Monthly Archives: March 2012

Sri Lanka’s North: Rebuilding under the Military

16 March 2012: Sri Lanka’s military is dominating the reconstruction of the Northern Province, weakening international humanitarian efforts and worsening tensions with the ethnic Tamil majority. Since the war ended in 2009, hundreds of millions of dollars have
poured into the province, but the local populations, mostly left destitute by the conflict, have seen only slight improvements […]

By International Crisis Group | Published on March 17, 2012 at 1:27 am

Sri Lanka’s North: The Denial of Minority Rights

16 March 2012: Deepening militarisation and the lack of accountable governance in Sri Lanka’s Northern Province are preventing a return to normal life and threaten future violence. Scene of the most bitter fighting in the civil war, the Tamil-majority north remains under de facto military occupation, with all important policies set by Sinhala officials in Colombo. […]

By International Crisis Group | Published on March 17, 2012 at 1:24 am

Can Sri Lanka achieve reconciliation?

ALJAZEERA: We ask if the government is committed to harmony as alleged evidence of war crimes against Tamils airs on British TV.
It was a civil war that ravaged Sri Lanka for almost 30 years. Hundreds of thousands of people were killed, many of them civilians. And now damning evidence in a documentary aired in Britain alleges […]

By Aljazeera | Published on March 16, 2012 at 9:45 pm

US Resolution criticises, surges beyond LLRC

It is almost a crime to lie to the people and mislead them on a matter of vital national interest. When it is committed by politicians it is an act of unconscionable opportunism. When it is perpetrated by so-called intellectuals belonging to civil society, it is a
counterfeiting of the currency of the intellect and the […]

By Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka | Published on March 16, 2012 at 9:37 pm

Don’t link critics to LTTE, Sri Lanka told

Human Rights Watch said Thursday (March 15) that it was wrong on the part of the Sri Lankan government to link those questioning the country’s human rights record with the Tamil Tigers.
“The (Mahindra) Rajapaksa government’s strident opposition to this is hard to understand,” a Human Rights Watch spokeswoman said, ahead of the voting in Geneva […]

By | Published on March 16, 2012 at 9:29 pm

Anderson Cooper and M.I.A. get in heated twitter feud over Sri Lanka

As M.I.A. tuned in to watch Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields: War Crimes Unpunished, a film about the country’s war ending against the Tamil Tigers in 2009, on Wednesday, she was engaging in a different battle herself.
Starting what would become a multi-tweet feud with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, the Sri Lankan singer tweeted, “Anderson Cooper called me […]

By | Published on March 16, 2012 at 9:22 pm

The viciousness of Channel 4 in its pursuit of regime change

In a statement from Geneva , Prof. Rajiva Wijesinha , Presidential Adviser on Reconciliation, responded to claims in the latest Channel 4 film on Sri Lanka . Prof. Rajiva Wijesinha is currently Chair of the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats and was re-elected
leader of the Liberal Party of Sri Lanka .
Responding to Channel 4’s […]

By Rajiva Wijesinghe | Published on March 16, 2012 at 9:06 pm

UN Human Rights Council meeting – Another Farce

Below are excerpts of a 38 page paper by Brian Senewiratne (MA. MD. FRCP.FRACP) of Brisbane, Australia titled UN Human Rights Council Meeting – Another Farce.
Excerpts:
“This is not a document for easy reading, nor is it meant to be. It is a reasonably comprehensive record of the abysmal record of the UN and the UN […]

By Brian Senewiratne | Published on March 16, 2012 at 8:57 pm

Sri Lanka: Unpunished Crimes

In 2011 Channel 4 exposed damning evidence of atrocities committed in the war in Sri Lanka. Jon Snow presents this powerful follow-up film, revealing new video evidence as well as contemporaneous documents, eye-witness accounts, photographic stills and videos relating to how exactly events unfolded during the final days of the civil war.
The film forensically examines […]

By | Published on March 16, 2012 at 8:37 pm

Dispelling misinformation and myths regarding the UNHRC resolution and its impact on Sri Lanka

This document provides basic information on the United Nations Human Rights Council(UNHRC), the proposed resolution on Sri Lanka at the present 19th Session of the UNHRC and its implications. This document aims to clarify some of the basic facts and
developments and dispel any misinformation and myths regarding the resolution and its impact on Sri Lanka and […]

By Centre for Policy Alternatives | Published on March 16, 2012 at 8:26 pm