The head of a leading Tamil diaspora group says he had talks with Foreign Secretary Prasad Kariyawasam and other Foreign Ministry officials in Colombo.
Five years after the release of the Report of the Secretary General’s Panel of Experts (PoE) on Accountability in Sri Lanka, in March 2011.
Geneva-based United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) could revisit resolution 30/1 titled ‘Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka’ top UN official said on Wednesday.
Former Royal Air Force (RAF) pilot Michael Wolfgang Laurence Morris, or Lord Naseby, has severely rattled the UN, relentlessly pursuing a war crimes investigation, in Sri Lanka, in accordance with Geneva Resolution 30/1, adopted on Oct. 1, 2015.
There is currently a debate about the drafting of a ‘New Constitution’ for the country among the academic community and the general public in Sri Lanka.
Fr. S.J. Emmanuel, leader of the UK based Global Tamil Forum (GTF), arrived in Sri Lanka last week on what his organisation officials describe as a “low profile” visit.
A top leader of the Tamil diaspora is in Sri Lanka for the first time since a ban on him and his organisation was lifted. Global Tamil Forum (GTF) President, Father S. J. Emmanuel had talks in Colombo and Jaffna during his visit.
It is ten years since the civil war ended in Sri Lanka. The final phase of the war is one of the most brutal in recent history and mass atrocity crimes were systematically committed against the Tamil people. The shelling of civilian areas and hospitals, and the blockade of essential goods including food and medicine, killed an estimated 40,000 to 70,000 Tamil civilians in the final months. And thousands of civilians and combatants disappeared as they surrendered to the Sri Lankan armed forces, even days after the end of war.
The Global Tamil Forum (GTF) is shocked and saddened by the targeted attacks in churches and hotels across Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday. The scale of the violence, particularly on a day of worship and celebration, with more than 200 deaths and many hundreds injured is deeply disturbing.
The Need for Time-bound Action Plan for full implementation of Resolutions 30/1 & 34/1
The recent appointment of Shavendra Silva (Silva) as the Chief of Staff of the Sri Lankan army has sent shock waves through the Tamil community, and to all those interested in human rights and accountability in Sri Lanka. Such appointment, particularly as Sri Lanka’s human rights record is about to be reviewed in Geneva in March 2019, is a clear message to the international community that the country cares little about its views and the potential consequences of its failures in faithfully implementing the UNHRC resolution 30, 34/1.
Sri Lanka’s constitutional crisis is deepening. Only a few days ago, President Sirisena ominously warned that he had more ‘tools’ at his disposal, implying more to come in the ‘constitutional coup’ he had set in motion. True to his word and on top of his earlier actions, including illegal transfer of power from a sitting Prime Minister and proroguing the Parliament without consulting the Speaker, President Sirisena has dissolved the Parliament without any legitimate explanation. The Global Tamil Forum (GTF) condemns these unconstitutional and illegal actions in the strongest possible terms.