British Tamil Rallies Head To Downing Street

November 3, 2013 |

Demonstrators from both the British Tamil community and its supporters staged a mass rally to Downing Street today to call on the UK Prime Minister, David Cameron, to boycott the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), which is due to take place later this month in Sri Lanka.

“At its peak, almost 4,000 people took part in the rally, waving banners and placards describing the various human rights abuses, war crimes and acts of genocide the Sri Lankan state stands accused of committing against the Tamils.” says the BTF. Demonstrators also displayed messages calling on David Cameron and Prince Charles to avoid lending legitimacy to a state that continues to smear “blood on its hands”.

At the end of the procession, six members of British Tamils Forum presented a petition on behalf of the crowd to 10 Downing Street, calling on the Prime Minister to boycott the summit in order to send the strongest possible message that the UK would not tolerate Sri Lanka’s historical and continuing violations of international law. The petition also called for the Commonwealth to suspend Sri Lanka and demanded that those responsible for perpetrating acts of genocide against the Tamil people must be held to account by the international community.

Only yesterday the Leader of the Opposition, Ed Miliband MP, reiterated to British Tamils Forum members that the Labour Party stands firmly opposed to the UK government’s decision to participate in CHOGM in Sri Lanka.

We publish below the petition in full;

Rt Hon David Cameron MP Prime Minister

10 Downing Street Westminster

London SW1A 2AA

Dear Prime Minister

Boycott CHOGM in Sri Lanka                             

'Grim reapers' protest at Sri Lanka Commonwealth meeting

Two separate protests are held in Parliament Square against Sri Lanka's hosting of the meeting of Commonwealth leaders. Protesters dressed as grim reapers highlight the deaths of 40,000 Sri Lankans.

Around 200 Amnesty International protesters staged a protest at Parliament Square, with lookalikes of David Cameron, William Hague and Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa joining the 40 grim reapers.

The campaigners said that the 15 November meeting of Commonwealth leaders, hosted by Sri Lanka, should be an opportunity to address the country's human rights abuses - something that is not on the agenda.

Some of Sri Lanka's leaders face allegations of war crimes. Protestors say Mr Cameron should raise that as Sri Lanka is due to assume chairmanship of the 53-member Commonwealth during the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).

Protesters gathered on a mock beach at Parliament Square, where the figures of Mr Cameron, Mr Hague and Mr Rajapaksa, sipped cocktails.

Watch the exclusive C4 News report: New evidence on the fate of Tamil propagandist

Kate Allen, director of Amnesty International UK, said: "CHOGM should not just be an opportunity for President Rajapaksa and his government to sign business deals whilst clinking glasses with David Cameron and other world leaders.

"CHOGM ought to be a moment when the world examines Sri Lanka’s appalling human rights record, remembers the 40,000 dead and calls for accountability."

An estimed 40,000 civilians were killed in the final months of Sri Lanka's armed conflict in 2009, according to UN estimates.

Earlier this year, Channel 4 News reported that David Miliband and Sir Malcolm Rifkind called on the Commonwealth Secretariat to stop Sri Lanka from hosting its heads of government meeting because of the country's poor human rights record.

But Simon Gimson, aide to Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma, recently toldChannel 4 News that the decision to host the summit in Sri Lanka was made jointly by the Commonwealth heads of government.

"Our role in the Commonwealth is how do we make things better, so that questions… don't arise in the future," he said, and added: "What we have achieved in the last nine months, is more than any other international organisation in the last 39 months."

Also on Saturday, a separate protest was held at Downing Street, as the British Tamil Forum presented a petition to David Cameron demanding a boycott of CHOGM in Sri Lanka.

The organisation also called for Prince Charles to stay away from the summit.

In October, members of the Foreign Affairs Committee said that Britain's decision to set aside worries about Sri Lanka's human rights record and back its selection as host of a Commonwealth leaders' meeting showed a lack of principle.

