Monthly Archives: February 2012


Practical steps to meaningful reconciliation in Sri Lanka

CORRECTION: Yesterday we erroneously attributed this statement to the Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) we regret the error. It is a joint statement by several concerned individuals. 
17th February 2012, Colombo, Sri Lanka: Several valuable recommendations are contained in the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission’s (LLRC) Report and they are all the more compelling because they have […]

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By Statement | Published on February 17, 2012 at 9:19 pm

Sri Lanka: On The Edge Of The Knife

Valentine’s day carcass
There is always a fallacious belief that, It would not be the same here; here such things are impossible[1]. The morning of Valentine’s Day (February 14) started with the unwholesome smell of the burnt carcass of a person; the incident took place in the central part of Colombo, which is one of most […]

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By Nilantha Ilangamuwa | Published on February 17, 2012 at 9:10 pm

Press Conference by Under Secretary Maria Otero and Assistant Secretary Robert O. Blake, Jr. in Colombo

February 13, 2012:
Under Secretary Otero: Thank you. Good afternoon. I’m pleased to be here in Colombo for the first time.
I’ve had serious and productive meetings with the government of Sri Lanka as well as with civil society, political leaders, and journalists. President Rajapaksa was
kind enough to meet with me and to explain this government’s vision […]

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By Staff Correspondent | Published on February 14, 2012 at 9:57 pm

US will support resolution on Sri Lanka at HRC sessions in Geneva

There are indications that the US Government will support a resolution at the forthcoming March session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva that, among other things, will call on the Sri Lankan government to implement the recommendations of its Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission. US Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton is reported to have […]

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By Dr. Jehan Perera | Published on February 14, 2012 at 11:40 am

Independence is only meaningful if all people able to live free of fear and suspicion

“Freedom of expression and the right to information is extremely restricted as increasingly there are controls on dissent and information channels are blocked. Providing authentic information regarding the dead and those who have disappeared, to their relatives, continues to be an urgent humanitarian need. There is a misrepresentation of such action, as not taken in […]

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By Rt Revd Kumara Illangasinghe | Published on February 14, 2012 at 11:29 am

Suma must not make the standard error of ‘cosmopolitan’ Tamil nationalists, of taking the Sinhalese for fools

As world class singers of Sri Lankan Tamil parentage go, MIA isn’t half as good as a new voice, Bhi Bhiman, an American singer of blues–tinged folk music with a
voice as clear and mournful as the whistle of a lonesome train coming ’round the bend. MIA’s flair for the theatrical far outstrips her singing talent. […]

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By Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka | Published on February 14, 2012 at 10:50 am

New film tells story of Sri Lankan journalists forced into exile

“I believe a journalist can change the world,” says exiled Sri Lankan journalist Sonali Samarasinghe, “if not why are we here then”. Sonali is one of three exiled
journalists, from the minority Tamil and majority Sinhalese communities, whose stories are told in a new Norwegian film, Silenced Voices, by Beate Arnestadpreviewed last night at the Fritt […]

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By Frances Harrison | Published on February 12, 2012 at 1:18 am

Time for a reality check on the Sri Lankan civil war

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) are expected to consider a motion tabled by the United States over Sri Lankan accountability for war crimes later
this month, nearly three years after the end of the island nation’s bloody civil war between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a rebelsecessionist militia.
The government […]

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By Emanuel Stoakes | Published on February 12, 2012 at 12:27 am

IC gearing up for action to hold Sri Lanka accountable for alleged war crimes

THERE are signs that the international community is gearing up for action to hold Sri Lanka accountable for alleged war crimes committed by its forces at the end of
the brutal civil war against the Tamil Tiger rebels in 2009.
A resolution is being prepared for next month’s session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva […]

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By Frances Harrison | Published on February 12, 2012 at 12:04 am

Humility-The Hallmark of a Great Human Being

Gandhi dressed to be accepted by the poorest person in India, advocating the use of homespun cloth (khadi). He and his followers adopted the practice of weaving their own cloth. President of the United States Barack Obama in an address to a Joint Session of the Parliament of India said that:”I am mindful that I […]

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By Lakshman Indranath Keerthisinghe | Published on February 8, 2012 at 11:58 am


Human Rights

Practical steps to meaningful reconciliation in Sri Lanka

CORRECTION: Yesterday we erroneously attributed this statement to the Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) we regret the error. It is a joint statement by several ...

Human Rights

Sri Lanka: On The Edge Of The Knife

Valentine’s day carcass Mahinda Rajapakse There is always a fallacious belief that, It would not be the same here; here such things are impossible[1]. The morning of ...

Issues

Press Conference by Under Secretary Maria Otero and Assistant Secretary Robert O. Blake, Jr. in Colombo

February 13, 2012: Under Secretary Otero: Thank you. Good afternoon. I’m pleased to be here in Colombo for the first time. I’ve had serious and productive meetings ...

Issues

US will support resolution on Sri Lanka at HRC sessions in Geneva

There are indications that the US Government will support a resolution at the forthcoming March session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva that, ...

Issues

Independence is only meaningful if all people able to live free of fear and suspicion

“Freedom of expression and the right to information is extremely restricted as increasingly there are controls on dissent and information channels are blocked. Providing authentic ...

Opinion

Suma must not make the standard error of ‘cosmopolitan’ Tamil nationalists, of taking the Sinhalese for fools

As world class singers of Sri Lankan Tamil parentage go, MIA isn’t half as good as a new voice, Bhi Bhiman, an American singer of ...

Issues

New film tells story of Sri Lankan journalists forced into exile

“I believe a journalist can change the world,” says exiled Sri Lankan journalist Sonali Samarasinghe, “if not why are we here then”. Sonali is one ...

Human Rights

Time for a reality check on the Sri Lankan civil war

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) are expected to consider a motion tabled by the United States over Sri Lankan accountability for war crimes ...

Human Rights

IC gearing up for action to hold Sri Lanka accountable for alleged war crimes

THERE are signs that the international community is gearing up for action to hold Sri Lanka accountable for alleged war crimes committed by its forces ...

Issues

Humility-The Hallmark of a Great Human Being

Gandhi dressed to be accepted by the poorest person in India, advocating the use of homespun cloth (khadi). He and his followers adopted the practice ...