UNP leader Ranil Wickramasinghe unilaterally nominated TNA MP Sumanthiran as his nominee to the Parliamentary Council.TNA certain to reject.

September 15, Los Angeles:

UNP leader Ranil Wickramasinghe unilaterally nominated TNA MP Sumanthiran as his nominee to the Parliamentary Council.TNA certain to reject. This is one of Ranil Wickramasinghe's bizarre  decisions which would certainly cause much embarassement to him and the party.

The UNP leader did not even consult Mr. Sumanthiran, the TNA leadership, nor his own party seniors when arriving at this decision. Sources close to  Sumanthiran and the TNA say that they will not accept such a nomination when they consider the 18th amendment as illegal and TNA had voted against it.
Wickremasinghe announced his nomination following a request by Speaker Chamal Rajapaksa from the Opposition Leader and the Prime Minister to nominate their representatives to the Parliamentary Council. This also clearly indicates and demonstrates the bankruptcy of the UNP, and Tamil sources question the UNP, why they did not want to appoint the
senior attorney and National list MP, Swaminathan if he was so keen to please the speaker Chamal Rajapakse and his brother the President Mahinda Rajapakse.
It is no wonder that even senior UNP member John Amaratunge is leaving the UNP as the next pole vaulter to join the GOSL. He has been promised a strong ministry at the next cabinet reshuffle. John Amaratunge is reported to be joining the President's delegation in New York for the UN sessions. Tamils, Sinhalese and Muslims are scheduled to demonstrate against the President of Sri Lanka, which for the first time have all 3 communities unitedly showing their revulsion against the current government of Sri Lanka, and it's gross human rights violations, as well as war crimes/crimes against humanity.
Tamil Latest News.
http://thetamillatest.blogspot.com/2010/09/unp-leader-ranil-wickramasinghe.html

European Court to review Jegath Dias case

23-year-old, Arulnithila Deivendran

Click Here-TamilNet: 15.09.10 European Court to review Jegath Dias case
European Court to review Jegath Dias case[TamilNet, Wednesday, 15 September 2010, 03:43 GMT]A. Muller-Elschner, the legal secretary to the Registrar of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), said in a letter to the Swiss Council of Eelam Tamils (SCET), a Switzerland-based Tamil activist organization, that the European Court will take up the case against the appointment of ex-SLA commander Jegath Dias as a diplomat to the Sri Lanka embassy in Germany. SCET, the Norwegian Council of Eezham Tamils (NCET) and the US based NGO, Tamils Against Genocide (TAG), had filed an application to the ECHR in July 2010 charging the German government for violating EU Rights conventions by accepting a Sri Lankan military commander, Major General Jagath Dias, an accused in the war crimes.

Arulnithila Deivendran of Swiss Council of Eelam Tamils who signed the charging papers sent to the ECHR told TamilNet: "The acknowledgement by the European Court of the acceptance of our pleading document (No. 45279/10) and the impending proceedings represent a substantial victory for the Swiss and Norwegian Tamils. This is likely to spur other active Tamil groups to pursue legal efforts until all ex-SLA commanders who are alleged to have committed war crimes are brought to justice in Courts outside Sri Lanka," Arulnithila said.Sri Lanka has recently announced its desire to send several ex-SLA commanders with alleged complicity in war-crimes to different diplomatic posts outside Sri Lanka. Professor Francis Boyle, an expert in International Law, commenting on Colombo's effort said, "the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) is trying to sanitize and immunize their genocidaires/war criminals and thus regularize it all." While similar legal efforts are underway in Norway and Denmark, spokesperson for Tamils Against Genocide (TAG), a US-based activist group key to the legal efforts, said: "TAG is preparing a legal brief for submission to the International Criminal Court (ICC) which argues that Vienna convention allows interpretation of the ICC-governing Rome Statute to provide discretionary powers to the ICC prosecutor to investigate non-signatory countries that alleged to have committed torture, war-crimes, and crimes against humanity. This legal argument, if successful, would remove the remaining hurdle to haul countries such as Sri Lanka before the ICC."Following the filing of a complaint against the Federal Republic of Germany for violating the ‘European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms’ in accepting Maj. Gen. (retd.) Jegath, Hon. Von Schubert, met with a delegation of the Swiss Council of Eelam Tamils (SCET) led by Tharsika Pakeerathan, the president of SCET, on the 28th July in Bern, Switzerland.
Chronology:
15.09.10 European Court to review Jegath Dias case
27.08.10 Sri Lanka's presumptive war-criminal to take UN jo..
01.08.10 Dias case filed in European Court, German Ambassad..
24.07.10 Tamils sue Germany for accepting alleged war crime..
21.07.10 Tamil Country Councils, TAG announce legal partner..Related Articles:05.06.10 Alston: Domestic inquiries into extrajudicial killings insuf.. 07.02.10 Boyle's book added to World Court library 05.02.10 Gotabhaya opens door for UN investigations of Sri Lanka war .. 16.01.10 Satellite imagery evidence of Hospital attack recorded in Du..

Arulnithila Deivendran of Swiss Council of Eelam Tamils
This is the first time the Tamil diaspora is pro-actively seeking to enforce its rights in Europe for crimes against Tamils, and the second generation Tamils are taking a leading role going beyond sectarian issues and stressing for unity and action in this regard, observers said.
The organizations are in the process of collecting more evidence, and war victims and eye-witnesses have to come forward with depositions. Procedures have been instituted to guarantee confidentiality, said 23-year-old, Arulnithila Deivendran, heading the legal group of the organizations filing the case.
The SCET has issued postal stamps in Switzerland on Sri Lanka’s war crimes and it urges the public to use them in letters and postcard campaign.

Discussion on MP Sumanthiran's Speech on 18th Amendment

Discussion

(Article: MP Sumanthiran's Speech on 18th Amendment)

Ram Mohan (13 Sep. 2010)

This is the most excellent contribution to Parliamentary Debate (or was it a lecture since there was no arguments from the other side) for quite a long time. This shows that Tamil cause is not short of force of arguments as was in the case of arguments of force. In fact it was when I listened to his speech that I learnt that even the 13th amendment is cremated by the 18th amendment and that in itself is an unannounced matter. In fact the 18th Amendment is the cremation of democracy that was still born or disabled in Sri Lanka right from the beginning and killed quite sometime ago at least as far back in 1978 if not in 1972. By the 18th Amendment, Mahinda has drawn the lines very clear and said in no uncertain terms that there is no room for any more talks and as a corollary, there is room only for action. Let us all understand that clearly in determining our future course. In fact I was angry that the big guns of the TNA like Sampanthan, Sritharan and Yogeswaran were out of the country at this critical time but later consoled myself that if they were in Colombo, then Sumanthiran would not have got this chance to highlight the truth since none of the others had the bravery if not the ability to do a similar performance. I was very pleased to hear at the concluding stage of the talk that the TNA could have but did not compromise for short term gains to the Tamil community. It is a good lesson to those in the Diaspora who keep saying that we should concentrate on giving aid to the suffering people without antagonising the GOSL or their foreign backers. Aas pointed out on several occasions, the real struggle will start again in the homeland and by that time the Diaspora should have organised the International Public opinion in favour of our people instead of forming governments without territory or such futile exercises.

