Sri Lanka

[Pictured: Donald Perera, Sri Lanka’s ambassador to Israel, in his Tel Aviv office.]
By Chris Slee, August 14, 2010 -- On July 21 the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth published an interview with Donald Perera, Sri Lanka’s ambassador to Israel. Perera, the former Sri Lankan Air Force commander and Chief of Defence Staff, thanked Israel profusely for its support in the fight against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), saying: "For years Israel has aided our war on terror through the exchange of information and the sale of military technology and equipment... Our air force fleet includes 17 Kfir warplanes, and we also have Dabur patrol boats. Our pilots were trained in Israel, and we have received billions of dollars in aid over the past few years. This is why I asked to be assigned to Israel -- a country I consider a partner in the war against terror."

[Pictured: Tamil refugee camp in Vavuniya, October 2009. Photo: Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka.
By Tony Iltis, Green Left Weekly
July 11, 2010 -- On April 9, the Australian Labor Party government, then led by Kevin Rudd, imposed a three-month suspension of the processing of refugees from Sri Lanka. On July 6, the Labor government of PM Julia Gillard announced, in the context of unveiling its pre-election tougher stance against refugees, that the suspension would not be extended.

[Tamil solidarity rally, Sydney, April 2009. The situation is grim for Tamils in Sri Lanka, but one bright spot is the growing organisation and mobilisation of Tamils in the diaspora. Photo: Peter Boyle.]
By Chris Slee, Green Left Weekly
June 27, 2010 -- More than a year after its victory over the pro-independence Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) continues to hold large areas of land in the predominantly Tamil north and east of Sri Lanka as “high security zones” (HSZ).
Many of the Tamil inhabitants who were evicted from these areas to create the HSZs during the decades-long war are still unable to return to their homes.

By Raul Connolly, Green Left Weekly
June 27, 2010 -- United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced on June 22 the formation of a three-member panel to advise him on whether Sri Lanka committed crimes during the last months of its war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Reuters said that day.

Merak refugee Bahirathan (pictured) drowned on June 8 while attempting to reach Australia. He is seen here holding the Australian Offshore Humanitarian Visa application in his right hand.
June 19, 2010 -- Green Left Weekly’s Niko Leka spoke to refugee advocate Saradha Nathan. Last year, Nathan travelled to Indonesia with other refugee advocates, to inspect conditions in Australian-funded detention centres there and take aid and visa application forms to the Tamils stranded on the boat at Merak.
She spoke about the fate of those refugees, some of who are now in detention, and some who recently tried again to come to Australia — with fatal consequences.
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On June 7, a boat ferrying asylum seekers to a larger boat bound for Australia capsized. Seven Tamils died after being in the water for almost 12 hours. Two survived.
Two of those who died had been on the Jaya Lestari, the boat that was stranded in the Indonesian port of Merak for six months, after Prime Minister Kevin Rudd called Indonesian authorities and asked them to “intercept” them en route to Australia.

Pictured: Melbourne-based Tamil activist Aran Mylvaganam.
Sunday, May 30, 2010 -- Green Left Weekly
The absence of war does not mean peace in Tamil Eelam — despite what we hear from the Sri Lankan and Australian governments.
The struggle for Tamil freedom continues on community radio station 3CR, 855AM. 3CR is one of the main platforms for Tamil activists in Melbourne. Aran Mylvaganam is co-presenter of the Tamil Manifest and Tamil Voice programs on 3CR.
He explains how the situation of Tamils in Sri Lanka is as desperate as it ever was.
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The Tamils in Tamil Eelam continue to suffer tremendous hardship at the hands of the Sri Lankan government, its military and supporters. At the moment, there are still more than 100,000 Tamils locked behind barbed wire in camps. Those who have been allowed to leave the camp are homeless.

Sri Lanka: 60 Years of "Independence" and Beyond, Edited by Ana Pararajasingham, Published by the Centre for Just Peace and Democracy, Switzerland 2009.
Review by Chris Slee, Links international journal of socialist renewal
May 30, 2010 -- This is a very useful book for those wishing to gain a thorough understanding of the history of Sri Lanka since its independence from Britain in 1948. The 27 authors in the collection are diverse in their ethnic backgrounds, including Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims from Sri Lanka, as well as outsiders. They are also diverse in their political outlook, including liberals, Marxists and Tamil nationalists.

By Myuran Elango, Green Left Weekly
Saturday, May 22, 2010 -- A May 17 International Crisis Group report said there were “reasonable grounds to believe the Sri Lankan security forces committed war crimes with top government and military leaders potentially responsible” in the last five months of the 30 year long war against Tamil independence fighters. The report cited the intentional shelling of civilians, hospitals and humanitarian operations.
It called for war crimes prosecutions and warned against countries deporting Tamil refugees to Sri Lanka. Australia currently has ceased processing asylum applications from Sri Lanka on the grounds that the country will soon be safe. In the article below Myuran Elango reflects the situation for Sri Lankan Tamils a year after the war ended.

[Pictured: Tamils voting in Sydney in referendum. Photo by Peter Boyle.]
Pip Hinman, Green Left Weekly
Over April 17-18, Tamils across Australia voted overwhelmingly in favour of the formation of an independent and sovereign homeland — Tamil Eelam — in the north and east of Sri Lanka.
In what was described by organisers as “the most successful political event for the diaspora in Australia”, 99.38% of participants voted “yes”.

By Chris Slee, Green Left Weekly
The ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) won nearly two thirds of the seats in the Sri Lankan parliament at the April 8 national elections. The exact figure is uncertain, because the result in two electorates was annulled because of polling day violence.
Re-voting will occur in these areas on April 20.