Tamils sue Germany for accepting alleged war crimes commander as ambassador

[TamilNet, Saturday, 24 July 2010, 23:54 GMT]
In an unprecedented legal move, three diaspora Tamil organisations have decided on Friday to file a case against Germany in the European Court of Human Rights. The Switzerland Council of Eezham Tamils (SCET), the Norwegian Council of Eezham Tamils (NCET) and the US based NGO, Tamils Against Genocide (TAG), are to submit an application to the European Court of Human Rights 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, as Sri Lanka’s diplomat to Germany. Meanwhile, German based International Human Rights Association at Bremen, while welcoming the move said that real thrust could be achieved only by exposing and suing what this general is doing in Germany, violating human rights with the tacit approval of the German government.
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Tamil Country Councils, TAG announce legal partnership

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 July 2010, 01:02 GMT]
Four democratically-elected Country Councils (CCs) of Eezham Tamils in Europe announced Tuesday the signing of a formal "Collaboration Agreement" with Tamils Against Genocide (TAG), a US-based activist group, to form a co-operative relationship to pursue criminal and civil litigation against Sri Lanka officials complicit in war-crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity in the courts of European Community member countries and in international courts. "Norway, Switzerland, France and Italy have already signed the preliminary agreement. The National Council of Canadian Tamils has also decided to formally join the partnership and other countries are expected to join the collaboration effort," spokesperson coordinating the effort in Europe told TamilNet.
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China sends convicts to work in Sri Lanka, Maldives

[TamilNet, Sunday, 18 July 2010, 12:56 GMT]
Thousands of Chinese convicts have been pressed into service in projects by state-run Chinese companies in Sri Lanka, a strategically important country for China, which is seeking a role in the Indian Ocean. Chinese convicts also have been taken to a microstate in the Indian Ocean, the Maldives, where the Chinese government is building 4,000 houses on several different islands as a government-to- government "gift" to win influence there, writes Indian Professor of Strategic Studies Brahma Chellaney in The Japan Times, 5th July. A couple of months back a Chinese technician working in the construction of Nuraichchoalai thermal power plant undertaken by China in Puththa’lam district was arrested for alleged rape of a minor girl, Sri Lankan media reported.
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Naakappaduvan-ku’lam

[TamilNet, Thursday, 15 July 2010, 18:47 GMT]
The pond named after Naakan of the Paduvar community
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Verdict on Sri Lanka should be warning to others: Pakistan Newspaper

[TamilNet, Thursday, 15 July 2010, 18:07 GMT]
“The verdict on Sri Lanka should come as a warning to other armies fighting on their own soil”, says Thursday’s editorial of Pakistan’s influential newspaper Dawn, commenting on UN’s efforts of war crimes investigation and Sri Lanka’s opposition to it. “The war was conducted by the army but had the full backing of the president who believed that Tamil Eelam was an intractable problem which could not be resolved through political means”, the Dawn said. Meanwhile, Tamil circles were commenting on the war crimes of peace brokers. The former peace facilitator Erik Solheim made a statement last month that lives would have been saved and the UN, the USA and India would have taken over the situation had the LTTE surrendered. Why didn’t he tell this possibility when hundreds of thousands took to street to stop the war, asks Dr. T. Sivakanesan, a member of Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam.
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Seeman’s arrest draws media attention in Tamil Nadu

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 13 July 2010, 17:01 GMT]
The arrest by a special team of Chennai police of Seeman, a popular film director and leader of Naam Thamizhar movement at Chepauk in Chennai Monday night along with thirteen of his supporters have drawn the attention of the media in Tamil Nadu including The Hindu, Deccan Chronicle and Expressbuzz.com. The gruesome way the Tamil Nadu fisherman Sellappan was beaten to death by the Sri Lanka Navy on 09 July had provoked strong reactions in Tamil Nadu. Sri Lanka Navy has killed 537 Tamil Nadu fishermen either by shooting or beating to death, according to Mr. Seeman.
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War crimes and human civilisation

[TamilNet, Monday, 12 July 2010, 08:19 GMT]
A war will not end without the delivery of political justice to the core issue. Even the winners who waged World Wars for the monopoly of colonies couldn’t escape conceding independence to colonies. USA and India bungling political justice to the national question in the island will have a bearing on Afghan War, Western Civilisation and on Indian integrity. The solidarity of Eezham Tamil diaspora is as important a trump as the geopolitical trump of Sri Lanka. In its historic duty to its nation and to civilisation, the diaspora without succumbing to lures should intensely align with the people of Tamil Nadu and progressive Sinhalese in realising political justice and in seeing no others ever suffer like Eezham Tamils. The last diplomatic chance for the USA and India to make ‘strategic partnership’ a smooth affair is to jointly uphold the balance of nations in the island.
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‘All roads lead to Mahinda Rajapaksa’