Secy. (14 Sep. 2010)

CORRECTION: Hon. M A Sumanthiran, MP.

Anonymous (14 Sep. 2010)

Tamils have produced great orators but from my experience sinhalese grudgingly admire the intellectual guts and oratory of any tamil like Amirthalingahm. I spoke against sinhala only policy among sinhalese only audience.That was in 1975.Tamils as a nation has been cruelly reduced to tamils as living with no dignity by cruel deception by the vested interested nations and tamils need the likes of Sumanthan wherever they may be.

An MP should be able to articulate the plight of vanni tamils plights of displaced tamils and grabbing of land for so called non existence threat of future war in jaffna and the urgent need to end white van menace,raping and killing of innovcent as well as increasing accidents where lot of tamils get killed on roads.

There is no point in president accumulating more and more powers while preaching parliametary democracy where parliament is supreme and powerful and not the president himself,now behaving and looking like sandam hussain in appearance and menace.

Anonymous (14 Sep. 2010)

I suggest all lawyers read Rule of Law by Lord Bingham, who passed away on 11sept.2010.He was considered the greatest legal mind of the current generation and at school ,he was the brightest student for over 100 years.Unlike in sl ,where he would have done engineering or medicine, he did history at oxford and later bar.

Keeran / Cologne, Germany (14 Sep. 2010)

Thank you Mr. Sumenthiran for speaking up against all these bunch of criminals.

The Ministry of External Affairs therefore regrets that the US State Department comment has not been able to do justice

Observations by Sri Lanka on the US State Department Press Release

The attention of the Ministry of External Affairs has been drawn to the Press Release issued by the US Department of State under the caption “The September Passage of Sri Lanka’s 18th Amendment”.
The Ministry wishes to observe in this regard, that the passage of the Amendment is an entirely internal matter that moreover took place in full accord with the provisions of the Constitution and in total compliance with a unanimous decision of the Supreme Court, with an overwhelming majority of 161 Members of Parliament of a total of 225, voting in favour.

It would be pertinent also to note in this regard that the Amendment was presented after careful consideration. A situation had arisen of attempts covering successive administrations and spanning a period of several years, to operationalize under the provisions of the 17th Amendment several key institutions of governance, having palpably failed. There were additionally well founded apprehensions that the provisions of the 17th Amendment whatever the intent behind their introduction, could lead to the practical situation of depriving the executive arm of government of the authority and disciplinary control, essential to meet the constitutional obligation of managing the machinery of state.

The 18th Amendment resolves this situation, by introducing the necessary constitutional clarity. It revives the functioning of the Commissions sought to be covered by the 17th Amendment through a Parliamentary Council which importantly provides by the inclusion of Members of Parliament, for the salutary principle of accountability to the people.

The removal of term limits by the 18th Amendment will serve to prevent any potential for the political authority of the Head of State and Government being eroded during the course of a second term, due to an arbitrarily imposed time limitation of service to the nation. In fact the 18th Amendment re-establishes the will of the people as the sole factor, which should correctly determine the continuity of tenure.
The Government and people of Sri Lanka value their longstanding relationship with the United States. The Ministry of External Affairs therefore regrets that the US State Department comment has not been able to do justice to the true intent and circumstances behind the enactment of the 18th Amendment.

Ministry of External Affairs

Colombo

13th September 2010

Sri Lanka to offer more oil exploration blocks | Reuters

Click Here-Sri Lanka to offer more oil exploration blocks Reuters

* War flare-up ended exploration there by U.S., Russia firms
By Ranga Sirilal
COLOMBO, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Sri Lanka on Monday said it would offer new oil exploration blocks in an area off the northern coast where the initial flare-up of a quarter-century war with the Tamil Tiger separatists ended the hunt for oil.
The Indian Ocean island's Petroleum Resources Development Secretariat said it was planning to call bids for blocks in 15,000 sq km of the shallow Cauvery Basin, just off the northern area the Tigers controlled until their defeat last year.
"A lot of Indian companies are showing their interest," Neil De Silva, director-general of the secretariat, told Reuters. "The depth there will be around 100 meters and the cost for explorations will be very low."
De Silva gave no details on how many blocks would be made available in the Cauvery basin, shared between India and Sri Lanka, which sits at India's southern tip.
American and Russian companies from the mid-1960s until 1984 did exploration work in the Cauvery basin, but no commercial oil was produced and the war's flare-up ended exploration.
Calgary-based Bengal Energy Ltd. (BNG.TO) has exploration rights for 1,362 sq km on the Indian side of the Cauvery basin, which already has nearly 30 operating wells.
Indian companies have already committed to exploring Sri Lanka's oil potential in the deeper Mannar basin, located further south along the western coast.
Cairn Lanka, a subsidiary of Cairn India (CAIL.BO), is due to begin drilling there by mid-2011 after completing a seismic survey. It has rights to 3,000 sq km. [nCOL372321]
Sri Lanka's government has said previous seismic data showed potential for more than 1 billion barrels of oil under the sea in a 30,000 sq km area of the Mannar Basin, located further south along the western coast.
Sri Lanka produces no oil and is totally dependent on imports, which cost it $2.2 billion in 2009. (Additional reporting by Bryson Hull; editing by James Jukwey)

Tamil migrants make risky deals to flee Sri Lanka

Tamil migrants make risky deals to flee Sri Lanka

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The MV Sun Sea is escorted past Fisgard Lighthouse and into CFB Esquimalt in Colwood, B.C.,Friday, Aug. 13, 2010. (Jonathan Hayward / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
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People check out the vessel Ocean Lady in Victoria, Sunday, Oct.18, 2009. (Arnold Lim / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
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Would-be migrants are pictured through the tinted windows of a bus as two buses are escorted by RCMP officers and B.C. Sheriff's vehicles through Surrey, B.C., en route to an undisclosed location after arriving on a ferry from Vancouver Island on Sunday October 18, 2009. (Darryl Dyck / THE CANADIAN PRESS)
Updated: Sun Sep. 05 2010 12:36:35 PM
Geoff Nixon, CTV.ca News Staff

The hundreds of Tamil migrants who travelled across oceans on rickety boats to come to Canada faced danger at every turn.
They left their homeland, cut deals with dangerous people and put their lives at risk.

