DOCSLIB.ORG

Jkpo;J; Njrpa Mtzr; Rtbfs; OPINION Sri Lanka Admits (Contd

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Jkpo;J; Njrpa Mtzr; Rtbfs; OPINION Sri Lanka Admits (Contd www.tamilarangam.net ' THARflllEELAM INFORMATION BUREAU HOURS BILINGUAL SERVICE ENGLISH 01-552-5970 Tamil 01-470 6270 THE TIMES Talks aimed at resolving the to local district councils. These A High Court judge accused challenged evidence that the communal conflict in Sri Lanka were rejected by the Tamil the Home Office yesterday of man and his father had been have adjourned for a month representatives who said the using artificial and inhuman beaten up and threatened with Ringing fears that the fragile proposals went no further than criteria in dealing with appli- death and his family's house in asc-firc on the island may those put to an all-party cations for political asylum Colombo had been attacked and break down. conference by President Jaye- from Tamils fleeing communal looted by a mob during riots in After six days of discussions wardene last year. violence rn Sri Lanka. July 1983. which apparently made little A spokesman for the Tamil Mr Justice Taylor, quashing a "It can be of little comfort to progcsss towards solving the militants said: "The proposals ministerial decision to refuse a Tamil family to know they arc stril'c that has brought the put forward by the Sri Lankan asylum to a Tamil aged 34, bcng persecuted as Tamils country to the verge of civil Government as a solution to whose identity was withheld for rather than as individuals," the war. the adjournment was this problem are totally unac- fear of reprisals to his family in judge said. agreed by both sides meeting in ceptable and we have rejected Sri Lanka, said it was a startling Mr Justice Taylor ordered the Thimpu, the capital of Bhutan. then!." The spokesman added , proposition that the applicant decision to refuse asylum to be A senior official in the Indian that it was up to the Govcrmcnt ^couid not qualify for asylum if quashed and directed Mr Ministry of External Affairs, Mr to produce more proposals and he and his family had not been Waddington to reconsider the Romesh Bhandari, had flown to they were prepared to consider singled out for persecution. case. the isolated Himalayan capital any other ideas aimed at solving The judgment effectively The British Refugee Council when the stalemate between the the problem. undermines the Home Office said yesterday that Britain had Sri Lankan Government del- Both sides used the talks to policy of granting political taken many fewer fleeing egation and the Tamil represen- register complaints about al- asylum only in the most Tamils than other wcstcrti tatives had threatened to cause leged breaches of the cease-fire exceptional cases to fleeing European countries which had the talks to collapse in failure. and though it is expected it will Tamils, and was welcomed by no historical links with Sri India, under whose auspicics continue until the next round of the British Refugee Council and Lanka. In West Germany, they were held, is anxious for discussions, thcr arc doubts bodies who have been pressing between 15,000 and 20,000 settlement of the problems about whether it will hold. for Tamils to be granted were wailing decisions on between the Sinhalese majority The . Tamil representatives temporary refugee status. applications for asylum; in and the Tamil minority on the complained of violations by the France there were an estimated island. Mr Bhandari spent two Sri Lankan security forces in the Mr David Waddington, 19,000, 3,500 in the Nether- ^T-ys in informal meetings with eastern part of the island, and Minister of State at the Home lands and 2,500 in Switzerland. I ill delegations before they alleged that civilians supplied Office, stated that all appli- Fewer than 2.500 Tamils agreed to meet again on August with weapons by the security cations were considered tho- 12 at Thimpu. forces had robbed Tamil homes. have arrived in Britain in the roughly and sympathetically, past 18 months. Before leaving the capital, it Members of the Government but more was required to justify was reported, that the Bhuta- delegation promised to refer the granting asylum than the fact Mr Julius Melchior, the nese Government made ar- complaints to the authorities in that the man was a Tamil and solicitor representing the Tamil, rangements for both delegations Colombo saying they could not that there had been civil unrest said that the Home Office to go on a sight-seeing tour. reply to the allegations immedi- against the Tamil community. would have to appeal against Details of what occured in ately. The man appealing to the High the decision or review its basis Thimpu have been sketchy as it © COLOMBO: A spokesman Court had not been involved in for deciding Tamil applications. was deliberately chosen for its for the Eclam National Liber- politics or singled out for The Home Office said last remoteness and no journalists ation Front, an alliance of four harassment. night that it would consider the were allowed entry to the big guerrilla groups, said in The judge said that the judgement. There were about country. Madras on Saturday that the decision was contrary to un- 1,500 Tamils awaiting decision. One Indian reporter who talks were a "preliminary step managed to arrive in the capital although substantial progress was quickly detected by govern- could not be made". (Reutcr ment officials who ordered him Reports). to return to Delhi on the first A statement from the govern- statement on policy towards- Sri available [light. The Sri Lankan ment team said the first phase Lankan Tamils who expressed a fear Government team, led by of the talks had closed ai'U'r IMMIGRATION of return to Sri Lanka. President Jaycwardenc's delegates unanimously agreed Mr Leon Brittun, the Home brother. 