Action Alert ArchiveCall-in Again to Stop Military Aid to Sri LankaOctober 22, 2007 Thank you so much to the 41 of you who called Representative Nita Lowey’s office two weeks ago to urge her to stop military aid to Sri Lanka until there was a significant improvement of human rights there. We are hoping at least twice that many of you will pick up the phone today to call Representative Frank Wolf (R-VA), the Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Committee on State and Foreign Operations and urge him to keep Section 690 in the final appropriations bill. This is a crucial time in the history of our struggle for justice for Tamils in Sri Lanka, and we are calling upon each of you to take part in it! Please call Representative Wolf’s office at 202-225-5136 today, Monday October 22. Read this following statement to the receptionist: My name is ______ and I am very concerned about the escalating human rights crisis in Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan Armed Forces continue to attack innocent Tamil civilians with impunity. Section 690 of this year's Foreign Operations Appropriations bill, HR 2764, ties U.S. military assistance to Sri Lanka to an improvement in their human rights record. I am urging Representative Wolf to keep Section 690 in the final bill. Thank you for your time! And then please tell us on PEARL's website that you have made this important call |
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Jun 20, 2008 - Aftenposten
Peace brokers from around the world will once again gather for the annual Oslo Forum next week, to swap experience in conflict mediation. Participants include Mohammad Khatami, former president of Iran; Jonathan Powell, former chief of staff for ex-British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and Gareth Evans, president of the International Crisis Group. Read this article
As Sri Lanka's civil war escalates, so do attacks on its journalists
Jun 19, 2008 - AP
With civil war raging in Sri Lanka, the journalists trying to cover the conflict find themselves increasingly under siege. They have been hounded by the government, attacked by unknown assailants and accused of aiding the rebels. Many reporters have been arrested or fled the country, while others have resorted to self-censorship, journalists said.Read this article
Review of Sri Lanka under the Universal Periodic Review
Jun 14, 2008 - Amnesty International
Themes raised by member states participating in the review of Sri Lanka under the UPR dialogue included concerns related to the lack of protection of civilians caught in the internal conflict; enforced disappearances, unlawful/extrajudicial killings; torture and other forms of ill treatment, threats to freedom of expression, the need to strengthen national human rights institutions, attacks on dissent and ongoing impunity for human rights violations.
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Press freedom in Sri Lanka continues to deteriorate
Jun 13, 2008 - CPJ
The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by government’s policies toward journalists who write critically about the conflict between Sri Lanka’s military forces and Tamil secessionists. We have seen an increase in harassment, intimidation, and detention of reporters, many of whom are columnists in senior positions with well-established careers.
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S.Lanka says peace brokers can't visit rebel area
Jun 12, 2008 - Reuters
Sri Lanka has refused requests by Norwegian peace mediators to visit rebel territory, and said fresh peace talks hinged on Tamil Tiger guarantees to lay down arms and stick to a negotiation timetable. Nordic ceasefire monitors quit the country this year after the six-year Norway brokered truce disintegrated.
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