David Poopalapillai, the national spokesperson for the Canadian Tamil Congress, said his organization routinely hears from Tamils who have been burned trying to get out of Sri Lanka.
Recently he spoke with a woman who was calling from Malaysia. She had survived an episode at sea where a boat capsized and eight migrants died.
"Many times they are being fooled, many times they die," Poopalapillai told CTV.ca in a telephone interview from Vancouver.
Even those who arrived by boat in British Columbia last month were not guaranteed of their safety: A 37-year-old man died en route to Canada and his body was buried at sea.
Yet a recent report in the Globe and Mail reveals that dozens more Tamil migrants are stationed in hotel rooms in Thailand, waiting for their own chance to head for Canada.
These migrants are gambling that it is better to try to land in Canada than it is to end up in India and Malaysia -- or other countries that have not signed the United Nations 1951 Refugee Convention -- where the process can drag on for years.

Migrants who land in one of these countries can stay in limbo "for the rest of their lifetime," said Poopalapillai, with faint chance of their refugee cases being resolved.
Canada adheres to the refugee convention, which obliges Ottawa to take in the people who land on Canadian soil seeking asylum.
It also puts these refugees at the front of the line, which critics say leaves Canada's refugee system ripe for abuse -- including by human smugglers.
"Human smuggling is a despicable crime and any attempts to abuse Canada's generosity for financial gain are utterly unacceptable," Christopher McCluskey, a spokesperson for Public Safety Minister Vic Toews, told CTV.ca in a recent email.

"We will toughen our laws to ensure that we are able to maintain our borders and defeat human smuggling."
A different kind of travel agent
Some people would call them smugglers, but the Tamil migrants call them agents.
These "agents" can help spring a person from Sri Lanka by helping them to reach foreign soil through deception, bribery and other tactics.
Sometimes their clients stay in hotel rooms in Thailand, in other cases the migrants could be sitting in a jungle for days, while the smugglers wait for the perfect moment to make them disappear.
Poopalapillai said the migrants don't like to talk much about the agents, nor the methods they use to take them where they want to go.
Such agents arranged for the MV Sun Sea to arrive in B.C. last month, as well as for the Ocean Lady to land there the previous fall.
But a chance at a new life doesn't come cheap. Sun Sea passengers are reported to have paid up to $50,000 each to come to Canada. An Ocean Lady passenger told CTV British Columbia last month that he paid $44,000 for his own voyage.
Sanjeev Kuhendrarajah, a 28-year-old Tamil and former Canadian resident who had an opportunity to ride on the Sun Sea, told CTV.ca in a telephone interview that the cost can vary depending on the deal worked out with an agent.
But $50,000 would be the maximum that a migrant would pay.

"This is Asia, where money talks," said Kuhendrarajah, who rode on a similar boat that was headed for Australia last year.
But Kuhendrarajah, who is now hiding in a location he wants to keep private, insisted that the agents "won't just take anybody."
He said the people who made the trip to Canada paid a lump sum up front and will pay the rest later. The smugglers take the down-payment "so they can cover their costs," including a variety of bribes and operational expenses.
It's a process that is powered by "a bit of human nature and a bit of greed," which can net the smugglers some major money, Kuhendrarajah said.
Friends and family who live outside of Sri Lanka -- including in Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States -- will have vouched that the migrants are good for the money they have promised.
And that's where the money comes from: friends and family abroad who can afford to send funds back to Sri Lanka.
Poopalapillai said the million-plus Sri Lankan Tamils who live outside their former homeland are often asked for help from relatives who remain in the country.
They give back because they feel guilty about the good lives they are living away from the problems in Sri Lanka, he said.
"The people chip in, it's like a collection," Poopalapillai said.
Sri Lanka's High Commissioner to Canada, Chitranganee Wagiswara, points to the fact that the UN recently declared that conditions have "greatly improved" for Tamils in Sri Lanka since the end of the war.
But 16 months after the conflict's end, Wagiswara confirms that nearly 30,000 Tamils are still stuck in camps, unable to return home for various reasons.
Destination unknown
When Tamil migrants pay the agents and a voyage is confirmed, there is still a lot of unpredictability ahead.
Kuhendrarajah, who spent much of his youth in Canada but was later deported back to Sri Lanka following a criminal conviction, said migrants don't necessarily know when they will be leaving or where they will end up.
In the case of the Sun Sea, for example, he "never knew the boat would actually make it to Canada" when he was offered a spot.
That contradicts the official story from Ottawa, which is that the Sun Sea set out on a very precise course for Canada from Day One.
As Toews told reporters in Halifax this week, the Sun Sea "was not simply a tramp steamer wandering around Southeast Asia and picked up 492 people. This was a very well organized and co-ordinated effort.
"Individuals were not picked up, for example, on the shores of Sri Lanka and then they wandered around Southeast Asia for a number of months," he added. "This was a boat…that was specifically outfitted for a long journey and the only destination of that particular ship was Canada. It was a very deliberate journey to Canada."
Then there is the business of how the Sun Sea became the Sun Sea.
The ship was previously known as the Harin Panich 19, which was owned by a Thai shipping company until the end of March.
That's when Harin Group -- the company that used to own the Harin Panich 19 -- used a third-party to sell the cargo ship to another company, which goes by the name of Sun & Rshiya. The Globe and Mail has reported Sun & Rshiya paid about $175,000 Canadian for the Sun Sea.
The ship's flag and nationality were changed the day after the sale. Four-and-a-half months later, the ship arrived in Canada packed with nearly 500 Tamil migrants.
"We have not been in contact with the new owner or the vessel itself after it was sold and only found out through the news that she was (used) by illegal immigrants to enter Canada illegally and we are deeply saddened by these (sic) news," the Harin Group told CTV.ca in an email.
Both the Canadian government and the Sri Lankan High Commissioner to Canada have warned that the Sun Sea may have carried members of the Tamil Tigers -- the banned terrorist group that the Sri Lankan government alleges was involved with arranging the Sun Sea's voyage.
Wagiswara said the Tamil migrants who boarded the Sun Sea were likely granted tourist visas to Thailand where they would have stayed before departing for Canada.
Asked if Thailand needs to do more to prevent the smuggling of Tamil migrants, Wagiswara said the key is having cooperation between governments.
"It's not an easy task and there needs to be a lot of international cooperation amongst many countries," said Wagiswara, noting that Sri Lanka maintains a dialogue with governments throughout Southeast Asia.
Watching the journeys of the Ocean Lady and the Sun Sea from afar, Kuhendrarajah said their passengers have landed in a good place.
"Canada is a good place for refugees," he said.
But the individual migrants who arrived in B.C. on the Ocean Lady and Sun Sea are still not guaranteed to stay, as that will depend on whether their refugee claims are approved. The Canadian government says they are being processed according to the terms of Canadian law.