'Hector, put forward to resume negotiations on Secretary, said in the Commons that Mr Alfred Dubs, Opposition proposals for devolving powers August 12. it was only with great reluctance spokesman on immigration, said that he had decided that it was this represented a major departure necessary to impose a visa from two important traditions. For requirement for citizens of Sri the first time Commonwealth Lanka, s fellow Commonwealth citizens would require a visa to > • -\s decisiocountry. n defended enter Britain; and the British The need for it would be kept tradition of offering a haven and under rcviesv and he hoped it could hospitality to those seeking asylum be ]iAccl.irLdue,cgurse, he saidjn a_ had been breached. jkpo;j; Njrpa Mtzr; Rtbfs; www.tamilarangam.net-2- OPINION Sri Lanka admits (contd. from p.7 they would be loath to relin- successes, will be very unpre- quish their powers in any dictable. The five main sort of devolution. groups are a disparate alli- The majority of the UNP ance, with strong currents of MPs are said to have their caste and political rivalries. BUTTAJ? SUMMIT. first party allegiance to the They include Marxists, as Prime Minister, Mr R. well as Tamil nationalists, Premadasa, one of the most who have called for a revolu- implacable exponents of Sin- tionary government in Sri The People's Liberation organi- halese-Buddhist supremacy. Lanka and have some sup- sation of Thamileelara (PLOT) He 'has done nothing to port among educated Sinha- despite expressing considerable lessen the irrational Sinha- lese youth. scepticism on the successful lese fears about the huge With the continuing pres- southern Indian state of sure from India to reach an out-come of the Buttan Summit, Tamil Nadu, which has given accommodation, Mr Jayewar- participated in the conference. bases and support to the dene may flind a way out of .Tamil groups. his dilemma. But it will take Comrade Uma Maheswaran, Secretary Negotiations with the a leap of huge political will. General of PLOT, expanding the Tamil guerrilla leaders, em- reasons why the group participated boldened by their military in the conference despite its scepticism of the outcome, empha- MASSACRES WILL NEVER sised that the conference provided the best means of gaining inter- national recognition. STOP THE FIGHT FOR Through its participation at the conference, PLOT has implicitly FREEDOM ! gained recognition of both the Indian and Sri Lankan governments. Whereas on the other hand through their categorical rejection of the ceasefire negotiations and subse- Tiger quent acquisence of it because of Indian pressure, the LTTE and the members of the ENLF exposed both their weak position and singular lack of foresightedness. Comrade Uma when interviewed by Comrade Skantha of the VOTE also The major Tamil militant organi- emphasised the need on gaining at least a brief respite to the em- sations operating in the North have battled Tamil people who have more now polarised into two groupings, especially during the past year according to. a .report in "The been subjected to genocidal attacks. Island" The Secretary General of PLOT em- phasised during the interview that the talks were not to negotiate The People's Liberation Organi- Thamileelam but aimed at seeking possibilities for a cease-fire. sation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) led He pointed out that as early as in by Uma Maheswaran,, along with December 1983, the Central Committee the Tamil Eelam Liberation Army of PLOT had foreseen the possibi- (TELA) are in one group. lities of the present situation and made its plans accordingly. Refering to the changed stance of the TULF The other group comprises the he said, this was a welcome sign, which thereby enhanced its role in Liberation Tigers og Tamil Eelam the liberation struggle. (JUTTED the Tamil! Ealam, Liber- ation Organisation (TELO', the Eelam People's Revolutionary Libe- ration Front (EPRLF; and the Eelam Revolutionary Organisation Navy patrol kills Tamils (EROS;. j Colombo - Three Tamil had been in armoured cars* icivilians were shot dead yester- Official sources said the navy "The latter grouping.while retain- day at a bus stop near the palrol had surprised Tamil ing theit individual identities, will Karainagar navy base in norfh- youths pulling up posters anil unita under the umbrella of the ern Sri Lanka (Our correspon- there had been an exchange of dent writes).
