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    Aug 24-30: "Strength does not come from physical capability. It comes from an indomitable will"- Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)

    A Call to protect civilians in Wanni

    People of conscience are perturbed that the current war in the LTTE occupied Vanni places the majority of civilians at tremendous risk. Unarmed and trapped in this war zone, large numbers of civilians including children are caught in the intense cross-fire of a deadly armed confrontation. Thousands are already displaced and can flee only to places of temporary safety. [FI]

    WSJ Op-Ed: Colombo needs to offer moderate Tamils a political settlement

    Sri Lanka's military is now two months into a full-on offensive against the Tamil Tiger rebels in their northern base. An end finally may be in sight to the war that has roiled the country for a quarter century. [FI]

    CPJ: "Publishing a magazine should not constitute an offence"

     
    Statement by Committee to Protect Journalists 

    The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the Colombo high court’s indictment of journalist J.S. Tissainayagam today on terrorism charges for articles he published in 2006. [TC]

    Mano Ganesan Carried Message From Chandrika To Prabakaran In 2005 About Offering Asylum To “Col” Karuna

    Western Peoples Front leader and Colombo district Parliamentarian Mano Ganesan was sent as a special emissary to the Wanni  by former President Chandrika Kumaratunga in 2005 to convey a message to LTTE leader Velupillai Prabakaran. [TC]

    Lessons of a Conflict 

    By Ram Manikkalingam

    Ceasefires and insistence on human rights protection may not help peace processes in strife-torn countries. [FI]

    Sri Lanka's Foreign Policy: The Way to Go

    by Dayan Jayatilleka, PhD [FI]

    The Consequences of July 1983

    by Prof Rajiva Wijesinha [FI]

    Towards Economic Development in the Northern Province

    by Rohantha N A Athulorale [FI]

    Education of thousands disrupted by fighting

    Report by United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs [TC] 

    Impending military victory, pending political questions

    by Rajan Philips 

    This is supposed to be the year of victory over the Tigers. Prime Minister Wickramanayake even predicted that the Sri Lankan troops will be in Kilinochchi before Sabragamua and North Central Provinces go to polls on Saturday. Regardless of when the troops will reach Kilinochchi, most observers seem to agree that the LTTE is not going to hold out much longer in its Vanni stronghold. The natural question is what is going to happen after that. In fact, there is more than one question and a military victory may not answer any of them. [TC]

    The Tragic Phenomenon of Permanent Refugees

    By Rajan Hoole

    The pledge of government leaders not to leave the problem of terrorism to the next generation might have carried credibility, were the different components to a rational strategy in place. One should have been a federal settlement that would have left no doubt that the Tamils would enjoy equality, security and dignity as citizens of Lanka. Nothing approaching it has happened in 60 years of independence. [FI]

    Foreign Minister Bogollagama’s antics and escapades

    By Namini Wijedasa

    Month after month, Rohitha Bogollagama continues to astound the country with his free-wheeling attitude towards public finance and his blatant abuse of the foreign ministry portfolio for the good of his own. [TC]

    Indictment of Journalist J. S. Tissainayagam [FI]

    Aug 17-23: "The greatest miracle of all, the human being." Marya Mannes (1904-1990) American Author

    Northern Front: Retreating Tigers and Advancing Army

    By D.B.S. Jeyaraj

    In what appears to be a co-incidence the military fortunes of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have been declining on the Northern battlefront ever since our Lady of the Rosary was relocated from her traditional abode at Maruthamadhu (Madhu). [TC]

    Indictment of Tissainayagam An Assault on Press Freedom in Sri Lanka

    Statement by International Federation of Journalists 

    The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is alarmed that Sri Lankan authorities are taking the unprecedented step of applying the country's draconian anti-terrorism law to seek to condemn senior journalist J.S. Tissainayagam for pursuing his profession. [TC]

    Tens of Thousands at Risk in Sri Lanka as Fighting Escalates

    Statement by Amnesty International

    The Sri Lankan military and the opposing Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) are putting tens of thousands of displaced civilians at risk as fighting continues in the Wanni area of northern Sri Lanka [TC]

    War, Peace & Relations Across Palk Straits

    By Col. R. Hariharan (retd) 

    The Eelam War is entering the messy phase. During the last two weeks, in Mannar sector the security forces have progressed up to Mulankavil (southeast of Nachikuda on the Mannar coast) on A32 road to Pooneryn. They are leaning on lineTunukkai-Mallavi, West of Mankulam on A9 highway increasing the threat to Pooneryn and Kilinochchi defences of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). [TC]

    What is the Future of Sri Lanka?

    by Prof. Ratnajeevan Hoole

    This is the full text of a speech delivered on Aug 17th 2008 at a seminar organized by the Canadians for peace in Toronto. [TC]

    I.D.P.'s in the North face humanitarian catastrophe

    by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

    “Humanitarian catastrophe” was the description given by the so – called International media when the Caucasian conflict began displacing people .