State Terrorism is alive in Sri Lanka - Response to the SL's Ambassador in Washington.

Friends,
This is utter rubbish and absolute lies being spread by the Sri Lankan embassy in Washington DC.

It is more than obvious that the SLHC making a desperate attempt to hoodwink the US Secretary of State,
The State Dept.. and the US Congress about the state of affairs in Sri Lanka.
They have simply forgotten the fundamental rule in foreign affairs of the US Government, which relies on their
 own embassy in Sri Lanka to formulate their opinion instead of foreign embassies in Washington, or their paid lobbyist.
In this instance the firm of Patton Boggs, are paid nearly a million dollars a year, and one Sinhalese attorney Vinod Basanayake also has been hired by this firm for this purpose. This young man is the son of immigration
attorney Sena Basanayake who was a neighbor and close friend of attorney Bruce Fein, who was the paid attorney
first for the Tamils For Justice, then for Justice For Thamils, Canada, and thereafter for Tamils Against Genocide.
Now he is with the Turkish lobby groups, lobbying hard to deny their has been a Genocide in Armenia. His wife
is the Congressional candidate for the Republican Party, contesting Jane Harman in the beach cities,
and Los Angeles airport area.
The LTTE might be defeated in Sri Lanka, but the Tamils are not in Sri Lanka nor the diaspora. The Tamil's goals,
objectives and aspirations have not died with the LTTE, although the demand for separate state is not practical
withthout  the LTTE. However, there is no way the Tamil political parties would settle for anything less than a
strong Federal system with extensive devolution of power, sans any discrimination. The State Terrorism is live
and kicking, and one has to just ask the General Fonseka's family, UNP, JVP, and the TNA. Or the former
President Chandrika Bandaranayake Kumaratunge and her family. Even Sri Lanka's former Foreign minister
Managala Samaraweera or minister Karu Jayasuriya would vouch for the current tyranny that all Tamils, and
many Sinhalese and Muslims are facing. Tiran Alles who organized his friend Emilkanthan to accept the
Rajapakse money so that the LTTE would agree to boycott the 2005 Presidential elections himself has experienced
the Sinhala Rajapakse State Terrorism.
The Tamil diaspora has been pro Tamil than pro LTTE, and certainly the LTTE was very much loved, respected
and supported by them as well as those Tamils living in Sri Lanka. The GOSL could burn every bone of the LTTE
fighters and shamelessly desecrate the cemeteries, and destroy the monuments and statues for the dead Tamil
leaders, but won't be able to erase their memory in the hearts, and minds of the Tamils of their leaders.

It is stupid and childish for the Srilankan embassy in Washington, DC, and their lobbyist Patton Boggs to brand
the Tamils who oppose the Rajapakse dictatorship as Pro LTTE supporters. What they are doing is really
insulting the intelligence of the State Department, members of the Congress, and the US government as if they
are not aware of the true picture using their own sources such as the US embassy in Colombo, NGO's,
Human Rights Organizations, such as the HRW, Amnesty International, International Crisis Group, and the
Elders Group to mention a few.
If the SL embassy is so confident of their virtue and that war crimes was never committed in Sri Lanka we all
(Tamils, Sinhalese, Muslims and Burgers) would challenge them to request a Congressional and Senate hearing
on Sri Lanka next year. GOSL should also allow the UN to conduct it's own investigations not only on the
War Crimes but the continued State Terrorism after the war, including the cruel and inhuman treatment of the
300,000 Tamil civilians in internment camps and abuse of the prisoners of war, violating the Geneva Conventions.

The Tamil civilians are being terrorized by the State on a daily basis, their homes being occupied by the military
for decades, and their land is being robbed after the 18 month occupation in the Vanni. The aid received to
build homes for the IDP's are also being diverted for the military, colonization schemes, and promoting ethnic cleansing.

So far Sri Lankan government has not built one single permanent home for the Tamil civilians after destroying
about 100,000 homes in less than a year in the Northern Province. If that is not State Terrorism, may I ask what is?

There are competent US attorneys like Prof. Francis Boyle, Bruce Fein, Karen Parker, and Prof. Cole to provide
testimony to the Congress and the Senate. I wonder whether attorneys from Patton Boggs would dare come and
represent their clients and justify the million dollars that is being paid to them. Wasn't this the same lobby group
who represented General Fonseka who was wanted for "Friendly discussion" last October by the department of
Homeland security when he was visiting USA to renew his green card? Even attorneys representing
General Fonseka and his supporters can be represented for any type of hearing, so that the truth can be told to
the US government, US Public, and the United Nations.

Why not even release General Fonseka to come and testify and also talk to the US government and the United Nations,
if the GOSL and the MOD are not afraid of the truth? After all both General Fonseka and his wife are permanent residents
and were hoping to become US citizens at some time in the future together with the rest of the family.

The Tamil campaign is not a campaign of misleading facts but the truth.

On the contrary it is the SL Embassy which is engaged in a litany of lies not only against the Tamils but also the
Sinhalese and the Muslims which represented 40% of the total votes General Fonseka received in the January
Presidential elections despite severe irregularities and violations of the election laws. Let us have an open debate
now, with 3 from the Tamils, 3 from the GOSL, 1 from the US Muslims, and one from the General Fonseka's side.

The SL Embassy are such shameless cowards and spineless men, they will simply run and hide without facing a
debate and confront the truth.
The GOSL and SL Embassy are such hypocrites, who are clearly demonstrating that they are only paying lip
service to peace and true reconciliation with the Tamils, but behind their back operating a false and malicious
campaign against the Tamils to vilify. How can such people be trusted in anything they say?
With Best Wishes,

Donald Jayantha Gnanakone

Tamils For Justice.
http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=1795699868638606708

On State Terrorism:


Sri Lanka from a flawed democracy into a dynastic oligarchy because their crimes and abuses have gone largely unchallenged by Lankan society, especially that intellectual-ethical obscenity, the zero-civilian casualty myth (and the incarceration of more than 300,000 Tamils in ‘welfare villages’).

