Professor John P Neelson[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 September 2011, 05:41 GMT]
“When I see the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam or the Global Tamil Forum, you associate and put your faith in the West, I beg to differ,” said Professor John P. Neelson, while addressing Eezham Tamils rallying at Geneva on Monday. Talking on the past experience of Tamils trusting Western Establishments, Neelson said that instead of siding with the victims of State Terrorism, they [the West] sided with the perpetrators. Criminalisation of your struggle in favour of Sri Lanka was to intimidate you. Don’t be intimidated, Neelson said besides warning Tamils against trusting the ruling elites of the West too much. He emphasized on seeing more white people of Europe associated with the Eezham struggle and stressed on the point that India “remains the most important power that will determine what happens in Sri Lanka.”
Professor Neelson, a sociologist, in his address was pinpointing the universal as well as specific issues associated with the struggle of Eezham Tamils.
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By Charles Haviland
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Sri Lanka - vacancy for hangman
By Charles Haviland |  |
| Gallows in Bogambara being inspected by Ministers Chandrasiri Gajadheera and Dullas Alahapperuma |
The authorities in Sri Lanka say they will shortly be advertising to recruit a hangman.
No death sentence has been carried out on the island since 1976.
Legal option
But execution remains a legal option and there are 357 prisoners on death row.
Neither the current outgoing hangman nor his predecessor actually hanged anyone.
The post of hangman is based in the capital’s best known prison, Welikada.
It is not an especially senior one, and is falling vacant because its current incumbent has been promoted to the post of prison guard.