Canada is the only Commonwealth country to boycott the meeting.

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Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka: special report, World

Director says video shows Sri Lanka army committed war crimes

By Shihar Aneez and Ranga Sirilal-COLOMBO | Sat Nov 2, 2013

(Reuters) - A documentary maker said on Friday video of a Tamil Tiger television presenter suggests she was captured alive and killed, rather than dying in the chaotic end of Sri Lanka's three decade war.

The footage is in the documentary "No Fire Zone: The Killing Fields of Sri Lanka", the fourth by British journalist and director Callum Macrae to allege the Sri Lankan army committed war crimes at the end of the separatist conflict in 2009.

Military spokesman Ruwan Wanigasooriya said the army never resorted to killing those captured or who surrendered, and disputed the authenticity of the video it said was an attempt to discredit Sri Lanka before it hosts a Commonwealth summit.

The footage shows Isaipriya, a celebrity news presenter at a rebel-run television station, half naked and being given a cloth to cover herself by people in military uniform who were heard saying they had found Tamil Tiger rebel leader Velupillai Prabakaran's daughter.

Isaipriya, whose body was found at the end of the war on May 18, 2009, is seen telling her captors: "No, I am not her."

"This shows the pattern of war crimes that happened in the final days of the war," Macrae told Reuters.

"They are not mistreating her and they are attempting to cover her partial nakedness with a cloth, but this footage demonstrates that she was alive and uninjured."

While the army disputes the footage, its release, on November 7 in New Delhi, will raise more questions about its actions before the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), on November 15-17.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has declined to attend because of concerns over alleged abuses, while British Prime Minister David Cameron, rejecting calls to boycott the summit, had said he would raise difficult issues at the talks.

"They have been releasing fake videos targeting Geneva human rights commission meetings and now they have come out with another fake video targeting CHOGM to discredit the army and Sri Lanka in general," the military spokesman said.

Tens of thousands of civilians were killed in 2009 in the final months the war, a U.N. panel has said, as government troops advanced on the ever-shrinking northern tip of the island controlled by Tamil rebels fighting for an independent homeland.

The panel said it had "credible allegations" that Sri Lankan troops and the Tamil Tigers both carried out atrocities but said the government was responsible for most of the deaths.

The U.N. Human Rights Commission, through two resolutions, has urged Sri Lanka to investigate into the alleged war crimes, which President Mahinda Rajapaksa's government has rejected.

Political violence has eased since Sri Lanka's army crushed the Tamil rebellion, but international human rights groups say rule of law problems persist, including abductions and attacks on media and government critics. (Writing by Shihar Aneez; Editing by Alison Williams)

Relatives of Sri Lanka's abduction victims press David Cameron for talks

Jason Burke in Colombo-Friday 1 November 2013 

Families of missing activists want British PM and other Commonwealth leaders to tackle authorities over 'disappeared'

Tamil women cry as they hold up images of missing relatives at a protest in Jaffna. Photograph: Dinuka Liyanawatte/Reuters

Relatives of the victims of abductions blamed on Sri Lankan authorities have called on David Cameron and other western leaders to meet them during the Commonwealth heads of government meeting in Colombo next month.

Sandhya Eknaligoda is still hopeful her husband, Prageeth, will return. "Every day I say: 'Tomorrow I will see him,'" she said. Photograph: Dinuka Liyanawatte /Reuters

President Mahinda Rajapaksa has insisted Sri Lanka is a democratic country. Photograph: KeystoneUSA-ZUMA/Rex Features

Relatives of Sri Lanka's Abduction Victims Press David Cameron for Talks by nelvely

Open Letter To All Heads Of Commonwealth Governments

By Elmore Perera -November 1, 2013 |

Elmore Perera

You have decided to meet in Sri Lanka at a time when Democracy is struggling to survive in several of the states that constitute the Commonwealth. Observance of the Rule of Law and Principles of Good Governance are no longer distinguishing features of member states. Authoritarianism is rampant. The very survival of the Commonwealth is at stake.

