Media CoverageBelow is a collection of recent media reports regarding the situation in Sri Lanka. Please let us know about articles you would like us to include, as well as dead links you find, by emailing us at Contact@PEARLAction.org. Human rights abuses in Sri Lanka flourish under veil of secrecyMay 2, 2008 - Amnesty International
Ensuring respect for human rights around the world very often relies on impartial and rigorous media coverage – without exposure and public scrutiny abuses can flourish under a veil of secrecy and denial. The importance of the media in conflict situations cannot be overstated, without reports, pictures and film of the fighting and the violence, no-one knows enough to put the pressure on the participants to ensure human rights are respected. This need is particularly strong in Sri Lanka, where fatalities on all sides are believed to be very high with large numbers of civilians caught in the crossfire. All parties to the conflict are responsible for grave violations of human rights and breaches of international humanitarian law. What should a genuine peace secretariat do? A reply to the Peace secretariatMay 2, 2008 - AHRC
Not to be diverted from the issue let us reiterate that the discussion in our initial statement was regarding Justice P.N. Bagwati’s letter and the interpretation given to it by the peace chief. By now the matter is already settled as the group of eminent persons themselves is quoted in the press as reasserting the position stated in their final statement issued on April 15, and also to call upon the government not to divert the attention of the people to the real issues of prime importance. High prices and food shortages taking tollApril 30, 2008 - IRIN
Humanitarian agencies in Sri Lanka are preparing for the fallout as increasing food prices and shortages put vulnerable populations at risk of malnutrition and leave many families no longer able to afford essentials such as medical care and school tuition. The global food crisis, referred to by World Food Programme (WFP) officials as "the silent tsunami" during a summit in London on 22 April, is hitting home. Munniandy Muttur, a janitor in the capital Colombo, told IRIN: "I earn only Rs350 [US$3.20] per day, and that amount is not enough if we try to eat well. If I or my wife fall sick, we can't even think of private hospital. God willing, we will either not fall sick, or just fall dead, that is better."
Iran president in Sri Lanka visitApril 28, 2008 - BBC
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is due to arrive in Sri Lanka on the second leg of his tour of South Asia. Mr Ahmadinejad will visit a refinery and hydro-electric and irrigation schemes that have received Iranian aid. Iran is emerging as a major economic donor in Sri Lanka which is under pressure on human rights issues as war has resumed with the Tamil Tigers. Mr Ahmadinejad held talks in Pakistan on Monday, and is also due to visit India during his trip to the region. Media Prevented from Reporting on Sri Lanka War CasualtiesApril 28, 2008 - IFJ
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) condemns the actions of government officials in denying photojournalists access to report on casualties of the latest violence between the Sri Lankan Army and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). According to the Free Media Movement (FMM), an IFJ affiliate, four photographers were barred from entering hospitals where injured army personnel (estimated to be in the hundreds) were reportedly being treated after fighting intensified in the country’s north last week. Amid criticism from West, Sri Lanka turns to less picky donors as Iranian president visitsApril 28, 2008 - AP
Sri Lanka has hailed Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit here Monday as an important step in cementing closer ties between the two nations. But the trip also highlighted Sri Lanka's slow turn away from the West, which has expressed concerns about Colombo's human rights record, and its embrace of donors less critical of its escalating war against ethnic Tamil rebels. "In Asia, we don't go around preaching to our neighbors and our friends," said Sri Lanka's foreign secretary, Palitha Kohona. Sri Lanka clamps down on war reports after battle lossesApril 25, 2008 - AFP
Sri Lankan authorities have extended "unofficial" censorship to hospitals and funeral parlours as losses mount after a major battle against Tamil rebels, a media rights group said Friday. The Free Media Movement (FMM) said the authorities had prevented photographers taking pictures of military casualties brought to hospitals following heavy fighting in the northern peninsula of Jaffna on Wednesday. The group said it was urging the government as well as the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to respect the right to information. SRI LANKA: IIGEP episode, AG's department becoming prosecutor and defender at the same timeApril 24, 2008 - AHRC