So Sri Lanka is a land polarised between the friends and the enemies of the Ruling Family. In this land, anyone who is willing to play by Rajapaksa rules and submit to Rajapaksa dictates can lead a ‘normal’ life, without experiencing state terror. The North has been bludgeoned into sullen silence; Tamils will be stigmatised and repressed as Tiger supporters if they show signs of democratic dissent. - Courtesy - Tissaranee Gunasekara via Sunday Leader.

Sent: Friday, September 3, 2010 17:51:48

Subject: To: Members of the Sri Lankan Community in the United States
Members of the Sri Lankan Community in the United States,

I know most of you have been working in many different ways to spread the correct story about Sri Lanka.

As you may be aware, 58 members of the U.S. House of Representatives recently wrote to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. They have called for an independent international investigation into alleged war crimes during the final stages of the long struggle against the terrorist army Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Although terrorism has been eliminated in Sri Lanka, the pro-LTTE Diaspora is still active. Their aggressive fund raising now targets the progress being made in Sri Lanka. Funds are also used to spread negative stories about our Motherland.

The pro-LTTE Diaspora has launched a campaign of misinformation and has tried to confuse the Congress and other lawmakers.

To counter this false message, we need to work together as a community. That is why I am writing to you today.

I ask that you take action to right the wrong impressions being spread in Washington about Sri Lanka. You can do this by writing to Congress and to Secretary Clinton.
There are so many positive developments occurring right now in Sri Lanka that this task will not be a difficult one. Below I’ve offered some suggestions in a sample letter that you may copy and send to the members of Congress who wrote the letter to Secretary Clinton, and to your own representative and senators.
We must all take ownership of Sri Lanka and its reputation. I know that many of you work hard to promote cultural and religious events that symbolize the peace, understanding and tolerance that is Sri Lanka today. I know that you will help us convey that same message to your elected leaders here in Washington, D.C.

I thank you for your help in this important effort.



Sincerely,

Jaliya Wickramasuriya
Ambassador

Sample letter:

For Representative:
The Honorable John Q. Smith
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Representative Smith:

For Senator:

The Honorable John Q. Smith
U.S. Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

Dear Senator Smith:

Sample letter:

The Honorable (First name) (Last name)
United States House of Representatives (or United States Senate)
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Representative/Senator (Last Name),
I am writing to you in regards to the recent letter sent by some members of the House of Representatives to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The letter recommended that the U.S government call for an international investigation into alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka.

As you may know, Sri Lanka in May 2009 ended nearly three decades of strife when government forces defeated the terrorist group Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Since then, there have been no terrorist incidents, and all Sri Lankans are living again in peace and growing prosperity. Billions of dollars have been committed to re-building conflict zones and renewing the communities and livelihoods of those affected by the fighting.

It is important to note that Sri Lanka has established its own Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission to examine how the country may best continue to heal from the conflict against terrorism. Therefore, a second, outside inquiry is not necessary.

Sri Lanka's eight-member commission, modeled after the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission that examined Apartheid, includes two Tamils. The commission holds open hearings so that grievances may be aired publicly, and it has already made impressive headway, taking testimony from both Tamil citizens displaced by the conflict and top government officials.

Indeed, Secretary Clinton has already noted the vital part the commission plays in Sri Lanka’s future, remarking that, “Such commissions of inquiry have played an important role in advancing accountability and redressing wrongs in other countries emerging from periods of internal strife.”

Sri Lanka is Asia’s oldest democracy, one that just held successful and peaceful presidential and parliamentary elections. I believe the Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission is fully capable of investigating Sri Lanka’s past. Its work will promote justice and produce a result that will be respected and accepted by all Sri Lankans.

The success of Sri Lanka’s post-conflict reconciliation depends ultimately on how Sri Lankans themselves come to terms with the lessons learned during the long, painful fight against terrorism.
I ask that you please join with Secretary Clinton and support the important work of Sri Lanka’s Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Address]
[Phone Number]
List of representatives who signed the letter to Secretary Clinton asking for an international investigation of Sri Lanka:

Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky

202-225-2111 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-2111 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin

202.225.2906 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202.225.2906 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Tim Bishop

202.225.3826 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202.225.3826 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Cong. Bob Inglis

202-225-6030 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-6030 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. James McGovern

202-225-6101 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-6101 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Maurice Hinchey

202-225-6335 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-6335 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Rush Holt

202-225-5801 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5801 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Congresswoman Mary Jo Kilroy

202-225-2015 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-2015 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Linda Sanchez

202-225-6676 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-6676 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Vernon Ehlers

202-225-3831 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3831 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Rose L. DeLauro

202-225-3661 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3661 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Bob Filner

202-225-8045 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-8045 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Donna Edwards

202-225-8699 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-8699 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Cong. Michael Capuano

202-2254-5111
Cong. Phil Hare

202-225-5905 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5905 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Cong. Dennis Kucinich

202-225-5871 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5871 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Cong. Paul Hodes

202-225-5206 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5206 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Keith Ellison

202-225-4755 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-4755 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Cong. Patrick Murphy

202-225-4276 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-4276 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey

202-225-5161 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5161 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Jim Himes

202-225-5541 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5541 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. John Sarbanes

202-225-4016 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-4016 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Niki Tsongas

202-225-3411 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3411 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Cong. Jerry McNerney

202-225-1947 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-1947 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Cong. Michael McMahon

202-225-3371 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3371 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Brad Miller

202-225-3032 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3032 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Pete Stark

202-225-5065 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5065 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Danny Davis

202-225-5006 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5006 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee

202-225-3816 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3816 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Patrick Kennedy

202-225-4911 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-4911 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Stephen Lynch

202-225-8273 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-8273 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney

202-225-7944 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-7944 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Cong. Jim Langevin

202-225-2735 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-2735 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Anna Eshoo

202-225-8104 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-8104 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Barney Frank

202.225.5931 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202.225.5931 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren

202-225-3072 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3072 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Barbara Lee

202-225-2661 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-2661 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Cong. Steven Rothman

202-225-5061 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5061 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Michael Honda

202-225-2631 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-2631 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Dana Rohrabacher

202-225-2415 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-2415 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Jim Moran

202-225-4376 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-4376 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. G.K. Butterfield

202-225-3101 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3101 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Gene Green

202-225-1688 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-1688 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Howard Coble

202-225-3065 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3065 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Edward Markey

202-225-2836 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-2836 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Brad Sherman

202-225-5911 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5911 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Steve Driehaus

202-225-2216 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-2216 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Elijah Cummings

202-225-4741 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-4741 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Raul Grijalva

202-225-2435 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-2435 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Jackie Speier

202-225-3531 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3531 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Congresswoman Jean Schmidt

202-225-3164 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3164 end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Cong. John Olver

202-225-5335 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-5335 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. John Tierney

202-225-8020 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-8020 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree

202-225-6116 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-6116 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. Peter Welch

202-225-4115 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-4115 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Congresswoman Judy Biggert

202-225-3515 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-3515 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Cong. John Garamendi

202-225-1880 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-1880 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton

202-225-8050 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 202-225-8050 end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Saradha Ramanathan on Merak Tamil Refugees. Video Interview Part 3

http://www.youtube.com/user/SaradhaNathan#p/a/u/1/kRpZANKIlc0


Saradha Ramanathan on Merak Tamil Refugees. Video Interview Part 3

Saradha Nathan on the Merak Tamil refugees- Video on You Tube.

http://www.youtube.com/user/SaradhaNathan

Foreign Secretary Romesh Jayasinghe is to be named the new Permanent Representative for Sri Lanka at the United Nations.