In Sri Lanka, limitless resources have been expended in an effort to window dress the inherent beauty of our land and reflect the warmth of our welcome. You may find that this window may not accurately reflect the situation in the entire land.

Ever since Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) was granted independence in 1948, successive governments have progressively destroyed all traces of Social Justice.

There can be no stability without contented communities. Sri Lanka has been ‘home’ to persons of diverse races, religions, cultures and histories, using different languages. Adherents of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Christianity inhabit this land. These inhabitants, who together constitute the People of Sri Lanka, need to have the right to develop their own language, to profess their own religion, to develop and promote their culture, to preserve their history and enjoy their due share of state power, including the right to representation in institutions of government, without in any way weakening the common Sri Lankan identity.

To stem the increasing tide of Authoritarianism and the arbitrary exercise of State power, the 17th Amendment – the only amendment to the Constitution initiated by the People – was passed without any dissent in 2001. With the appointment of a Constitutional Council and Independent Commissions, politicisation of key institutions was greatly reduced and Good Governance measures instituted. Regrettably, commencing in mid-2005, the Executive violated the constitutional provisions introduced by the 17th Amendment and rapidly politicised all institutions of government to unprecedented levels.

In the aftermath of the military defeat of the LTTE, the 17th Amendment was surreptitiously revoked and the Executive vested with unlimited power, by the 18th Amendment. Regrettably, the elected representatives of the people of Sri Lanka institutionalised Authoritarianism in our land.

The only barrier to unfettered authoritarianism was the Judiciary. In disregard of explicit decisions of the Superior Courts, the Chief Justice was hastily removed and replaced by a political appointee. The politicisation of the Judiciary is now virtually complete. Any form of dissent is swiftly quashed by arbitrary use of State power. Sadly, good governance is being relegated to the dust bin of history.

How the present dangerous trend could be reversed and adherence to the Commonwealth Principles ensured, will no doubt be addressed during your meeting as a matter deserving the highest priority.

*Elmore Perera- Founder CIMOGG & Past President Organisation of Professional Associations for and on behalf of Citizens Movement for Good Governance - The Citizens Movement for Good Governance (CIMOGG), founded in 2002, relentlessly endeavours to pursue the goal of restoring good governance and the rule of law in Sri Lanka.

Local vs National: The Lanka Test for the BJP

C. Raja Mohan : Sat Nov 02 2013

Wringing hands and avoiding difficult decisions has come naturally to the UPA government.

In the face of a manufactured political crisis in Tamil Nadu over Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Sri Lanka to attend the Commonwealth Summit later this month, Delhi has reacted in a predictable manner.

Wringing hands and avoiding difficult decisions has come naturally to the UPA government. But where do the BJP and its prime ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi stand on the question of the PM traveling to Lanka?

Whether it was in the negotiations on the nuclear issue with the United States or ratifying the agreements on water sharing and land boundary with Bangladesh, the Manmohan Singh government has opted for the path of least resistance.

The UPA government has preferred to appease opponents within the government and outside by yielding ground instead of standing firm and defending the national stakes involved in all these issues.

Is the BJP any different? The party has not distinguished over the last decade on the question of defending the nation's foreign policy interests.

Political opportunism drove the BJP to oppose the historic civil nuclear initiative although it laid the foundations for such an agreement with the United States when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister.

In the case of the land boundary agreement with Bangladesh, the BJP has again been reluctant to support the government despite the strategic importance of resolving the post-Partition boundary issues with Dhaka. Its national leadership has bowed to the sentiments of its regional party units

rather than defend India's collective interests.

On the PM's visit to Colombo, it might make tactical sense for the BJP to keep quiet or fudge the issue. After all, the BJP will certainly need the support of some Tamil parties to form the next coalition government in Delhi.

Narendra Modi has often declared that he will put "India First" on all matters of policy. Is he willing to demonstrate that commitment on the Lanka question?

