Broken Dreams: The Truth about Sri Lanka

By The Social Architects | International Policy Digest
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The brutal civil war in Sri Lanka ended nearly four years ago, but people are still hurting. The country’s North and East are plagued by a host of problems that are unlikely to be resolved soon. Misguided policies emanating from the central government in Colombo have directly contributed to these negative trends. Lofty talk about “the defeat of terrorism” and majoritarian triumphalism have further antagonized people.

Resettlement and Land Issues

The politics of land remains controversial. Even though Menik Farm has closed, tens of thousands of IDPs have not been properly resettled. Since the military still occupies large swathes of land, many IDPs have been forced to move in with friends or relatives. In other instances, families that have been “resettled” lack adequate housing, including locks for doors and windows or suitable sanitation facilities.

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UN 'deeply disturbed' by Sri Lankan shooting

Channel 4

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In an exclusive interview with Channel 4 News, Navi Pillay urged the Sri Lankan government to "provide immediate protection" for Faraz Shaukatally, who is currently in intensive care after being shot by three unidentified gunmen on Friday night.

Ms Pillay said: "It's an act of attempted assassination so he needs to be protected immediately."

Mr Shauketaly, 52, who holds joint British and Sri Lankan citizenship, is a reporter for the Sri Lankan newspaper The Sunday Leader.

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Sri Lankan military inquiry says army did not shell civilians

By Ranga Sirilal and Shihar Aneez | Reuters
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Sri Lankan military investigators said on Friday that the army did not shell civilians as it crushed a Tamil rebellion, refuting international allegations of human rights atrocities.
 
Rights groups say the Sri Lankan military killed thousands of ethnic minority Tamil civilians in the shrinking territory held by rebels of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) just before their defeat in May 2009.

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Female journalists walk on eggshells in Sri Lanka

By Amantha Perera | Inter Press Service 
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The year was 1998 and porters at the wholesale vegetable market in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo had gone on strike, virtually suspending vegetable distribution in the city and its suburbs.

A national news channel, Sri Lanka Maharaja Television, had dispatched a crew of reporters to cover the porters’ union general meeting; the atmosphere was charged and tension was palpable.

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SL military operatives attack peaceful protest against Jaffna SMZ

Tamilnet
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More than ten Sri Lankan military operatives, co-mingling with and camouflaging as protestors in front of Thurkkai Amman temple in Thellippazhai, where a token fast against Colombo converting the former SL Miltiary High Security Zone (HSZ) into Sinhala Military Zone (SMZ) in Jaffna, attacked the peaceful protestors on Friday.

The attack came after the SL Opposition Leader Ranil Wickramasinghe had left the site taking part and addressing the protestors. The SL military men went amok on Tamil parliamentarians and journalists at the site of the protest. However, the attackers who were causing panic among the participants were confronted by the protestors. More than one hundred SL policemen silently watched the unfolding episode without restraining or arresting the civil clad military operatives.

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