Foreign Secretary Romesh Jayasinghe is to be named the new Permanent Representative
for Sri Lanka at the United Nations.

Foreign Secretary Romesh Jayasinghe is to be named the new Permanent Representative for Sri Lanka at the United Nations, according to sources at the office that is foreign. He is to succeed Dr. Palitha Kohona, who is to return to Sri Lanka. The talk in External Affairs Ministry circles is whether he will again take over as Secretary in that Ministry.

Ranil: we will cooperate with all stakeholders in finding a solution

Click Here-The Hindu : News / International : Ranil: we will cooperate with all stakeholders in finding a solution
http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/00174/RANIL_WICKRAMSINGHE_174816e.jpg

Tamil Interview by Saradha Ramanathan from Australia.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okCsQPXjwb8&feature=player_embedded

Dailymotion Nilavaram Boat People a News Politics video SaradhaNathan 10 videos SubscribeEdit Subscription Loading...

A response to Shanaka Jayasekera's allegations against TRO, K Reggi in UK and others.

This interview was given to the Sri Lankan Government controlled Sunday Observer newspaper. There is no media freedom in Sri Lanka and many journalists have been killed or have fled the country due to persecution by the Sri Lankan government.

Mr Jayasekara is an ethnic Sinhalese which is the majority and ruling race in Sri Lanka. In the interview, Mr Jayasekara, makes statements which seem to be baseless and biased towards his former homeland. I would be very interested in finding out the basis for the following quote: “The only figure that I have come across is that TRO leader Regi, now living in the UK has over US$50 million of TRO funds under his control. The LTTE is still having six single engine aircraft packed in crates in a warehouse in Asmara, Eretria. It is also believed that one sea plane allegedly purchased with LTTE funds is running charter flights in the Fiji Islands”.

Mr Jayasekara further states, “….. all Tamil boat people should be sent back” despite the UNHCR report stating that certain groups of Tamils are still at risk. It is disappointing that he makes comment on a report that he obviously has not read thoroughly. The Edmund Rice Centre director Phil Glendenning, who returned from Sri Lanka in April, said at least nine asylum seekers returned to the country by Australia's previous government were killed while those sent back in the past year have been detained and some assaulted.
end:
Tamillatest.com comment as follows.

The response is valid.
But TRO people like Regi, Chandru Pararajasingam, Naren, Sreethran of TRO USA, (owner of Tamil Net and
Tamils Against Genocide, Representative of TECH Vanni in USA together with Manoranjan have not accounted
for funds collected by TRO for many years from at least 30 countries.
TRO and the newly found ITRO continues to collect funds even after the end of the war in May 2009.
There are other details of TRO accounting and expenditure flaws which best kept unpublished for the
time being. So are so many failed business investments of TRO, purchases of  vehicles between 2005 and 2006,
exceeding millions of dollars.
Shanaka Jayasekera is an academic looking to compete with the other academic from Singapore Rohan Gunaratna
peddling their falsely claimed expertise in "terrorism" for financial gain and acclaim. This is the newest industry
related to Sri Lanka after the NGO business. There are no poor NGO's in Sri Lanka which the Tsunami in 2004,
and the civil war gave them a huge boost. They also portray themselves as "Think Tanks" for peace and reconciliation.
Unfortunately, they are totally out of touch with the people.
It has become a lucrative business!


http://www.catholicleader.com.au/news.php/top-stories/sri-lankans-facing-dangerous-return_57310.



August 30, 2010 1:34 PM

Use your rights to end poverty - Amnesty International.

Use your rights to end poverty
www.amnesty.org
Dear Friends,
More than 1 billion people across all continents live in slums.
More than half a million women die each year from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth – one every minute.
Every day, in every region of the world, people living in poverty are discriminated against – whether through individual acts of others, or institutional discrimination by the state.
We have documented human rights violations that deepen poverty.
It is human rights violations that lead to discrimination, exclusion, maternal deaths, eviction from homes, segregation in schools, or women dying in pregnancy from lack of access to health care.
All across the world, we have documented evidence of human rights violations that have kept people poor. Taken together, these human rights violations and evidence highlight the poor state of progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals.
This September 2010, world leaders will meet at the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Summit to accelerate progress towards achieving the MDG targets by 2015. Amnesty International will be there, putting across your voice and demanding an increased focus on human rights protection as the solution to global poverty.
Sign the petition by 10 September and we will deliver your signature to MDG Summit Presidents.
Above: Fatimata N, 20 years old proudly holds her first born child in Kiembara where she gave birth a few days before .
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What are Millenium Development Goals ?
In 2000, countries around the world agreed to eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) as a global initiative to eradicate poverty by 2015. Ten years on, some progress has been made, but this has been uneven. There are still several impoverished and excluded communities that have yet to see the better life of the new millennium that was promised to the world. The MDGs focus on eight areas, each with their respective targets that are to be met by the deadline: End Poverty and Hunger, Universal Education, Gender Equality, Child Health, Maternal Health, Combat HIV/AIDS, Environment Sustainability, Global Partnership.
In Solidarity

Helen, Charlotte, Shehzaad, Evie, Tristam, Jennifer and the 2.8 million supporters of Amnesty International
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Find us on Twitter and Facebook at the Activism Center
Amnesty International
International Secretariat
1 Easton Street
London, WC1X 0DW
United Kingdom
www.amnesty.org

CFA & misconception of int’l ‘safety net’ -The Island

The Island

CFA & misconception of int’l ‘safety net’

Resettlement of Vadamaraadchi North uprooted families postponed indefinitely

TamilNet: 29.08.10 Resettlement of Vadamaraadchi North uprooted families postponed indefinitely

President to visit UN despite probe

President to visit UN despite probe

Demonstrations planned during the visit of the Sri Lankan President to the UN.