The Prime Minister's absence at the Commonwealth Summit or sending some one else in his place, will undermine India's position in Sri Lanka rather than improve its leverage on promoting Tamil minority rights there with Colombo.

The right thing for the PM is to travel to Colombo, engage the Sri Lankan Tamil leaders and publicly reaffirm India's commitment to minority rights.

But can the BJP and Narendra Modi stand up for India's interests? Or will they, like the Congress, privilege the local over the national?

The writer is a distinguished fellow at the Observer Research Foundation, Delhi and a contributing editor for The Indian Express

British Tamils voice concerns to Ed Miliband

 02 November 2013

British Tamil Forum members and local constituency residents met the Labour Party leader Ed Miliband MP yesterday to express their views on the UK’s participation in the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

The BTF press release from the event is reproduced below.

British Tamils Forum members and local constituency residents met Labour Party leader Ed Miliband MP today to discuss the UK’s participation in the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, which is due to take place in Sri Lanka later this month.

The delegates encouraged the Labour Party to continue its tough stance against the UK’s participation in the summit while grave human rights abuse continue to occur and there has been no accountability for past crimes.

Delegates recounted the horrific abuses of the 2009 war, in which Sri Lankan security forces are accused of killing tens of thousands Tamils, and 147,000 Tamils still remain unaccounted for. They also handed Mr Miliband a copy of BTF’s recent report, Reconciliation in Sri Lanka?, which describes the human rights abuses, land grabs, economic persecution and other crimes that continue to be perpetrated against Tamils by the Sri Lankan state today.

Mr Miliband was shocked by the statistics of the dead, missing, injured, widowed and orphaned given to him by his constituents. Mr Milliband also reassured the delegates that he shared the views of his colleague, the Shadow Foreign Secretary Douglas Alexander MP, who recently wrote an article in the Guardian newspaper calling on the UK Prime Minister to boycott the Commonwealth summit.

Mr Miliband also confirmed the Labour Party’s stance that an international, independent inquiry must take place into allegations that war crimes and crimes against humanity were perpetrated during the war in 2009.

Today’s meeting took place the day before British Tamils Forum holds a mass rally in Central London against the UK’s participation in the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Sri Lanka.

Gota’s Claim On Appointing Retired Army Officers To Civil Service

By R.M.B Senanayake -November 2, 2013 |

R.M.B. Senanayake

The Secretary Defence has pointed out that the demand for the replacement of the Governor Chandrasiri was not justified merely because he is a retired Army Officer. He has pointed out that Colin Powell a retired U.S Army General was appointed as the Secretary of State in USA.

A better comparison is perhaps General Douglas Mac Arthur who commanded the Pacific Forces that defeated the Japanese. He was appointed as the Commander of the Military Occupation and carried out extensive reforms of the structure of the Japanese State democratizing it and recognizing civil liberties and human rights. Japan was transformed into a democratic State. On April 10, 1946, an election with 78.52% voter turnout among men and 66.97% among women gave Japan its first modern prime minister, Shigeru Yoshida. The 1947 Constitution also enfranchised women, guaranteed fundamental human rights, strengthened the powers of Parliament and the Cabinet, and decentralized the police and local government.

Thereafter the Military retreated to the background. Troops  were reduced drastically and when the Korean War broke out shortly thereafter the balance U.S troops were deployed in South Korea. The San Francisco Peace Treaty signed on September 8, 1951 marked the end of the Allied occupation, and after it came into force on April 28, 1952, Japan was once again an independent country, but with a democratic Constitution for the first time in its history.

General Chandrasiri was the Commanding Officer I believe during the war against the  LTTE. True that he is now a civilian but does he have the flexibility of mind to change from being a military officer who waged war to a peace time Governor who will respect the Tamil people and their representatives. Could he be committed to democratic rule and respect the rights of the NPC to govern  according to the wishes of the Tamil people like General Douglas Mac Arthur did after the occupation of Japan.