The hottest topic in Sri Lanka this week is the press statement given at a meeting by the International Independent Group of Imminent Persons (IIGEP), in which the chairperson, Justice P.N Bhagwati, a former chief justice of India, Sir Nigel Rodley, a reputed international lawyer, and Professor Yozo Yokota, a former member of the UN Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (2000-2006), participated. The press statement explained the reasons for the IIGEP’s abandonment of their monitoring role. The abandonment was a result of their disappointment in the face of the absence of political will on the part of the government to find out the truth about the 16 cases of gross abuses of human rights investigated by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI). Sri Lanka shuns West, looks East for aid[ April 24, 2008 ] [ AT ] Sri Lanka's government, under pressure over human-rights violations, is abandoning support from traditional but rights-sensitive partners such as the United States and the European Union and turning to countries like China and Iran to finance infrastructure projects. Relations between the country's traditional partners and the government turned frosty in recent months as the US, the EU and international human-rights groups raised concern over growing rights violations. Recently, World Bank officials were told by a senior functionary of the treasury: "We don't need your money [with all those strings]." Nanda Godage, a retired diplomat and commentator, says there appears to be a "clumsy" policy in relation to foreign affairs. Read this articleUS urges Sri Lanka progress on human rightsApril 22, 2008 - IANS
A top US official Tuesday urged the Sri Lankan government to "progress on human rights" and hold "free and fair election for the Eastern provincial council" scheduled for early next month, a US embassy statement here said. According to the statement, he US's principal deputy assistant secretary for south and central Asian affairs Don Camp made these remarks after holding talks with the government ministers, officials, leading political figures, civil society leaders, and business representatives during his two-day stay in Colombo. SRI LANKA: IDPs continue to flee fighting in northwestApril 22, 2008 - IRIN
Intensified fighting in recent months in Sri Lanka's restive northwestern Mannar District has forced more than 16,000 people to flee to safe areas within the region. In light of this, A Nicholasspillai, the government agent for Mannar, told IRIN he had made contingency plans for up to 25,000 additional IDPs fleeing the clashes between government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the district, while government military spokesman Brig Udaya Nanayakkara also expected additional civilians to flee to government-controlled areas in the district. "There are 40,000 people registered as living in the Manthai West division [an LTTE-controlled area] where fighting is intense," Nicholasspillai told IRIN. Foreign experts step up human rights criticism of Sri LankaApril 22, 2008 - AFP
A team of international legal experts Tuesday stepped up their criticism of Sri Lanka, noting that repeated calls to improve its record on the issue had fallen on deaf ears. The International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) said Colombo lacked the political will to investigate grave rights abuses. The panel members spoke to reporters Tuesday for the first time after attacking Colombo in a statement last month for blocking efforts to ensure minimum standards were maintained in probing serious abuses.time after attacking Colombo in a statement last month for blocking efforts to ensure minimum standards were maintained in probing serious abuses. SRI LANKA: Turning to China, Iran for FundsApril 22, 2008 - IPS
Sri Lanka’s government, under pressure over human rights violations, is abandoning support from traditional but rights-sensitive partners like the United States and Europe and turning to countries like China and Iran to finance its infrastructure projects. Relations between the country's traditional partners and the government turned frosty in recent months as the U.S., the EU and international human rights groups raise concern over growing rights violations, including the harassment of journalists. Aid group leaves Sri Lanka, expressing doubts about probe into massacre of its workersApril 21, 2008 - AP
International aid group Action Against Hunger has pulled out of Sri Lanka saying it has no trust in a government investigation into the massacre of 17 of its workers nearly two years ago, a spokeswoman said Monday. The withdrawal of the group was the latest blow to the government's probe of the killings and several other alleged human rights abuses during its war with Tamil rebels. Last month, an international panel of experts monitoring the government's commission of inquiry announced it was resigning in frustration. The panel criticized the probe as lethargic, said it did not meet international standards, and accused the government of lacking the will to properly investigate the incidents. Impose sanctions on Sri Lanka, report urgesApril 20, 2008 - National Post
Canada should impose sanctions on Sri Lanka in response to the country's deteriorating human rights record, says a report that was to be released at a Conservative party fundraiser last night. The report, written by a group of Ontario lawyers and Canadians of Sri Lankan origin, says the rule of law is collapsing in the war-torn South Asian nation, where there have been rising government-backed killings and abductions. It urges Ottawa to consider economic and diplomatic sanctions on Sri Lanka, and suggests tying foreign aid contributions to improvements in human rights conditions.
