Archive for the ‘Human Security’

Protests in Katunayake Free Trade Zone: No police in sight

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Vikalpa captured these images and video at the protest held yesterday in the Katunayake Free Trade Zone. Tens of thousands of workers have been involved in violent demonstrations this week against a proposed pension bill seen as grossly unfair. Over 200 were injured on Monday alone, by Tuesday, the demonstrations forced the closure of 70% of the factories in the zone, forcing the government to withdraw the bill. In March, the government noted how it would benefit the working classes, Referring to President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s recent statement on the proposed pension scheme in Parliament, Labour Minister Gamini Lokuge told the Sunday Observer that the Bill will be presented in Parliament next month. The working class in the country will be provided a permanent income for life after retirement under this scheme. “Although the private sector pension scheme issue was discussed with trade unions in the past, it would definitely be introduced this time in keeping with the Mahinda Chintana concept,…

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Placing ‘Defeating Terrorism: Sri Lankan Experience Seminar’ in a critical light

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Admirably, the Government was kind and open enough to provide a live web feed of the proceedings of the three day Defeating Terrorism: Sri Lankan Experience seminar, held in Colombo. This allowed for non-invitees and non-participants like us to monitor the saccharine presentations via the web, flagging inconsistencies as well as inconvenient truths that were unsurprisingly left out or marginalised in the proceedings. Often tongue-in-cheek but flagging serious issues and concerns, our updates over Twitter and on this site were anchored to content presented at the seminar by a range of government and army representatives. We published a key address by Australian counter-terrorism expert David Kilcullen on Day One and, given it’s official stance, rather surprising comments by the US Embassy’s Defence Attache on Day Two. On day three, the final day of the seminar, we listened in real time to the presentations by Ajith Nivard Cabraal, Governor of the Central Bank, Lalith Weeratunge, Permanent Secretary to the President of…

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A robust debate on No Fire Zones (NFZs) and International Humanitarian Law: Artful dodging of war crimes in Sri Lanka?

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Original image courtesy PEDRO UGARTE/AFP/Getty Images A central challenge of curating content on Groundviews is that some of the most interesting discussions which occur on comment threads get obscured over time, and are less visible than the primary material published here. A case in point is the recent thrust and parry of wit over the establishment of the No Fire Zones towards the end of war in Sri Lanka. The debate was between two leading voices on this site and the Sri Lankan new media landscape, Aachcharya and David Blacker, in response to a review of The Cage, the explosive new book on the end of war by former UN spokesperson Gordon Weiss. What follows are key excerpts from this comment thread. To read the exchange in full, click here and scroll down to see the nested comments. In all of the following excerpts, points in bold are by us and not in the original. The debate began with a…

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Reflecting on the End of the Sri Lankan Civil War: The Need for a New Conversation in the Global Sri Lankan Community

Although military hostilities in Sri Lanka ended two years ago, the dynamics of the conversation in the global Sri Lankan community continues to be influenced by the nations’ past conflicts. Decades of communal grievances and misunderstandings have seemingly scarred our grandparents’ and parents’ generations to voice visions of a brighter future. Much of the current dialogue in the leadership of our communities attempts to justify past military actions and policy decisions. One community of elders extols the virtues of a successful military campaign against terror, conducted with little limits. A second community of elders focuses on building a separate nation without seeking alternate means of serving the population they supposedly represent. The Need for a New Conversation Common to both approaches – largely exclusionary of each other – is a substantive discourse of what the future should look like. Absent from the argument of who committed war crimes and who are terrorists is a discussion of the daily challenges faced…

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From Haiti Hell: Perspectives from the ground a year after the earthquake

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Words Hugh Bohane. Pictures Alison Thompson. Australian nurse, filmmaker and author Alison Thompson is making a name for herself, selflessly volunteering to help in dangerous global calamities, such as in the aftermath of the 2004 Asian Tsunami – and now in Haiti. When the Haiti earthquake struck in January 2010, her buddy, two-time Academy Award-winning actor Sean Penn (who had previously backed her Third Wave film about the Tsunami in Sri Lanka) asked if she was interested in joining him in an important Haiti relief effort. Alison and Sean have been working together in Haiti ever since then, setting up their own NGO’s and making a very real difference to relieve the Haitian people’s suffering. Both have received awards for their efforts. Alison was awarded the (OAM) Medal of the Order of Australia (general division), while Sean was awarded the Hollywood Humanitarian Honor for his work in Haiti. This from a letter Alison wrote to her parents from the field…