Chief Minister Wigneswaran appeals for

 Tamil Diaspora support to re-construct 

and develop Northern Province

Chief Minister Wigneswaran appeals for Tamil Diaspora support to re-construct and develop Northern Province........

"Makes special request for financial and technical assistance"

By Siva Sivapragasam

Dressed in the traditional and cultural costume of a cream coloured silk kurta and a crispy dhoti with a matching angavasthiram (shawl), Sri Lanka’s newly sworn-in Northern Province Chief Minister Wigneswaran made a clarion call to the Tamil Diaspora to join hands with him to re-construct and develop the war torn areas of the Northern province.

Wigneswaran’s request came while making his speech at the inaugural session of the Northern Provincial Council’s red carpeted assembly hall building complex. What was termed by many as a “powerful speech” Wigneswaran did not mince his words on certain issues when he called for demilitarization, land rights and the appointment of a civil Governor for the North. At the same time he also offered the hand of friendship to the Centre and hoped that the Government will cooperate with the newly elected council.

Complementing the Tamil Diaspora Wigneswaran commented that it gives him and the community great pleasure that many of them are doing well and that their support is urgently needed to get back what the Tamils in the North have lost during the recent years. He suggested that a suitable mechanism should be evolved with the Sri Lankan Government to help the people who had been adversely affected by the war. He requested the diaspora to suggest ways and means of increasing the income potentials and identify suitable projects which would help the Northern people to stand on their own. He invited members of the Tamil Diaspora to come down to the North, stay for some time, get the people involved in the development process and then return back. 

Referring to some of the major tasks ahead for the NPC , he said that the Council would work towards rehabilitating the Muslims who were forcibly evicted from the north in the early 1990s. Mr. Wigneswaran also urged the Centre to appoint Tamil-speaking police personnel in the north, who would understand the people’s aspirations, language and culture.

The venue of the council was a colorful site of celebrations with classical music played by Nathaswaram and Thavil artistes added with cheerful floral decoration.

With Lanka not meeting even half-way, PM Commonwealth visit hangs in balance

While no decision on the PM’s visit has been taken yet, sources said it would have made the job easier for the UPA government had Sri Lanka shown any inclination to meet India’s demands even half-way.

 Sat Nov 02 2013,

Prominent Commonwealth countries pressured India Friday to ensure Prime Minister Manmohan Singh participates in the CHOGM summit in Sri Lanka this month but Colombo's reluctance to address New Delhi's concerns about Tamils in that country may have constrained the UPA government.

Colombo's stance, it is learnt, was discussed at the Congress Core Group meeting Wednesday. The sticking points include key demands made by India, including implementation of the 13th amendment of the Sri Lankan constitution for equal rights to Tamil citizens.

With the Tamil Nadu Assembly passing a resolution for boycotting the summit and even Congress MPs from the state urging the PM not to attend, the Congress leadership is in a dilemma as this could snowball into a major issue in Tamil Nadu with general elections round the corner.

While no decision on the PM's visit has been taken yet, sources said it would have made the job easier for the UPA government had Sri Lanka shown any inclination to meet India's demands even half-way.

On Friday, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid met ministers from Sri Lanka, Australia and South Africa in Perth and they urged India to participate in the summit. Khurshid is in Perth for a meeting of the Indian Ocean Rim Association, which has some Commonwealth countries as members.

Sri Lanka's Northern Provincial Council's newly-elected chief minister C V Wigneswaran, it is learnt, is also attending the inauguration ceremony of the CHOGM summit. Wigneswaran has invited Manmohan Singh to visit Jaffna, even as Tamil parties have been opposing the PM's participation in the summit.

In Perth, foreign ministers stressed to Khurshid that India needs to "engage" and play an "active role" in Commonwealth countries. He was also told that the Commonwealth was restructured to accommodate India.