Sri Lanka rights activists face growing dangersApril 18, 2008 - AlertNet
In March Sri Lankan police used anti-terror laws to arrest and detain J.S. Tissanayagam, a prominent journalist working for The Sunday Times, a maistream English-language weekly. After two weeks behind bars he was finally served a detention order charging him with engaging in terrorist activities, which today in Sri Lanka can be interpreted as criticising the government. In the last year, with a return to war and a rapidly deteriorating human rights situation, Sri Lanka has very slowly managed to grab a few international headlines.... Sri Lanka is now one of the most dangerous places in the world for human rights defenders - broadly defined to include journalists, aid workers, activists, NGO workers and religious leaders.
FMM concerned for press freedom as state institutions, politicians and political parties mistreat mediaApril 18, 2008 - IFEX
Freedom of expression is fundamentally about the right to express opinions that are open to contestation but not to censorship or censure. The government and all political parties have a duty to strengthen and support the diversity of opinions so that citizens can make informed judgments on vital social, political and economic issues in the country. Registering our strong disquiet on these incidents, the FMM firmly and urgently requests that all relevant stakeholders meaningfully uphold freedom of expression and media freedom in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka - Several hospitals in northern Sri Lanka face increasing challengesApril 17, 2008 - ICRC
The limited number of staff available to care for routine cases alongside war casualties has become a critical issue for several hospitals in northern Sri Lanka. In addition, the lack of regular deliveries of supplies from the country?s health ministry has resulted in clinics and hospitals in the Vanni (the four northern districts of Sri Lanka) running out of basic medicines such as paracetamol, antibiotics and vaccines. By agreement with Sri Lanka?s health ministry, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is providing hospitals in Anuradhapura, Batticaloa, Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Mannar, Mullaitivu and Vavuniya districts with medical equipment and supplies for the treatment of sick and war-wounded people. SRI LANKA: IIGEP departs - a Requiem for Justice and Human RightsApril 16, 2008 - AHRC
The eleven-member International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) consisted of representatives from India, France, Indonesia, the United States, the Netherlands, Bangladesh, Canada, Cyprus, the United Kingdom, Australia and Japan, abandoned their efforts to assist the Presidential Commission of Inquiry to Investigate and Inquire into Serious Violations of Human Rights. They were convinced, after a year of strenuous effort, that they had been trapped in a futile exercise from the point of view of justice and human rights and that the only purpose they were expected to fulfill was to lend credibility to a sinister plot to deny justice. International experts press Sri Lanka on rights abusesApril 15, 2008 - AFP
A panel of top legal luminaries told Sri Lanka's government on Tuesday to clean up its human rights record, saying an escalating war against Tamil rebels had brought with it grave abuses. The International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP), comprising experts from several countries, the European Union and United Nations, said the government did not appear interested in taking action. Panel says S.Lanka human rights probe falls shortApril 15, 2008 - REUTERS
Foreign observers criticised Sri Lanka's official probe into rights abuses in their final report on Tuesday, before they quit the island, saying there was a "lack of political will to find the truth". The report piled more pressure on Colombo over its rights record amid a new phase in a 25-year civil war. 'Like a Tsunami That Won't End'After a Failed Cease-Fire in 25-Year War, Weary Sri Lankans Fear the Worst April 12, 2008 - Washington Post
"For us, the war in Sri Lanka is like a tsunami that won't end," whispered Sara Waeathi, a wiry ethnic Tamil who used to fish and harvest honey in her original village in the country's restive north. Today, in this camp near the eastern coastal city of Batticaloa, she and her family depend on international food handouts. "The fighting keeps coming. Only God knows what will happen to us. We are scared."
