by the fighting. Families on both sides of the conflict have suffered terribly, and the country remains divided and no closer to peace.
Every time a Sri Lankan soldier violates international humanitarian law it alienates the very people in the Tamil community whose support the government needs to combat terrorism. Our country has experienced a similar problem in Iraq, where killings of civilians have hurt our mission, tarnished our image and weakened the support of our allies.
Mr. President, I would hope that the Sri Lankan government would see our action for what it is. We want to help, but not unconditionally. I believe the United States could and should play a more active role, with other key partners, in helping to facilitate negotiations on a political settlement. But rhetoric about human rights and the appointment of ineffectual commissions of inquiry that have no credibility, only goes so far. The situation remains grave and those responsible for abuses are rarely punished, making a peace agreement more difficult to achieve. A field presence of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, with sufficient mandate and capability to conduct full and unfettered monitoring throughout the country, communicate its findings to all sides of the conflict and the public, and provide advice and technical assistance, is overdue. Also urgently needed is greater access for humanitarian organizations to assist civilians caught in the cross-fire and for journalists to report the facts.
The Sri Lankan people have suffered the consequences of ethnic discrimination, violence and injustice for the better part of their country’s history. We cannot solve Sri Lanka’s conflict; only the Sri Lankan people can. But we can and want to continue helping if the government demonstrates that it takes our concerns seriously.
Labels: eelam, sri lanka, tamil, US Senate
Monday, October 15, 2007
Media Talk: Sri Lanka - the Forgotten War?