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An elephantine gestation: UN Panel’s report on accountability in Sri Lanka released

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Leaked versions of the UN Panel’s report found their way into The Island newspaper, where over the past week, Groundviews has contextualised the content that was published in print. Today, the Hindustan Times published an article based on the full version of the report, based on a leaked version of the full report the paper had acquired. Interestingly, the unimaginable horror highlighted in the HT’s report (body parts of babies on tree tops after shelling by the Army) is not content that was published in The Island. The UN had earlier expressed its deep regret over the leak to mainstream print media in Sri Lanka. Accusations between Palitha Kohona, Sri Lanka’s envoy to the UN in New York and UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq over who is responsible for the leak have been traded. The constitution of the Secretary General’s panel and its mandate was announced in June 2010. As noted on the UN website, “The Secretary-General has appointed a Panel of…

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‘National security’ in post-war Sri Lanka: Women’s (In) security in the North

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Photo from Hear My VOICE: Jalajakumari Selvarasa ~ “I could often feel the nostalgia” Resurrecting the ‘undead Tiger’[1] to secure the citizen: How the situation of women belie the dominant security narrative ‘The world should appreciate our successful anti-terrorist effort. But today we are being hounded by those who turned a blind eye to LTTE atrocities over the years, particularly its widespread use of child combatants in war against the security forces. Children are no longer at the risk of being abducted on their way to school or back. Girls are no longer forced to wear suicide jackets and throw themselves at military and civilian targets.’- President Mahinda Rajapakse in an interview to The Island, 18 April 2011. ‘We should not have to feel afraid. We should have the freedom to travel freely without fear.’-woman from Vadamaraatchi in Northern Sri Lanka The state of emergency remains in place nearly two years after the end of the war. It is renewed every…

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UNSG Panel Report on Sri Lanka: Revisiting ‘Accountability’

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Original photo from JDS Ensuring ‘accountability’ is important, but doing so is a complex task. Who is to ensure accountability, when, where, how? – are questions which have always aroused serious debate, and will do, in the future. While there may be no ‘independent/internal’ investigations, one need not be starry-eyed about ‘independent/international’ investigations. For example, ‘Nuremburg’ was an important start, but was never a suitable model. What, for instance, is ‘international’ and who decides the form and nature of this mechanism? Can we go with Chinese/Russian investigators, and if so, would they be independent? Can we go with US/UK investigators, and would they be independent? Also, can we simply investigate the ‘last stages’ of the armed conflict? What about India’s role in the conflict, and are we to forget the manner in which India nurtured armed groups hostile to Sri Lanka? Are we to investigate only the leaders (of the present regime) who defeated the LTTE, but not those of…

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The leaked UN war crimes report: Key points and context

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The Island newspaper published today sections of what appears to be a large excerpt from the report of the UN Panel of Experts looking into allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Sri Lanka. Inner City Press followed up with a report suggesting that the text was authentic, and that the UN deeply regretted the leak to the mainstream media. It also noted that the UN would publish the report in full next week, along with a response from the Sri Lankan government. Groundviews flags below some highlights of this damning report, and places it alongside some other news article for context. Follow our tweets on this breaking story here. Our Facebook fan page will also carry highlights, and features discussions amongst the 6,000+ people already on it. Some key highlights from the leaked report as published in The Island: “In stark contrast, the Panel found credible allegations, which if proven, indicate that a wide range of serious…

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Violence Against Women and Girls in Sri Lanka: No April Fools joke

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Interviews published on this site with Kumudini Samuel, founder of Women and Media Collective and with Sunila Abeysekara, a leading human rights activist, addressed the prevalence of Gender Based Violence both during war and in post-war Sri Lanka, particularly in the North and East. Addressing the same vexed issue is a production slated for 1st April titled V Day – A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant and a Prayer: Writings to End Violence Against Women and Girls. Supported by the Forum Against Gender Based Violence in Sri Lanka, Groundviews caught up briefly with the director of this production, Hans Billimoria, to ask him why he chose this theme, what V-Day would be about, and why it was important to flag this issue in Sri Lanka. Listen to the podcast (~15 mins): here For a related contribution by Hans to , click on These Sri Lankan whores! Serve them right!