Attacks Ease Against SLRC Workers But Tisseinayagam Remains in CustodyApril 11, 2008 - IFJ
IFJ continues to hold grave concerns for the safety and well-being of J.S Tisseinayagam, the editor of www.outreachsl.com, who has been detained since being taken into custody by officers of the Terrorist Information Department (TID) on March 7. Tisseinayagam was initially detained under emergency regulations for 30 days. On April 1, the Colombo Magistrates Court granted a TID request to extend the detention order to May 5, after the Supreme Court ruled against an application for bail on March 31.
Attack on arms sale to Sri LankaApril 10, 2008 - BBC
An arms trade campaigning group has criticised the sale of 10,000 military missiles by Slovakia to Sri Lanka. The three-metre missiles are designed to be dispatched from multiple rocket launchers. Simon Hill, from the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT), said the sale was "exactly what Sri Lanka doesn't need at the moment". Sri Lanka has been engaged in civil war for 25 years, and the CAAT fears the weapons may be used against civilians. Questions still haunt Sri Lanka aid massacreApril 9, 2008 - AlertNet
I remember the stench from the bloated corpses of the 17 dead Sri Lankan aid workers in the hospital and the cries of their families outside as I wondered if I had shaken the hands of their killers. Last week, a local human rights group detailed the hours before and after the murder of local tsunami workers in August 2006 and I'm asking the same question again. The workers from international aid group Action Contre la Faim (ACF) were gunned down in their compound at close range, the bullet wounds clearly visible on their bodies. RIGHTS-SRI LANKA: War May See EU Duty Concessions CutApril 08, 2008 - IPS
Sri Lanka’s garment industry is worried that the duty free access it enjoys to European markets will soon be cut as a result of alleged human rights violations related to the government’s pursuit of a military solution to a long-standing ethnic conflict. EU trade concessions, known as GSP+, end this year and will come up for review in October. Already EU has indicated that continuance of the GSP+ depends on how well the Sri Lankan government is seen to be implementing 27 international conventions on human rights, labor rights and environmental standards. "It is totally based on fulfilling these conventions. Universal Periodic Review of Sri LankaHuman Rights Watch's Submission to the Human Rights Council April 7, 2008 - HRW
This short report by HRW details certain issues in Sri Lanka such as abductions and disappearances, internal displacement, and other human rights violations occurring in Sri Lanka committed by all warring parties. The report also gives recommendations on how to resolve these issues.
“Major hostilities between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) resumed in mid-2006 and in January 2008 the government formally withdrew from the ceasefire in place since 2002. Since then the fighting has claimed hundreds of civilians lives, and tens of thousands more have been displaced. Human Rights Watch has long documented serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law by both parties to the conflict. We are deeply concerned that with the ceasefire’s end, abuses will intensify.”
Report details S.Lanka aid massacre, blames forcesApril 01, 2008 - Reuters
A rights group report on Tuesday blamed local security forces for the massacre of 17 Sri Lankan tsunami aid workers in 2006 and accused the government of an outright cover-up. At the time, the killing of the local workers from aid group Action Contre La Faim (ACF) in the island's northeast was the worst attack on humanitarian workers since the 2003 bombing of the United Nations compound in Baghdad. Sri Lanka accused over massacreApril 01, 2008 - BBC
A human rights group in Sri Lanka has blamed local security forces for the massacre of 17 aid workers in 2006 and accused the government of a cover-up. The bodies of the Action Against Hunger workers were found in the north-eastern town of Muttur. It was one of the worst attacks on humanitarian workers since the 2003 bombing of the UN compound in Baghdad. Meanwhile, another human rights group has shut down, after accusing Colombo of failing to tackle rights issues. So far there has been no response from the government to both developments.