Load more

Recommended publications
  • A Study of Violent Tamil Insurrection in Sri Lanka, 1972-1987
    SECESSIONIST GUERRILLAS: A STUDY OF VIOLENT TAMIL INSURRECTION IN SRI LANKA, 1972-1987 by SANTHANAM RAVINDRAN B.A., University Of Peradeniya, 1981 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES Department of Political Science We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA February 1988 @ Santhanam Ravindran, 1988 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of Political Science The University of British Columbia 1956 Main Mall Vancouver, Canada V6T 1Y3 Date February 29, 1988 DE-6G/81) ABSTRACT In Sri Lanka, the Tamils' demand for a federal state has turned within a quarter of a century into a demand for the independent state of Eelam. Forces of secession set in motion by emerging Sinhala-Buddhist chauvinism and the resultant Tamil nationalism gathered momentum during the 1970s and 1980s which threatened the political integration of the island. Today Indian intervention has temporarily arrested the process of disintegration. But post-October 1987 developments illustrate that the secessionist war is far from over and secession still remains a real possibility.
    [Show full text]
  • "Early Militancy" from " Tigers of Lanka"
    www.tamilarangam.net "Early militancy" from " Tigers of Lanka" [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5] This is the 1st part of "Early militancy" from " Tigers of Lanka", written by M.R.Nayaran Swamy. This chapter has the history of Sivakumaran and others. Early Militancy ( Part 1 ) It is VIRTUALLY impossible to set a date for the genesis of Tamil militancy in Sri Lanka. Tamils began weaving dreams of an independent homeland much more militancy erupted, albeit in an embryonic form, in the late 1960s and early 1970s. After 1956 riots, a group of tamils organised and opened fire at the Sri Lankan army in Batticaloa. Two Sinhalese were killed when 11 Tamils, having between them seven rifles, fired at a convoy of Sinhalese civi- lians and govt officials one night at a village near Kalmunai. There was another attcak on army soldiers in Jaffna after Colombo stifled the Federal Party "satyagraha" in 1961, but no one was killed. The failure of the 1961 "satyagraha" set several of its leading lights thinking. Mahatma Gandhi, they argued, succeeded in India with his concept of non-violence and non-cooperation because he was leading a majority against a minority, however powerful; whereas in Sri Lanka, the Tamils were a minority seeking rights from a majority. And the majority was not willing to give concessions. Some of 20 men associated with the Federal Party thought Gandhism had no place in sucha scenario. They decided after the prolonged deliberations to form an underground group to fight for a separate state. Most of them were civil servants and had been influenced by Leon Uris Exodus.