This should not surprise the GOSL, which is now a one man show and one family rule.
The UN and New York authorities are well prepared to handle such peaceful demonstrations.
Unlike in Sri Lanka, such activities are permitted in the USA.
Tamillatest.com
President to visit UN despite probe
Tight security amidst fears of protests by Fonseka supporters
By Our Diplomatic Editor
President Mahinda Rajapaksa will lead the Sri Lanka delegation to the United Nations next month.Some of Sri Lanka’s leaders in the business and industry sector will accompany him. They are to hold talks with their counterparts in the United States to promote trade and investment in Sri Lanka. Mr. Rajapaksa will also make private visits to Mexico and Germany during this tour.
Mr. Rajapaksa will take part in both the high level plenary meeting of the General Assembly on the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) as well as the sessions of the UN General Assembly. A slot has been reserved for him to address the MDG on September 22. More than 150 world leaders are expected to speak at this three-day summit meeting. This summit is to spill over to the UN General Assembly sessions which begin on Thursday September 23. President Rajapaksa is listed as the seventh speaker on the opening day after Brazil, the United States, Switzerland, Malawi, Pakistan and Costa Rica.
At the General Assembly sessions, President Rajapaksa, External Affairs Ministry sources said, would spell out matters relating to last year’s military defeat of Tiger guerrillas. “This is intended particularly to address issues which a UN panel on Sri Lanka is trying to probe,” a source said.
He said security during President Rajapaksa’s visit would be tight. According to reports reaching the Ministry, there are indications of protests and demonstrations outside the UN – not by Tamil expatriates or LTTE supporters but a group of Sinhala expatriates who are supportive of former Army Commander, Sarath Fonseka. However, a similar protest campaign last month in Los Angeles failed to assemble more than 15 participants.
The Ministry has advised the Sri Lanka mission to the United Nations to closely monitor the security situation and be very selective of the audience – both for a public reception and a visit to New York Buddhist Vihara – primarily to avoid any political confrontations or embarrassments.
As expected, President Rajapaksa has decided to skip the public lecture at New York’s Asia Society next month. External Affairs Minister G.L. Peiris has stepped in to address the Society on Monday September 17 at 6.30 p.m. The topic is expected to be post-conflict Sri Lanka.

The Scope of Canadian Conscience by Roy Ratnavel

The Scope of Canadian Conscience


by Roy Ratnavel
As my flight descended into Charleston, South Carolina, I could see Fort Sumpter in the horizon through my sunny window of the aged United Airlines CRJ aircraft. Fort Sumter is best known as the site upon which the first shots initiated the American Civil War — subsequently bringing on unimaginable suffering of the people during and after that gruesome period in American history.
This inspired me to write about the people I left behind almost 22 years ago and their unimaginable, still ongoing suffering due to the longest civil war in Asian history. Leading up to the finale of Sri Lankan Civil War, many military strategists, politicians and terror experts in the West have either failed to recognize the deeper issues in Sri Lanka or they have deliberately applied a methodology to cause one of the greatest humanitarian tragedies of the century.
The murder of many thousands of Tamils last year by the Sri Lankan government is one more proof of lack of common sense of Western countries intervention in Sri Lanka. The listing of the Tigers, and not condemning the atrocities of Sri Lanka on Tamils severed to only strengthen Sri Lanka's 'racial' tendencies, fanaticism and sheer brutality.
We are now witnessing the outcome of such one-sided Western meddling with Tamil freedom struggle. Proud people of 2000 year old rich culture of Indus Valley are now risking the high seas and their lives, including the lives of many orphans, begging for another chance at life, and all we Canadians can say is, "send them back." Ironically, we call ourselves a nation of 'civilized' people. One has to question if the mankind has already lost it's sanity.
Today, Sri Lanka is a ‘Democratic’ dictatorship run by a tiny elite family of thugs that suppresses the Tamil minority and denies past violence against Tamil civilians. But as always there are few noisiest cranks and sympathizers of Sri Lankan terror apparatus with clockwork prediction ready to suggest that the persecution of Tamils is a myth propagated by Tamil extremists. We know the kind of people who deny the Holocaust. What interest anyone has in denying the suffering of Tamils remains to be discovered.
I would like to recommend to those who are in denial to pick up a copy of a recent U.S. State Department report which highlights well-documented atrocities committed by Sri Lanka last year alone. Despite their sophomoric denials, the systematic abuses by Sri Lankan government forces are among the most serious imaginable. Finally, this year UN has ordered a warcrime investigation on Sri Lanka.
Canadian officials too should stop making pedestrian, boringly predictable utterances on public forums. Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said, passengers paid up to $50,000 for a spot on the Sun Sea. If this sum is accurate, it suggests these people were desperate enough to spend what amounts to a small fortune to escape their homeland. I think Canada should take their desperation seriously.
Toews laments that “terrorist planning and financing” behind this voyage is extremely prejudicial to these individuals and to the Tamil community. If I were fleeing persecution, I’d be grateful to any and all who facilitated my escape. The Tamil boat-people should not be tainted by a blanket presumption of guilt.
Right now Tamils are sort of isolated, being demonized and the sense is growing in Canada that anything associated with Tamils is somehow alien, foreign and aggressive. And that is very dangerous line of thinking. Minister Toews irresponsible comments only helps to fan this illicit flame of anger.
Even the possibility that the Canadian government may be considering a deal to share intelligence with the Sri Lankan government is reprehensible. Few years back Sri Lanka was voted out of UN Human Rights Council. Sri Lankan government even said our parliamentarian Bob Rae and the Swedish Foreign Minister are a threat to Sri Lanka’s national security. Given such lack of credibility and idiocy, relying on Sri Lankan authorities for background checks on Tamil refugees who have arrived on our shores makes as much as sense as asking Colonel Sanders, "What's for dinner?"
Tamils arrival in Canada started in earnest 27 years ago in 1983 after the Sri Lankan government orchestrated horrendous race riot in July of that year. The mass exodus accelerated in the last decade of last century resulting in the largest Sri Lankan Tamil population outside of Sri Lanka. Since then, collectively Tamil lives were ‘rewired’ in this great land, and all around the free world outside the borders of Sri Lanka.
Prior to this, Tamils world consisted of the notion that populace mattered little. It is a word associated with state aggression and brutality. Tamils were exposed to death and destruction and witnessed many atrocities, engulfing us in general malaise. They are from a country where weapons dominated, and the slaughter of innocents was a form of development aid for the government.
Canadian environment of political freedom and freedom of choice, the process of enantiodromia began in one form or another. Tamils gradual transformation began from an unfairly organized, flawed democratic system into a liberal Democracy where one has the freedom to attempt to shape their own life. Tamils gained the opportunity of knowing and choosing between different forms of life — and, have now established a mounting presence in multiple facets of Canadian life: business, academic, political and social.
While the past may not repeat itself, it does often rhyme, as Mark Twain once said. Tamils’ future chapters to come may be different, but the verses are likely to sound the same. Contemporary events differ from history in that we do not know the results they will produce. Looking back, we can assess the significance of our past experiences, situations, hardships we faced and trace the consequences they have brought in our adopted country. While history runs its course, it is not history to us — rather, it’s our collective experience.
Tamils have worked their own salvation, their survival, in a long series of acts, conditions and judgments. Now Tamils who live outside of Sri Lanka have purpose. This purpose is a big part of Tamil survival. Hereto between life and death, these 492 souls arrived on our shores — chose life. Chose Canada.
Dangerous game of guilt by association could be played with almost anybody with a card and a highlighter. This whole thing has gotten to a panic mode. In our panic, us Canadians lost sight of something very important. If only someone could step up and cut through all this political posturing, grandstanding and fear-mongering and remind us what Canada is all about — a ‘civilized’ nation.
Rather than creating a smokescreen with bitter rhetoric about terrorism, Canada’s priority must be to expedite due process of each refugee claim to determine if they are legitimate refugees. Similar accusations were made last year as well when Ocean Lady came to our shores with 76 Tamil men and it turned out to be unprovable. Canada must stop this predictable pattern of reaction because such entry doesn’t need villains. Hate is diving us, and this hate is then harvested and sold as news.
If Tamils victimized in this conflict and fearing further persecution put their lives in the hands of smugglers, they are only doing what so many refugees before them have been forced to do. As an island nation, there is no way out of Sri Lanka but by air or sea. Anyone who says that ‘these people’ should have applied for entry to Canada through ‘the proper channels’ certainly haven’t paid attention to the news emerging from Sri Lanka.
Canada has an obligation under our law to take refugee claims seriously and give them due process. What is not sure is if Canadian government will send them all back to appease the masses to gain political milage — which will be unfortunate. What is for sure is if Canada sends them back without hearing their stories, then we Canadians have no right to claim that we are a ‘civilized nation.’
As I leave, I wonder if Sri Lanka could ever become like South Carolina after the civil war — devoid of state orchestrated killings but full of economic hope, peace and prosperity. And, how long would that take? Until then, Tamil boats will be roaming the friendly waters. Fort Sumpter appeared through my window yet again, as I ascended towards the cloudy sky.