In Sri Lanka, Fear of Being 'Disappeared'April 01, 2008 - Washington Post
Under a recent military offensive to wipe out those rebels, government forces have abducted hundreds of members of the Tamil minority group, including civilians, according to human rights groups. Many of the "disappeared" never turn up again. Rights activists say Sri Lanka's growing ties with Iran, China and Russia have emboldened the government to ignore criticism from the United States and other Western powers.
International rights panel ends work in Sri LankaMarch 31, 2008 - AFP
An international panel invited by Sri Lanka to observe the government's probe into human rights abuses shut down operations on Monday, three weeks after accusing Colombo of failing to tackle the issue. The International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) was formed to observe an inquiry into 16 cases of serious rights violations, including the August 2006 massacre of 17 local employees of the French charity, ACF. The panel said Monday in a statement that they were halting their efforts to determine whether the inquiries were being conducted "in accordance with internationally accepted norms and standards."
Sri Lanka - ICRC oversees safe passage of nearly 25,000 civiliansMarch 28, 2008 - ICRC
Additional security measures introduced by the Sri Lankan government at the Medawachchiya checkpoint in Anuradhapura and the Omanthai crossing point in Vavuniya slowed down the movement of civilians between areas controlled by the government and those held by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and left many commercial vehicles stranded. The ICRC responded to a government request to help clear the tailback of trucks waiting to cross at Omanthai by extending its presence there from five to six days a week. The authorities also deployed extra personnel at Omanthai to speed up the process.
Stop the War on Journalists in Sri Lanka says World Press Freedom CommunityMarch 27, 2008 - IFJ
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has today sent a joint letter to the President of Sri Lanka voicing the concerns from over 30 journalists’ associations and press freedom and human rights organisations across the globe for the safety of journalists from the island nation. Addressed to Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa, President of the Socialist Democratic Republic of Sri Lanka, the letter demands an immediate change in the escalating culture of violence against journalists by government officials and members of the public. Sri Lankan probe into civilian killings has few results after 18 months of workMarch 27, 2008 - AP
Nearly 18 months after Sri Lanka launched an independent investigation into a wave of civilian killings during its renewed civil war, not a single case has been resolved and some human rights groups and lawyers fear no one will ever be held accountable. A credible probe into the incidents, including the slaying of 17 aid workers blamed on security forces, will test the government's will to pursue potentially embarrassing cases and strengthen its efforts to prevent the dispatch of a U.N. human rights monitoring mission.