    [Show full text]
  • 'Terrorism' Or
    ISSN 2334-3745 Volume XII, Issue 2 April 2018 PERSPECTIVES ON TERRORISM Volume 12, Issue 2 Table of Contents Welcome from the Editors Articles ‘Terrorism’ or ‘Liberation’? Towards a Distinction: A Case Study of the Armed Strug- gle of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)....................................................1 by Muttukrishna Sarvananthan Tackling Terrorism’s Taboo: Shame..........................................................................19 by Matthew Kriner Spaces, Ties, and Agency: The Formation of Radical Networks................................32 by Stefan Malthaner Headhunting among Extremist Organizations: An Empirical Assessment of Talent Spotting...................................................................................................................44 by Gina Ligon, Michael Logan and Steven Windisch Policy Brief Interview with Max Hill, QC, Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation for the United Kingdom.......................................................................................................63 conducted by Sam Mullins Research Notes Erdogan's Turkey and the Palestinian Issue........................................................................................................................74 by Ely Karmon & Michael Barak 130+ (Counter-) Terrorism Research Centres – an Inventory...................................86 compiled and selected by Teun van Dongen Book Reviews Ronen Bergman. Rise and Kill First: The Secret History of Israel’s Targeted Assassinations. New York: Random
    [Show full text]
  • Managing Group Grievances and Internal Conflict: Sri Lanka Country Report
    Working Paper Series Working Paper 13 Managing Group Grievances and Internal Conflict: Sri Lanka Country Report G.H. Peiris and K.M. de Silva Netherlands Institute of International Relations ‘Clingendael’ Conflict Research Unit June 2003 Netherlands Institute of International Relations ‘Clingendael’ Clingendael 7 2597 VH The Hague P.O. Box 93080 2509 AB The Hague Phonenumber: # 31-70-3245384 Telefax: # 31-70-3282002 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.clingendael.nl/cru © Netherlands Institute of International Relations Clingendael. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyrightholders. Clingendael Institute, P.O. Box 93080, 2509 AB The Hague, The Netherlands. Foreword This paper has been written within the framework of the research project ‘Managing Group Grievances and Internal Conflict’*, executed at the request of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The project focuses on the process of, and motives for, (violent) group mobilisation and aims at the development of an analytical tool to assist policy-makers in designing conflict-sensitive development activities. In the course of the project, a preliminary assessment tool has been developed in cooperation with Dr. Michael Lund, and discussed with the researchers who carried out the assessment in four country cases: Ghana, Mozambique, Nicaragua and Sri Lanka. On the basis of this testing phase, the tool has been substantially amended and refined**. The present report, which was finalized in September 2002, results from the testing phase and reflects the structure of the analytical tool in its original form.
    [Show full text]
  • "Les Tomouls De Sri Lanka Comptent Sui I'tide Mauricienne Les Tamonls Da Sri Dangers Qui Menacent Ses Tiques Et Ecoles Incendiees— Aide Aux Refugies
    www.tamilarangam.net DMA MAHESWARAN IN MAURITIUS REPORTS FROM THE MAURITIUS PRESS ETMiiitant Lundi 23 Janvier 198^ Itfaftes/warai, leader do PLOTE en visile a Maurice "les Tomouls de Sri Lanka comptent sui I'tide mauricienne Les Tamonls da Sri dangers qui menacent ses tiques et ecoles incendiees— aide aux refugies. M. David Lanka, Tktimes des atro- correligionnaires. Le gou- il y eu aussi la tentative a raconte avec force details, dtes perpetrees par le vernement Sri Lankais a d'enlever a quelque un comment en septembre gQHYernement de M. Joliaa augment^ sensiblement son million da laboureurs leur 1983,alors qu'il 6tait d6tena Jayawardene comptent bean- budget pour la defense et droit de vote. avec d'autres militants coop sur le sootien des partis s'est assure de la collabora- depuis avril, il parvint & politiqnes et do people man- tion de certains pays afin M. Mabeshwaran a par!6 organiser Invasion de quel- ricienpoor mettre a tenne de pouvoir 'mieux brutali- en tenne £mu des 6meutes que 250 membres du PLOTE one sitoation qni commence ser, terroriser et assassicer de 1977, 1981 et juillet 1983. d'une prison. II a fait £tat a devenir insupportable. les Tamouls'. «Ces Smeutes avaient £t£ des attaques de la police et Cette declaration a etc planifides et execut^es par le de 1'armee sur les biens de faite hier apres-midi par SelonM Maheshwaran les gouvernement pour encou- la «Gandhiyam Sociefy» — M. Usss Mahss&wasaE, lea- £tudiants cisgalais recoivent rager 1'assassinat, le viol, et locaux, meubles, v^hicules, der do People's Liberation une formation militaire a le matraquage d'un peuple plantations aussi bien que Organisation of Tamil I'&ole, tandis qu'un mi- sans moyen de se defendre.