[TamilNet, Sunday, 11 July 2010, 19:24 GMT]
The Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh advised the visiting Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians to work with Mahinda Rajapaksa to find political solution, according to media reports Friday. The TNA parliamentarian A. Vinayagamoorthy was cited saying: "Prime Minister Dr Singh advised us to take along with us the Muslims, the upcountry Tamils and others and work unitedly with President Rajapaksa to evolve a solution to the Tamil problem. We told him we will try to do so." The MP further said: "We depend hundred per cent on India for help to find a political solution acceptable to our people. We will be happy if President Mahinda Rajapaksa gives us what India thinks is reasonable."
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Ki'n'niyaa

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 July 2010, 00:58 GMT]
The expanse of Ki'n'nai trees (Sonneratia caselaris)
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SLA demolishes Koappaay Thamizh Eezham Heroes Cemeteries

[TamilNet, Sunday, 04 July 2010, 18:11 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers along with Sinhalese thugs are engaged in obliterating Koappay Thamizh Eezham Heroes War Cemetery (Thamizh Eezha Maaveerar Thuyilum Illam), the only one that remained in Jaffna peninsula, for the last three days, residents of the neighbouring villages said. The remnants of the graves, memorial plaques and monuments are taken away in the night to unknown destination, the sources added.
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SLA obliterates Tiger Heroes' Cemeteries, erects military bases

[TamilNet, Saturday, 03 July 2010, 18:23 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) which has been systematically razing to the ground without any traces the Thamizh Eezham Heroes War Cemeteries (Thamizh Eezha Maaveerar Thuyilum Illam) in several places of North and East, has in recent weeks obliterated the Thuyilum Illam at Kodikaaman in Thenmaraadchi, Jaffna, and is erecting a big SLA base in its place. Ellangku’lam Heroes Cemetery in Udupiddi in Vadamaraadchi had been already destroyed without any trace and the premises converted into an SLA base. The obliterated Thuyilum Illam is now enclosed by barbed wire fence and hidden by coconut cadjans where a large number of SLA soldiers are hurriedly constructing a base. Tamil circles view the systematic destruction of Tamil war heroes' cemeteries and the symbols of the Tamil struggle in north and East as part of a large-scale genocide programme on Tamils by the Sri Lankan state.
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Clash of Roadmaps

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 30 June 2010, 19:33 GMT]
The Mahinda – KP move handled by the military intelligence of Sri Lanka, whether a culmination of a long-term strategy or a move to probe the diaspora, is now backfiring against Colombo, is backfiring against some international actors harping on wrong notions of reconciliation and is backfiring against some elements in the diaspora which were long dreaming on the success of this move to trail behind with their tangential politics.
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Australian War Crimes motion illustrates paradigm shift

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 29 June 2010, 19:25 GMT]
Australia is expected to back international calls for a war crimes probe in Sri Lanka after a motion urging national support was passed in parliament on Thursday. The motion, put forward by Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, comes amid a significant paradigm shift in the orientation of Australia’s Tamil Diaspora, many who have looked to the Greens Party, seen as the “3rd force” in a two-party preferred political system. The formation of Australian “Tamils for Greens” (TFG), a largely voting youth initiated advocacy group, illustrates shifting alliances and growing disenchantment towards the Labor and Liberal parties, whom, despite harbouring sympathetic parliamentarians towards the plight of Eezham Tamils, have remained largely nonchalant in their orientation towards the social and political struggle of Tamils in the island of Sri Lanka.
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KP-Diaspora programme operated by SL Military Intelligence: Doctor Arudkumar

[TamilNet, Monday, 28 June 2010, 21:31 GMT]
Sri Lankan Director of National Intelligence, Major General Kapila Hendawitharana, the longest serving intelligence officer of the military, is in charge of the covert and overt programme of dividing and conquering the Tamil diaspora, alludes British Tamil doctor Velauthapillai Arudkumar, who visited the island recently as part of a ‘Tamil diaspora visit’ organised by Colombo through Selvarasa Pathmanathan alias KP. TamilNet releases an exclusive video interview with Dr. Arudkumar taken two days ago, in which he reveals the details of the trip. SL Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Maj. Gen. Hendawitharana and External Affairs Minister G.L.Peiris, all spoke in a well-synchronised way. Military counterinsurgency and 'post-war development' are intertwined aiming at Tamil subjugation, the doctor infers in his interview.
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Tamil Brahmi inscription found in Tissamaharama