roy_ratnavel@hotmail.com

Friday, August 27, 2010

Roy Ratnavel is a former Vice President of the Canadian Tamil Congress, and GTF.

The Tamil Film Maker in France:

The Island

The Film Maker
August 28, 2010, 12:00 pm
Pradeepan Raveendran

Pradeepan Raveendran was born in Jaffna, Sri Lanka in July 1981. He attended Jaffna Hindu College until he was 15 years old, when he and his family suffered forced displacement due to the war and had to move to his mother’s birthplace in Negombo, Sri Lanka. Pradeepan attended Wijeyaratnam Central College in Negombo.
In 2000, he began to focus on developing his childhood interest in both film and photography. He became a self-taught photographer and began to obsessively study film as well. Due to the heightening civil strife in Sri Lanka at that time, he applied for and was granted asylum status in France. He arrived in Paris as a refugee in 2004. In Paris, he became a part of the Tamil alternative political and literary circles, writing articles for Uyirinizhal (Shadows of the Soul), an independent Tamil political and literary magazine. He remains on the board of Uyirinizhal.
During this time he also became a serious professional photographer and was selected to stage 2 exhibitions, one in Paris and the other in Berlin. These exhibitions were contemporary documents of the lives of refugees in France; showing the textures of the dark spaces they occupy on the periphery of French society.
Pradeepan continues to live as a refugee in Paris.
A Synopsis
11min/2010/Sri Lanka - France/Tamil with English subtitles/RED ONE 4K

In 2010, Pradeepan completed his second short film called "Shadows of Silence", about the life in exile of a family man with three small children and one wife. This story picks up on an earlier theme of Pradeepan’s work on the border-life of refugees. The film is a deeply felt look at the personal torment of an exile and the permanent presence of pain and alienation in the depths of his heart. It shows how his bleak dreams and illusions echo instead the profound isolation of a shattered mind, driving him to contemplate ending his life.
Awards: "Shadows of Silence" premiered at the Cannes International Film Festival in 2010, as part of its prestigious ‘Director’s Fortnight’, dedicated to honouring alternative and independent film globally. It is due to be screened at many more festivals in 2010 and 2011.

No visa-on-arrival in Lanka - Hindustan Times

No visa-on-arrival in Lanka - Hindustan Times

There could be a serious impact on the Tourism industry for Sri Lanka if this new
law is implemented. Further more the Sri Lankan embassies could be inundated
with visa applications.

Although half a million tourist visited Sri Lanka, one fifth of that number is from India.
It is estimated that as high as 40% could be the Tamil, Sinhala, Burgher and Muslim
diaspora who now have foreign passports. They also make multiple visits. Journalist,
NGO's and businessman also visit regularly and obtain a tourist visa on arrival.
Now the process gets complicated if they have to obtain visas from the SL Embassies.
Sources say this new law is the government's paranoia about the human rights violations
and war crimes investigations, where many interested parties are visiting Sri Lanka as
tourist. So are the members of the Tamil diaspora, and the GOSL is simply paranoid.
Among the highest number of visitors to the island in recent months have been tourists
from India who get visa on arrival.

Sri Lanka is becoming like secluded regimes like Myanmar and North Korea.
Tamil Latest News:
Sri Lanka to withdraw visa on arrival: public notice
Aug 27, 2010 (LBO) - The Sri Lankan government has decided to withdraw the on-arrival visa facility to tourists from September 30, 2010, a public notice said.
The Department of Immigration & Emigration website said on-arrival visas will be given only to visitors from countries that reciprocate.No reason was given for the change and immigration department officials were not immediately available for comment.
Tourists from all countries except Singapore and Maldives will be required to obtain prior entry visa before their arrival in Sri Lanka either from the Department of Immigration & Emigration in Colombo or from the Sri Lanka missions abroad.
Tourism industry officials said the move could hit tourist arrivals which have been increasing rapidly since the island's 30-year ethnic war ended in May 2009.