    [Show full text]
  • Country Advice
    Country Advice Sri Lanka Sri Lanka – LKA36517 – Colombo – Tamils – Returnees – Security situation – Extortion – Brahmins – Teachers – State protection – Police 22 April 2010 1. What is the current situation for Tamil returnees to Colombo? There is some variation in the reporting on the treatment of Tamil returnees to Colombo. In August 2009 the Australian High Commission in Colombo advised the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) that “there were no procedures in place to identify failed asylum seekers”; and that: “The only way that the authorities were alerted to a failed asylum seeker returning was if the airlines or IOM notified them that a person was a deportee or was being escorted”.1 A Tamil returned to Colombo after seeking asylum in Australia would therefore be under no more scrutiny than any other Tamil returning to Colombo and would be subject to the same screening procedures with the same risk criteria for being perceived as having an LTTE association (for a list of these criteria see the paragraphs below). In 2004, Australia‟s Edmund Rice Centre claimed to be aware of two instances in which returnees had been detained for a number of weeks by Sri Lankan authorities following their return; connecting this development with the manner in which Australian immigration officials had shared information about the returnees with the Sri Lankan authorities and the manner in which the returnees were escorted to Colombo airport by an Australian immigration official.2 In recent months Bruce Haigh, a retired Australian diplomat who formerly served at Australia‟s Colombo post (and at the RRT as a Member), has claimed that it has been the practice of the Australian government, in his experience, to share information with the Sri Lankan government about the identities of Sri Lankan nationals applying for asylum in Australia;3 which would indicate that, if such a practice is taking place, the identities of Sri Lankan asylum seekers are being communicated to the Sri Lankan authorities.
    [Show full text]
  • Tamilische Akteure in Sri Lanka; Themenpapier
    Tamilische Akteure in Sri Lanka Themenpapier Helena Lisibach Dezember 2007 Angaben zur Autorin: Helena Lisibach schloss 2007 das Bachelorstudium in Ethnologie (Major) und Staatsrecht (Minor) an der Universität Bern ab. Von Juli bis Dezember 2007 absolvie rte sie ein Prakt i- kum in der Abteilung Länderanalyse der Schweizer ischen Flüchtlingshilfe. Impressum HERAUSGEBERIN Schweizerische Flüchtlingshilfe SFH Postfach 8154, 3001 Bern Tel. 031 / 370 75 75 Fax 031 / 370 75 00 E-Mail: INFO@ osar.ch Internet : www.osar.ch PC -Konto: 30 -1085 -7 AUTOR Helena Lisibach ÜBERSETZUNG SPRACHVERSIONEN deutsch, französisch PREIS Fr. 20 .-- inkl. 2,4 Prozent MWSt., zuzgl. Versandkosten COPYRIGHT © 2007 Schweizerische Flüchtlingshilfe, Bern Kopieren un d Abdruck unter Quellenangabe erlaubt. Inhaltsverzeichnis Inhaltsverzeichnis ................................ ................................ ................................ 3 1 Einleitung ................................ ................................ ................................ .... 1 2 Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) ................................ .................... 2 2.1 Übersicht ................................ ................................ ............................. 2 2.2 Der politische bzw. administrative Flü gel der LTTE ............................... 3 2.2.1 Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO) ................................ ... 4 2.2.2 Der Staat im Staat ................................ ................................ .... 5 2.2.3 Tamil National Alliance (TNA)
    [Show full text]
  • Origin, Organisation, Leadership, Social Composition
    Chapter III THE LTTE: ORIGIN, ORGANISATION, LEADERSHIP, SOCIAL COMPOSITION From its inception, the militant movement of the Tamils of Sri Lanka has been constituted by a multiplicity of groups. Most of these groups emerged due to the splintering of larger outfits, caused by differences on policies or tactics, or personal ambitions and rivalries. While a few groups limited their activities to pamphleteering, others shot into prominence with a robbery or an ambush and then faded into insignificance. However, five groups - LTTE, PLOT, TELO, EROS, and EPRLF have been in the forefront for some time. Of these five ascendant groups, the L TTE has dominated the scene to the present day. This chapter's first concern is with tracing the LTTE's origin. The organisational structure, leadership and social composition of the L TTE will also be examined. ORIGIN Establishing the origin of the LTTE or of the other militant groups is extremely difficult as all the groups claim to be the original one. Since most of them have evolved out of the fission or fusion of various groups and factions, it is difficult to delineate clearly how or when a group originated. According to the LTTE's version, it had its "historical birth" in 1972 when its predecessor the TNT was formed.1 However, the LTTE's claim to being the oldest of the militant groups is refuted by TELO which points out 1 . LTTE, Political Committee, Liberation Tigers and Tamil Eelam Freedom Struggle (Madras, 1983), p.25. 66 that it (TELO) was founded in 1968 by Kuttimani and Thangaturai.2 Nonetheless, it is believed that the old TELO was different from the TELO that was active in the 1980s.3 The EROS, founded by the Marxist intellectual Ratnasabapathy, originated among the Tamil expatriates in London.
