Action Alert ArchiveContinuing suffering, government corruption as tsunami anniversary passesDecember 28, 2007 I am writing to call your attention to the misappropriation of tsunami aid in Sri Lanka. One hopes that an unprecedented disaster such as the 2004 tsunami would have transcended discrimination, but that is not the case in Sri Lanka. Three years after the tsunami, the predominately Sinhalese South is recovering strongly while the largely Tamil North East has received little assistance. At the time of the tsunami, the World Bank estimated that 2/3 of the damage was sustained by the North and East. However, the south is enjoying an “excess” of supplies, whereas Tamils and Muslims continue to languish in makeshift shelters, according to an AFP report. Those “shelters” have only palm-frond roofs and corrugated metal sheets for walls, and their inhabitants must also cope with the Sri Lankan Air Force’s indiscriminate bombing raids. David Evans, chief technical adviser for UN Habitat in Sri Lanka, told Reuters that ”the conflict has badly hampered or brought reconstruction work to a standstill in some parts of the north and east.” In the midst of all this, Transparency International (TISL), a watchdog group on corruption, states that the Sri Lankan government has only spent a mere 20% of the original $1.2 billion that was pledged for tsunami relief. “There has been no proper accounts kept on the money and we believe only a fraction of aid trickled down to the real victims,” stated Rukshana Nanayakkara, a deputy executive director of TISL. Furthermore, TISL states that over $500 million in tsunami aid has gone “missing.” TISL has reason to believe that some of the funds “have been utilized by the government for other purposes.” We urge the U.S. government to demand that its tsunami aid, and the aid given by other countries, is used equitably to help tsunami victims throughout the island of Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan government should also be mandated to use all relief funds for those purposes only. |
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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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