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Jaffna and the Vanni today: The reality beneath the rhetoric

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Photo credit: Indi Samarajiva, 2010 The drive along the A9 from Vavuniya to Killinochchi is brought to a temporary halt at the ‘exit-entry point’ at what used to be the forward defence line at Omanthai. On the side of the dusty dirt road, in a series of sheds, military personnel are stationed with the sole purpose of ensuring that both locals and international staff members of non-governmental and international non-governmental organisations and even UN agencies, possess the required clearances issued by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to cross into the North. All foreigners, that is those holding non-Sri Lankan passports, even tourists, have to obtain a MOD clearance to pass through Omanthai. One could be excused for thinking this was 2002, when entering the Vanni was much like entering a foreign territory. Yet it is 2011, more than a year and a half since the end of the war between the government and the LTTE. In 2011, more so than…

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I am one of 80,000*

Though the barbed wire, I am looking down the road of memory. Selvam, my Selvam, I am waiting for you To bring back our lost life. You grabbed my hand hard and we ran like the wind Under the shelling rain. Do you remember, Selvam? Praying, praying for life, for life with our kids? They ran with us but so many others flickered and fell Running non-stop, praying for life, till the rain of shells ended. For a moment we had thought we saw Freedom But it was a mirage. Jasmine flowers wilted, Selvam, with your failing breath. The white flag you were waving Fell over your head like a shroud. I’m looking through barbed wire Down the road of memory. Please come soon, Selvam, I want to die together. *Sri Lankan Government statistics say that are 80,000 war widows in the North and East of the country, the ex-war zones. Written by Ajantha Roshani Translated by Prasanna Ratnayake

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What few care to know: Challenges and opportunities in post-war Sri Lanka

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Transcript of speech delivered by Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu accepting the first Citizens Peace Award, 28 February 2011. Video of speech below. Members of the Head Table, Venerable Sirs, Your Excellency President Kumaratunga and Friends, Let me begin by thanking the National Peace Council for this inaugural Citizens’ Peace Award, which I accept in all humility. I am acutely conscious that the objective of peace, securing human rights protection and good governance cannot be achieved by the singular efforts of a single individual or similar acts by many – it is a continuous process, it is a struggle and it goes on and on, irrespective of the few high moments we celebrate. We have to recommit ourselves and steel ourselves to the challenge that lies ahead. But before I say anymore, thanks are in order. First and foremost, to my parents and to my family for the values of public service and public interest that they have instilled in me. Next,…

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Sri Lanka’s Flood Response: In Dimbulagala, people protest and plead

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As the rains abated and flood waters begin to recede, the return and resumption of normal lives presents itself as a big challenge in many parts of the country. In the villages in Dimbulagala DS division in Polonnaruwa District, home to some of the poorest people in the country the impact was devastating and the return to normal life daunting. Many families had their wattle and dob houses completely destroyed by the rains. In the mean time it is reported that they had also been asked by officials to vacate from the schools where they had taken shelter due to displacement. This affected several families who had to leave the schools and had nowhere to go in Dimbulagala, Dalukana, Soruwila and Mutugala (Welikanda DS division). They are stranded. While some principals were generous enough to allow the families to stay in schools some others (like Kashappa Vidyalaya, Soruwila Tamil School etc) reportedly were not willing to keep the displaced people….

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Video: Parliamentary debate on deterioration of human security in the North of Sri Lanka

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A parliamentary debate on deterioration of human security in the Jaffna Peninsula, North of Sri Lanka, was held on 20 January. Early media coverage of the debate suggested the government was playing down concerns over the deterioration of human security, and heated exchanges between government and opposition MPs. The number of reports on murders and abductions in the Northern Province just over the past month suggest a disturbing breakdown in the rule of law. Networking for Rights (NfR) in a statement expressed “serious concern” about the deterioration of the law and order. “The series of killings that have taken place during the last few weeks in the Jaffna Peninsula raises the question whether death squads have been reactivated in the Jaffna Peninsula.” Groundviews received the video of the parliamentary debate today. The debate is oftentimes interrupted by the characteristic shouting and inflammatory remarks across benches. This video captures the submissions by the TNA and UNP, plus responses by Government and…

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About Groundviews

Located at the Centre for Policy Alternatives in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Groundviews is a citizen journalism website that uses a range of genres and media to highlight critical perspectives on governance, reconciliation, human rights, the arts and literature, democracy and other issues. The site has won two international awards, including the prestigious Manthan Award South Asia in 2009. The grand jury's evaluation of the site noted, "What no media dares to report, Groundviews publicly exposes. It's a new age media for a new Sri Lanka... Free media at it's very best!"

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