Sri Lanka accused of lying over human rightsMarch 20, 2008 - AFP The International Red Cross has angrily accused Sri Lanka's government of releasing confidential communications and manipulating information from the organisation to defend its rights record. Sri Lanka: Make human rights the priorityFebruary 15, 2008 - Amnesty International
Amnesty International today called on the Sri Lanka government to make human rights the priority by allowing the organisation into the country to make an impartial assessment of its and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) human rights record, following accusations from Defence spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella that the organisation was biased against the government. Sri Lanka: Silencing DissentFebruary 7, 2008 - Amnesty International
As hostilities in Sri Lanka intensify and human rights abuses increase, threats to the media and media freedoms inside the country have increased dramatically, says a new Amnesty International report, Silencing Dissent, published today. Sri Lanka: Amnesty International calls for urgent protection of civilians amidst return to hostilitiesJanuary 16, 2008 - Amnesty International
Amnesty International is gravely concerned that the end to the Ceasefire Agreement between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) today will lead to an increase in hostilities that will result in a dramatic rise in indiscriminate attacks against the civilian population. Sri Lanka “persecuting” media: rights watchdogDecember 31, 2007 – IANS
The Free Media Movement (FMM) states that Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse is persecuting journalists and also shielding a government minister who assaulted a top official of the state-owned television station. Tsunami aid “missing”, says anti-corruption groupDecember 28, 2007 – IRIN
Transparency International (TISL) believes that the Sri Lankan government has used some tsunami aid funds for “other purposes”, and it has found that over $500 million in relief funds is “missing”. Post-tsunami recovery a success for most but not allDecember 24, 2007 – IRIN
Although a large sum of foreign aid was pledged to Sri Lanka for tsunami relief efforts, only a fraction has actually been spent. Further, the tsunami aid has not been spent equally across the island, and many affected areas in the North are still languishing and did not receive much relief. Doctors Without Borders Releases Tenth Annual "Top Ten" Most Underreported Humanitarian Stories of 2007December 20, 2007 – MSF
Doctors Without Borders listed “Civilians Increasingly Under Fire in Sri Lankan Conflict” as one of the top ten underreported humanitarian crises. Rights group urges foreign intervention in Sri LankaDecember 10, 2007 - AFP
The Asian Human Rights Commission stated that Sri Lanka has the highest frequency of cases of disappearances in the world, and it urged international action in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka: Amnesty International condemns mass arrestsDecember 4, 2007 – Amnesty International
Amnesty International condemned the mass arrest of 1000 Tamil civilians, and then urged Sri Lanka to release the arrested and also repeal or revise its Emergency Regulations. Iran pledges support for peace, development effortsNovember 28, 2007 – Sri Lankan Ministry of Defense
Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei stated his strong support for the Sri Lankan government and pledged to strengthen ties between Iran and Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka secures 1.5 bln dollars in aid from IranNovember 28, 2007 – AFP
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the President of Iran, and the Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse are increasingly boosting their countries’ bilateral ties. Sri Lanka recently received $1.5 billion in aid from Iran. Sri Lanka seeks expulsion of UNICEF staff: officialsNovember 23, 2007 – AFP
Sri Lanka called for the expulsion of UNICEF staff in Sri Lanka because 4 staffers participated in a public protest – the protest was against the killing of two Red Cross workers. UN officials have stated that Sri Lanka is one of the most dangerous places in the world for aid workers. Commentary: The hope of the forgotten people in JaffnaNovember 21, 2007 – UPI Asia Online
The Tamils of Jaffna suffer from terror psychosis due to living in an “open prison” where abductions, killings, disappearances, and military oppression are rampant. Commentary: Police torture in Sri LankaNovember 16, 2007 – UPI Asia Online
Basil Fernando of the Asian Human Rights Commission condemned the Sri Lankan government for routine cases of torture in government-controlled areas. Fernando stated that government protects torturers and punishes those filing complaints, and he also stated that the government propaganda machine is working at full to repress the truth about torture. UN rights commissioner's visit has limited impactNovember 12, 2007 – IRIN
The Human Rights in Conflict Program at the Law and Society Trust (LST) estimates that in the first 8 months of 2007, 1212 people were either disappeared or killed in Sri Lanka – an average of five people per day. Letter to Representatives Lowey and Wolf on US foreign operations fundingNovember 7, 2007 – HRW