[TamilNet, Sunday, 27 June 2010, 02:59 GMT]
An early historic inscription in Tamil language and in Tamil Brahmi script, dateable to c.200 BCE, has been found in the archaeological excavations by a German team at Tissamaharama in the down south of the island of Sri Lanka. The inscription deciphered by I. Mahadevan as ‘Thira’li Mu’ri,’ which means ‘written agreement of the assembly,’ was incised on an early historic Black and Red Ware pottery. The last letter of the inscription, which is retroflex Tamil ‘Ri’, is very clearly a Tamil phoneme in Tamil Brahmi script, academics commented. The Tamil Brahmi inscription is also found mixed with megalithic or early historic graffiti marks, which were probably the symbols of the guild, they further said. Tissamaharama or ancient Mahaagama is located close to Kathirkaamam (Kataragama), a famous pilgrim centre for Tamils as well as Sinhalese.
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Development without politics dangerous to Tamils

[TamilNet, Friday, 25 June 2010, 06:06 GMT]
By blackmailing the Tamil nation through the plight of its people and by handling ‘development’ in counterinsurgency style, Colombo is trying to lock the diaspora away from political cause, and by demonstrating it, Colombo is seeking acquittal of its crimes in the international arena as well as money for its greed. De-linking development from decision-making political sovereignty of Tamils is advantageous to sectarian Sinhala polity, it is convenient to the international polity of the corporates, but how it is beneficial to the affected, is the question. Diaspora Tamils taking individual or petty-group decisions on development is suicidal. Rather they should demonstrate that they have collective polity and political control independent of Colombo, in dealing with their development. It is for such purposes the diaspora has elected a number of bodies and they should do the orientation.
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Russia opposes UN Panel on Sri Lanka

[TamilNet, Thursday, 24 June 2010, 19:29 GMT]
UN Secretary-General should have asked the Security Council or the General Assembly before appointing the panel to advise him on war crime investigation on the sovereign member state of Sri Lanka, says a statement of the foreign ministry of the Russian Federation Thursday. The UN should allow Sri Lanka's own investigations and the Secretary General's decision for the panel is unwarranted, is the Russian position. Russia's earlier stand against Eezham Tamils in the Human Rights Council and its present position have evoked serious concern among the traditional supporters of Russia in Tamil Nadu. The Russian stand paves way for international abetment of structural genocide of Eezham Tamils in their homeland, which the Sri Lankan state is presently carrying out, leftist circles in Tamil Nadu said.
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Continuing ‘counter insurgency’ approach to chronic national question

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 23 June 2010, 11:41 GMT]
Colombo’s latest deployment of Selvarasa Pathmanathan (KP), a victim of circumstances, to blunt the Eezham Tamil struggle only reveals that ‘counter insurgency’ is the style continued to be envisaged by some powers in approaching the chronic national question in the island, commented Tamil circles watching the developments. The move, bereft of any political promises, but aiming at roping in the diaspora for ‘development,’ comes after the visit of G L Peiris to Washington, Robert Blake lamenting that still “some polarisation” exists in the island and amidst heavy visits of dignitaries in the last couple of weeks. The move is not surprising. It is a sequence of a long-existing design, operated simultaneously through good and ugly faces of the West, observers said. The KP operation in Colombo is handled by a controversial group of foreign-trained Sri Lankan military intelligence personnel.
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Colombo intensifies spread of Buddhism in North

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 22 June 2010, 17:51 GMT]
Buses carrying around two thousand Buddhist priests under heavy escort carrying a sacred statue of Buddha on a pilgrimage to Jaffna had passed Vavuniyaa Monday and entered Vanni main land through A9 road, sources in Vavuniyaa said. The buses, however, have not reached Jaffna until Tuesday evening and it is assumed that the Buddhist priests, on an urgent mission to spread Buddhism in the North, are engaged in some unannounced opening ceremonies of newly erected Buddhist Viharas in Vanni by the occupying Sri Lanka Army (SLA) directed by Colombo government, sources in Jaffna said.
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