    [Show full text]
  • Jkpo;J; Njrpa Mtzr; Rtbfs;
    Pirapaharan, Chapter 21<br>The Splitwww.tamilarangam.net of the LTTE - Sangam.org Page 1 of 5 Sangam.org - Ilankai Tamil Sangam Association of Tamils of Sri Lanka in the USA Active Home Page Previous Version Archive Original Version Home Page Pirapaharan, Chapter 21 The Split of the LTTE by T. Sabaratnam; published December 3, 2003 21. The Split in the LTTE The Uma- Urmila Affair Pirapaharan could not believe his ears when his colleagues told him that Uma Maheswaran was having sex with Urmila. When convinced, he thundered: The chairman is flouting the code of conduct he is expected to strictly enforce. Pirapaharan was instrumental in bringing Uma into the LTTE and making him its chairman. That earned him strong criticism. An outsider had been brought in and made the leader, his senior colleagues grumbled. They murmured that that was Pirapaharan’s second mistake. The first was when he made Chetti Thanabalasingham the leader of the TNT. Chetti cheated him of the robbed money and then turned a police informer. Pirapaharan trusted Chetti because he was a man of action and Pirapaharan adored action. He took in Uma into the LTTE because he displayed total commitment to armed revolt and because Amirthalingam prodded Uma Maheswaran him to take him. Uma was the secretary of the Colombo branch of the Tamil United Liberation Front-controlled Tamil Youth Forum and was very active in his work. Pirapaharan decided to make Uma the leader because he was 10 years his elder, possessed extensive knowledge of revolutionary movements and was fluent in the English and Tamil languages.
    [Show full text]
  • Sri Lanka, Page 36812 © 1931‐2006 Keesing's Worldwide, LLC ‐ All Rights Reserved
    Keesing's Record of World Events (formerly Keesing's Contemporary Archives), Volume 35, July, 1989 Sri Lanka, Page 36812 © 1931‐2006 Keesing's Worldwide, LLC ‐ All Rights Reserved. SRI LANKA A diplomatic compromise hastily devised on July 28 defused tension between the governments of India and Sri Lanka and narrowly averted the military confrontation which had appeared likely earlier in the month. Relations between the two countries had deteriorated sharply since June 1, when President Ranasinghe Premadasa of Sri Lanka had demanded the withdrawal of the 45,000-strong Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) by the second anniversary of the Indo-Sri Lankan agreement on July 29 [see p. 36735; for agreement itself see pp. 35312-17]. Letters were exchanged between President Premadasa and India's Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, during the first half of July, both leaders trading accusations over the non- implementation of the 1987 agreement. On July 14 Ranjan Wijeratne, the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, reportedly announced that the IPKF would be forcibly ejected if they were not withdrawn voluntarily by the July 29 deadline. Premadasa adopted a more conciliatory tone in a letter to Gandhi on July 19, his sixth in seven weeks. In the letter he made no reference to the July 29 deadline, although he did indicate, for the first time, the possibility of the Sri Lankan government abrogating the 1987 agreement. After three days of intense diplomatic negotiation in Colombo and New Delhi, a joint Indo-Sri Lankan communiqué was issued on July 28. This provided for the symbolic withdrawal of some 600 IPKF soldiers on July 29 and for the initiation of talks the same day between Wijeratne and his Indian counterpart, P.
