Sri Lanka known to many as Ceylon and 'Tea Country", has attracted international attention because of the escalating ethnic conRict haunting this country, since the early 80s. A series of events, still being andysed had led to this cataetrophe. There is however, broad consensus that many of the causes which contributed to the ethnic unrest were the end product of certain policy measures adopted by successive governments since independence, only to gain political expediency.
This paper examines the economic aspects of the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. It provides a brief account of the record of human rights violations directed at the Tamils of Sri Lanka in the economic sphere, explains their origins and motivation, and analyses their economic effects. Accurate quantification of certain aspects of the problem has been difficult because of problems in collecting statistical data under current conditions in Sri Lanka. However, the analysis presented rests on whatever data are available and on published research studies of various scholars.
Sri Lanka - Human Rights Violations - Arrests,Detention & TortureSri Lanka - Human Rights Violations - Arrests,Detention & TortureThis document while disproving this rather tenuous claim, seeks to highlight the gravity of the human rights situation in Sri Lanka. It deals with two areas of human rights violations: (i) Arrest and Detention; and (ii) Torture and Inhuman Treatment. Eye-witness accounts, interviews with victims, sworn testimonies and reports and data from human rights organisations constitute the background material for this document. The author also has relied heavily on the various reports of the Amnesty International to which we are grateful.
We hope that this document will, to some extent, serve to highlight the gravity of the human rights situation in Sri Lanka, particularly in the context of the reported large scale extrajudicial and arbitrary killings that have been committed in that country. Eye-witness accounts, interviews with victims, sworn testimonies and reports and data from human rights groups constitute the essential material for this document. The author also has relied heavily on the various reports of Amnesty International to which he is grateful.
This paper records the series of events in Sri Lanka since 1948 that have culminated in the present catastrophe. The appendices contain supporting documents and briefly outline the matters set out in the paper. The paper is based on the questions asked and details requested from us during the last two years and by no means encompass the entirety of events in Sri Lanka. Tables, maps and a bibliography are also included. (The first edition was published on 21 June 1985).
Petrol arrives into the |Peninsula via Elephant Pass for the first time after lifting of the fuel embargo by the Government. Government Media reports that two fishing boats were hijacked off the cost of Kalpiyiya by unknown persons, after attacking the ten occupants. Militants suspected. Security forces in patrol boats and aircrafts are making a search.
A helicopter gunship circling over Sri pathirakali Amman Temple in Thavadi North opens fire at hundreds of devotees assembled there to participate in the annual "Sithithiraikanji Utsavam". Devotees stampede and run for shelter. Mrs S Navaratnam (45) of Thavaddy North is injured and admitted to Jaffna hospital. It is reported that part of the temple buildings were also damaged.
Colombo July 11, That Indo – Lankan relations are at a low ebb. Is well known but it is by no other means a simple relationship of hatred or fear as I learnt when I was detained earlier this week for four-and-a-half hours at the police station at Paddukai, a small town 20 miles from Colombo.
Rajiv Gandhi has hesitantly taken one small step to break from the amateurist foreign policy which he had been pursuing over the last two years. Where he came to power, his world view was closer to Morarji Desai's than that of his mother. It was based on a simplistic moral moral approach, namely be nice to others, others will be nice to you. Indra Gandhi was a hard headed politician who could perceive the clash of interests and tailor her response accordingly.
Timely intervention by security personnel prevented a shooting at a Minister's Colombo residence yesterday. A reserve police constable annoyed at being pulled up for sleeping on the job by a sub Inspector went for his gun in anger but was brought under control by other security personnel at the residence, official sources said.
Several hand grenades of the same type issued to servicemen have been found in the suburbs and in areas close to Army camps during the past few weeks leading to speculation that they may have been pilfered from military establishments or sold by soldiers, police said.
Would the time come soon for the people of the country to raise their heads and cry " Oh Lord save us from our Saviours" Not a day seems to pass without either a top ranking politician, some customs or police officers, forest, excise and many other officials that one can think of from various state sectors being involved in big time smuggling, currency rackets, dope dealing, timber felling, poaching ending up in thuggery and even murder in some cases
Spiralling Defence costs have forced the Government to impose a 11% freeze on expenditure by Ministries. The move decided by the Cabinet last Wednesday as an urgent measure, will mean every Ministry will have to save this amount from the monies voted for capital expenditure during the financial year 1987. Consequently some of the activity planned b y the Ministries will be halted, at least temporarily.
A hitherto unknown leftist radical group, fighting for secession of the Southern state of Tamil Nadu from India, was behind the blast of a railway bridge, killing 25 train passengers earlier this week, police said today. Tamil Nadu Police- Inspector- General : Rajasekharan said a 28 -.year - old activist belonging to the Tamil Nadu Liberation Army had been arrested and gelignite sticks. of the kind used in the blast' had -bean seized.
A foreigner by the name of Goldfarb Eric Ralph spent a night at the Lizzle Villa Guest House, Ella recently. He had left the following morning having settled his dues. Mr. M. D. Rodrigo, the owner of the Guest House, ' when tidying up the room occupied by the' foreigner found a wallet under the pillow on the bed used by the foreigner.
As government officials yesterday moved to provide dry rations to nearly 4000 families affected by last week's encounter between Special Task Force commandos and Tiger terrorists, a controversy broke out over the fate of a multi-million dollar prawn culture project. The government run media centre said on Saturday the "sea food" factory had been closed by " terrorist, action" and that Newton, "second in command of LTTE in Batticaloa" was occupying it forcibly.
Here is a page I lead news story that appeared in "The Island" Colombo of 25th January 1987. President J.R. Jayewardene responding to Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's claim that Sri Lanka was vacillating in finding a solution to the ethnic issue has quoted the words of the Buddha in an interview with "The Island" New Delhi correspondent S. Venkatanarayan.
That was why they have wanted the parents of the captured soldiers, journalists and photographers to be present at their release. Kittu said they had earlier released two policemen unconditionally, also two run-away soldiers who had surrendered to them. They had also sent the bodies of nine soldiers killed in Mannar to the Jaffna Port camp, as a gesture, since they too had suffered casualties and they knew that parents would always want to have the last rites done for their sons killed in action.
On October 20th afternoon I left for Jaffna to help secure the release of two army men who were taken prisoner by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the course of the fighting in Mannar the previous week. I had earlier received a telephone call from "Rahim" ( his real name I learned later was Kanagaratnam) promising to release the two soldiers to me in Jaffna.
The Sri Lankan navy was alerted last night to the unannounced arrival of a foreign vessel which had anchored off Colombo and maintained strict radio silence for more than 12 hours. Only the funnel of the ship was visible to the port but vessels that passed it on the way reported that it carried the name "Conghul" and was flying a Chinese flag.