Human Rights Watch endorses Congress’ efforts to limit US military aid to the Sri Lankan government until the human rights situation improves. Sri Lanka vows to bomb Tigers into peaceNovember 4, 2007 – AFP
The Sri Lankan government reverts to militaristic language and strategies to resolve the decades-long ethnic conflict, as the “moribund” peace process withers away. However, international observers have expressed concern that the only solution to Sri Lanka’s conflict is through political – not military – means. Sri Lanka slaps censorship on war reportingOctober 31, 2007 – AFP
Sri Lanka imposed blanket censorship on war reporting, and journalists are already barred from visiting rebel-controlled areas of the North and East or from going to the frontlines of the war. UN human rights expert reports allegations of torture in Sri LankaOctober 29, 2007 – UN News Centre
An independent UN human rights expert claimed that torture is a widespread practice attributable to the Sri Lankan police and army, particularly in the process of “counter-terrorism” operations. Sri Lanka rejects US call for international rights monitorsOctober 24, 2007 – AP
The Sri Lankan government rejected the United States government’s call for the United Nations to establish human rights monitoring mission on the island, claiming that its national institutions were sufficient. Government of Sri Lanka’s Reaction to High Commissioner Arbour’s VisitOctober 22, 2007 – U.S. Department of State
The United States government expresses its continuing concern regarding human rights abuses in Sri Lanka, and urges Sri Lanka to accept international monitors. US urges Sri Lanka to accept UN human rights team to monitor deteriorating situationOctober 22, 2007 – AP
The United States government urges Sri Lanka to allow international human rights monitors to ameliorate the existing crisis. Sri Lankan Human Rights Advisers Resign, Criticize GovernmentOctober 16, 2007 – Bloomberg
Four members of Sri Lanka's “advisory panel” on human rights resigned, condemning the Sri Lankan government for not caring about civilians, but rather only about winning the war militarily. Sri Lanka on brink of all-out warOctober 16, 2007 – BBC
The Sri Lankan government is coming under intense scrutiny from human rights agencies, but is simultaneously preparing for massive fighting that will only exacerbate the dire situation for civilians in the North and East, many who have or will have to flee. UN's Louise Arbour concerned about human rights violationsOctober 15, 2007 – IRIN
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour, stated that Sri Lanka is racked with the problem of extra-judicial killings, abductions, disappearances, and other issues, and that a greater UN presence in Sri Lanka could help stem human rights violations. UN concern over Sri Lanka rightsOctober 13, 2007 – BBC News
United Nations official expresses her alarm at the worsening situation in Sri Lanka, specifically highlighting a “lack of confidence” in a presidential commission established to investigate abuses such as the murders of 17 aid workers for a French charity. She decries the “weakness of the rule of law and the prevalence of impunity”. U.S. Says Sri Lanka Human Rights Violations `Remain Serious'October 10, 2007 – Bloomberg
The United States government reports that human rights violations in Sri Lanka continue to remain “serious”. US Ambassador Robert Blake expresses alarm that the most fundamental rights of people are violated daily in the North, and asks the Sri Lankan government to resolve the pervading climate of impunity. Commentary: UN high commissioner's visit offers opportunity for changeOctober 10, 2007 – UPI Asia Online
Due to the poor human rights situation in Sri Lanka and an unwillingness of the government to make improvements, donor countries are beginning to shy away from supporting the Sri Lankan government. The high commissioner's visit should be seen as a chance to rectify problems, and possibly set up a human rights monitoring mission. Commentary: Playing politics on human rights platformsOctober 3, 2007 – UPI Asia Online
The Sri Lankan government is claiming to be at the forefront of the global “war on terror”, with the hopes that this will obscure and possibly provide an excuse for its rampant human rights problem. The Sri Lankan government was also able to stave off a human rights council resolution against it. 43 aid workers killed in Sri Lanka: rights groupSeptember 6, 2007 - AFP
Over 50 aid workers were killed in Sri Lanka in 2006 and 2007 according to the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC). Also, hundreds of civilians “disappeared” in 2007. AHRC condemned the Sri Lankan government for not investigating these incidents, but rather acting as a “bystander.” Sri Lanka: Amnesty International calls on the United Nations Human Rights Council to address violationsSeptember 4, 2007 – Amnesty International Public Statement
Amnesty International (AI) expressed strong concern over the failure to protect civilians, attacks on journalists, limitations on freedom of expression, and widespread impunity for the armed forces. Among other recommendations, AI urged the UN Human Rights Council to set up an independent human rights monitoring mission in Sri Lanka. |
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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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