    [Show full text]
  • Michael Roberts Working Paper No. 32 November 2007
    Heidelberg Papers in South Asian and Comparative Politics BLUNDERS IN TIGERLAND: PAPE’S MUDDLES ON “SUICIDE BOMBERS” IN SRI LANKA by Michael Roberts Working Paper No. 32 November 2007 South Asia Institute Department of Political Science University of Heidelberg MICHAEL ROBERTS HEIDELBERG PAPERS IN SOUTH ASIAN AND COMPARATIVE POLITICS ISSN: 1617-5069 About HPSACP This occasional paper series is run by the Department of Political Science of the South Asia Institute at the University of Heidelberg. The main objective of the series is to publicise ongoing research on South Asian politics in the form of research papers, made accessible to the international community, policy makers and the general public. HPSACP is published only on the Internet. The papers are available in the electronic pdf-format and are designed to be downloaded at no cost to the user. The series draws on the research projects being conducted at the South Asia Institute in Heidelberg, senior seminars by visiting scholars and the world-wide network of South Asia scholarship. The opinions expressed in the series are those of the authors, and do not represent the views of the University of Heidelberg or the Editorial Staff. Potential authors should consult the style sheet and list of already published papers at the end of this article before making a submission. Editor Subrata K. Mitra Deputy Editors Clemens Spiess Malte Pehl Jivanta Schöttli Siegfried Wolf Editorial Assistant Anja Kluge Editorial Consultants Katharine Adeney Mike Enskat Alexander Fischer Karsten Frey Evelin Hust Karl-Heinz Krämer Apurba Kundu Peter Lehr Kenneth McPherson Marie-Thérèse O’Toole Matthias Paukert Christian Wagner Wolfgang-Peter Zingel HEIDELBERG PAPERS IN SOUTH ASIAN AND COMPARATIVE 2 POLITICS http://www.sai.uni-heidelberg.de/SAPOL/HPSACP.htm Working Paper No.
    [Show full text]
  • Erasing the Past: Repression of Memorialization in North-East Sri
    CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 2 GLOSSARY 3 I. INTRODUCTION 4 II. ATTITUDES TOWARDS MEMORIALIZATION 5 III. OBSTACLES TO REMEMBRANCE 17 IV. THE RIGHT TO REMEMBER 32 V. CONCLUSION 34 APPENDIX 37 1 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This report would not have been possible without the incredibly brave people of the North-East of Sri Lanka, who remain defiant in the face of oppression. They came forward despite security concerns to share their thoughts on what remains a heavily repressed issue. Their contributions are sincerely appreciated and PEARL is grateful for their help. PEARL would like to thank Dr Kate Cronin-Furman of Harvard University, who provided endless support and guidance during the research and compilation of this report. PEARL also extends its gratitude to the US Tamil Political Action Council (USTPAC) for its generous support, which enabled the research necessary for this report. 2 GLOSSARY CID Criminal Investigation Department CSD Civilian Security Department IPKF Indian Peace Keeping Force LTTE Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam Maaveerar Term denoting fallen LTTE cadres Maaveerar Naal Annual remembrance day on November 27 for LTTE deaths NPC Northern Provincial Council PLOTE People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam SLA Sri Lanka Army SLAF Sri Lanka Air Force STF Special Task Force TELO Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation Thuyilum Illam LTTE cemeteries TNA Tamil National Alliance UNHRC UN Human Rights Council 3 I. INTRODUCTION For the survivors of human rights violations, mass atrocities, and political violence, the past is always present. But in the Tamil regions of North-East Sri Lanka, where tens of thousands of lives, both civilian and combatant, were lost over the course of the decades-long war, remembrance remains extremely contentious.
    [Show full text]