The death of Freedom of Assembly, Expression and Religion in the North of Sri Lanka
Every 26th[1] and 27th of November since the end of the war (2009), we hear of people in the North not being able to moan their dead, not being able to carry…
Author: WATCHDOG
Who burnt houses of returning Muslim IDPs in Mannar?
“We can see how the people are suffering but who are we to tell? Nothing can be done. Who can fight against the Government? The news on the ground is that the…
Mullikulam: The continuing occupation of a school by the Sri Lankan Navy
[UPDATED: 2200hrs, Colombo: A keen reader, Mike Horgan, flagged the erroneous positioning of Mullikulam on Google Maps. The correct location is now shown.] “This is my home, this is my sister’s home,…
A disappearance every five days in post-war Sri Lanka
Photo courtesy WSWS On 21st at 2.31pm, August 2012, 32 year old Vasanthamala sent a sms from her mobile to her relatives saying she had been taken by the Criminal Investigation Department…
Latest victims of a heinous trend: Abduction of political activists Premakumar Gunaratnam and Dimuthu Attygalle
Political activists and leaders of the People’s Struggle Movement in Sri Lanka, Mr. Premakumar Gunaratnam[1] and Ms. Dimithu Attygalle[2] disappeared on 6th April 2012. Prior to their disappearance both activists had been…
Menik Farm after the cyclone: The continuing misery of IDPs
After a punishingly hot day, the skies seemed to provide some relief to the residents of Chettikulam as they opened to release heavy showers during the early evening of Saturday, March 31st.…
Horrible rise of disappearances in post-war Sri Lanka continues unabated
Image from Transcurrents [Editors note: ] Twenty nine disappearances (including an attempted abduction) have been reported in Sri Lankan media between February and March 2012. There have been fifteen in March and…
What is the bigger lie? US resolution in Geneva or number of people in Vanni in 2009?
Image from Wikimedia Commons “One of the rankest untruths in the public domain today is that the US resolution is innocuous and unobjectionable…” said Amb. Dayan Jayatilleka in his article THE BIG…
New wave of abductions and dead bodies in Sri Lanka
Image from Transcurrents In the past 5 months – October 2011 to February 2012 – there has been a disturbing rise in the number of abductions, especially in and around the capital,…
DISAPPEARANCE OF HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS & POLITICAL ACTIVISTS LALITH KUMAR WEERARAJ AND KUGAN MURUGAN ON 9TH DECEMBER 2011
Two Sri Lankan human rights defenders and political activists disappeared in Jaffna in the North of Sri Lank on 9th December 2011. There is still no credible news of their whereabouts and…
42 Political Activists and HRDs Detained and Prevented from Participating in Peaceful Protest in Jaffna Town on Human Rights Day
On December 10th 2011, a group of 42 HRDs and political activists from the South of Sri Lanka were detained by police in the Northern town of Jaffna and prevented from attending…
Post-war situation in Northern Sri Lanka & Prospects for Reconciliation
Changes since the end of the war: 30 months after the end of war, more people travel between the once off limits North[i] and the South and many of the travel restrictions…
Re-displacement of Menik Farm inmates to Kombavil (Mullativu)
On 20th September 2011 the Government of Sri Lanka had announced that Menik Farm, hosting 7394 persons (2097 families) will be closed down.[i] The solution imposed on these people has been to…
Grease Devils and Police and Army attacks on civilians in Mannar and Vavuniya
Police attacks on civilians in Komarasankulam (Vavuniya district) 11 men were arrested by the Vavuniya Police in Komarasankulam at 10.30 pm on 20th August 2011. The men were severely beaten…
JAFFNA: BRUTAL ASSAULT OF CIVILIANS IN NAVANTHURAI
Around 100 young men from Navanthurai, a village in the Jaffna District, were detained in an operation conducted by the Sri Lanka Army around 1.15am on 23rd August 2011. The villagers were…