New Delhi is in a dilemma over Singh's participation in the summit in Colombo from November 15 to 17 as political parties in Tamil Nadu are strongly opposed to it. The parties allege that Sri Lanka has committed atrocities against ethnic Tamils.

After talks with his Australian counterpart Julie Bishop, Khurshid told a joint press conference that he will attend the CHOGM meeting. But he did not confirm Singh's participation.

Khurshid and Bishop announced their willingness to participate in the CHOGM meeting and said they will not follow Canada in boycotting it due to concerns over Sri Lanka's human rights record.

Khurshid said it was important the Commonwealth was strengthened. "People have very strong, deep-rooted views about what should be done," he said. "There are obviously very, very serious concerns that may have been felt in domestic terms by the Canadian government."

"But I think it is important for leaders to take some things in their stride and look at the larger picture and the commitment that we all have to the Commonwealth," Khurshid said.

In New Delhi, Finance Minister P Chidambaram said that some union ministers are opposed to Singh visiting Sri Lanka for the summit but added that there was still time to take a decision. But Chidambaram did not identify the ministers. - With inputs from PTI, Melbourne

Mr. Gotabaya, Take My Two Cents

By Jagath Asoka -November 

Dr Jagath Asoka

Most of my friends ask me, “Jagath, what do you know about Sri Lanka? You have visited your own country only twice over the last 27 years; you do not know what is going on.” Well, I agree with them, partially. As you know, I do not have to be a fish in the ocean or drink from the ocean to know its flavor; all I need is just a drop. You are that drop. You lived in the US; you enjoyed and benefitted from all the freedoms—specially the Freedom of Speech and the Rule of Law—privileges, and comforts of the this country while you were living here, and we are still enjoying them because people like Martin Luther King sacrificed their lives to give us a better life in this—our adopted—country; we came here because we were fed up with our own country; this is not a perfect system at all; but Sri Lankans live here because they have a better life here than in their own holy land. You lived here for the same reasons until your brother became President. I know that all of my friends who are professionals here in this country left Sri Lanka because we were fed up with thugs, politicians, and their goons; the best have left; now, the thugs have become our leaders.

Even though we do not live in Sri Lanka, even though we are not Sri Lankan citizens, Sri Lanka is our holy land. Sri Lanka is where our hearts reside, where our souls linger, where our roots are, the roots that are invisible to the rest of the world. Sri Lanka is the sacred center of our eternal mediation.

Mr. Gotabaya, I have been following your career; I admired your humility when you did not take credit for winning the war, instead you let Sarath Fonseka bask in the glory of that historic, indelible victory; however, when he pursued his own political life, you jailed him. Sri Lankans know that Sarath Fonseka can be a loose cannon; mercurial, unpredictable, jingoistic, and even hubristic, but that is a different story. The international community still thinks that both you and Sarath Fonseka committed war crimes; however, Sri Lankans do not think that the final assault and annihilation of Prabhakaran were war crimes. The international community has to walk in Sri Lankan shoes to see through the Sri Lankan eyes.Read More

In Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka, repression is a family affair

David Lewis-1 November 2013,=Senior Lecturer, Politics at University of Exeter

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

David Lewis worked for the International Crisis Group in Sri Lanka in 2006-07.

The Conversation is funded by the following universities: Aberdeen, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, City, Glasgow Caledonian, Liverpool, Open, Salford, Sheffield, Surrey, UCL and Warwick.

It also receives funding from: Hefce, Hefcw, SFC, RCUK, The Nuffield Foundation, The Wellcome Trust and The Alliance for Useful Evidence

Brothers in arms: l-r: Basil, Chamal and Gotabhaya Rajapaksa Wikimedia Commons

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Lasantha Wickrematunge: wrote of his own murder. Sunalie Ratnayake

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Tamil unrest has spilled over to India Tsering Topgyal/AP/Press Association Images

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In Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka, repression is a family affair by nelvely