    Initially it was a humanitarian catastrophe only to to Russian and other pro – Moscow media when 34,000 people became internally displaced persons (IDP’s) due to Georgia’s military adventure. [TC]

    Desperate plight of Tamil civilians By Ethirajan Anbarasan [TC] Tamil Translation: தமிழ் பொது மக்களின் பரிதாப அவலம்  [ஊற்று]

    Beneath the evasive negotiated settlement

    by Dr. S. Narapalasingam 

    The BBC world service programme ‘Insider’s Debate’ on Sunday 27 July 2008 with Lyse Doucet in the chair started with the questions - What is it like to try to sue for peace between two bitterly-opposed factions? To be in the same room as Northern Ireland adversaries Gerry Adams and Ian Paisley? How do you begin to get the Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan government to talk to each other? [FI]

    I.D.P.s: Need for National legal framework in Sri Lanka

    By Andres Angel

    'The ongoing ethnic strife between Sri Lanka's Sinhalese majority and Tamil minority has led to one of the worst crises of internal displacement in South Asia. In terms of the proportion of the population, Sri Lanka has one of the world's largest IDP populations. Internal displacement in Sri Lanka predominantly stems from conflict-related violence caused by the clashing of the government's armed forces with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Disregard for human rights has traditionally caused displacement as rebel and government forces indiscriminately assault, arrest, and abuse civilian populations.'[FI]

    All Lands Home

    In Pictures: Pradeeban Peter-Paul

    Sri Lanka born Canadian in the Olympic Table Tennis Team [Canada.com]

    Olympic Pictures of the Day: August 17 August 16 August 15 August 14 August 13 August 12 August 11 August 10 August 9

    NY Times in Pictures: Olympics Opening Ceremony

    A land struggle  

    by S. Viswanathan

    For the Dalits of Ittikkal Agaram, Tamil Nadu, trying to cultivate the land allotted to them has been a struggle against caste-Hindu hostility. [Frontline]

    Aug 10-16: "You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist" - Golda Meir (1898 - 1978) Fourth Prime Minister of Israel

    Not many pluses: A brutal military campaign threatens Sri Lanka’s exporters [The Economist]

    LTTE, government endangering lives of tens of thousands of newly displaced around Wanni

    Thousands of families who fled the recent fighting between Sri Lankan forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) must be allowed to move to safer areas and to receive necessary humanitarian assistance, Amnesty International said today. [TC]

    The Assassination of ministers Kadirgamar and Fernandopulle

    by B. Anton Jeyanathan [TC] 

    China’s Influence in India’s Neighbourhood

    by Col.R.Hariharan

    China is using the space provided by India’s reluctance to sell weapons to Sri Lanka for political reasons to increase its influence in Sri Lanka’s strategic spectrum. So the possibility of the Hambantota project ending up as a remake of the Gwadar episode in Pakistan is very much there. [TC]

    The Spectre of Dravidastan

    By R.Venugopal

     

    Dayan Jayatilleka's review of Tamil Nadu and the Indian model is a sensible, measured, lucid articulation of the problem at hand. His article makes a compelling and convincing logical exposition of the parameters within which the possible settlement of the ethnic conflict can meaningfully take place - and partisans of all stripes should be forced to read it. [FI]

    1983 July Anti – Tamil Violence – State Terrorism

    by Izeth Hussain 

    In 1958, ten years after Independence, Sri Lankans of my generation were shocked by the anti-Tamil riots. We had complacently assumed that that was the sort of thing that was endemic in India but could never take place in Sri Lanka. [TC]

    Second Death Anniversary: Kethesh Loganathan - A committed, engaged individual

    By Dayan Jayatilleke 

    Kethesh Loganathan was one of those 'best minds'. He was above all else a committed, engaged intellectual.

    He was indubitably one of the sharpest analytical intellects, one of the finest Sri Lankan minds of his day.

    He and I had a generation, social background, ideological formation and historical-political experience in common. [TC]

    Tamil Nadu, the Indian Model and devolution

    by Dayan Jayatilleka 

    The devolution debate has been sharpened by the highly interesting and significant results of the public opinion poll recently conducted in Tamil Nadu, with regard to Sri Lanka’s ethnic issue and its internal arrangements [FI]

    TMVP must retain arms until LTTE is eliminated

    By S.L. Gunasekara 

    Once upon a time, not so many years ago, Muralitharan Vinayagamoorthy alias Karuna was not only a  self confessed member of the LTTE and the undisputed leader of that gang of terrorists in the East, but also their principal `killing machine’ who led most of their major campaigns to the great detriment of our Republic. [TC]

    My plea to the LTTE leadership

    by Dr K Chandradeva 

    I am not a politician nor do I belong to any political/militant organisation.  I was deeply disturbed and disappointed with the strategy of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and wrote the following article (see the link below) about two and a half years ago. [TC]

    A bleak assessment on post PC elections

    By Kusal Perera

    The SAARC came with a thundering bang and left with a hollow whimper. It’s back to usual business that’s provincial council elections with a national impact. It’s about who would catch a windfall, to come out smiling. Political windfalls don’t come by ever so often to a political leader, however calculating and cunning he or she could be. [FI]

    A Year of Anniversaries: From Puran Appu to the Hartal

    by Dayan Jayatilleka 

    This is a year beaded as a necklace with anniversaries. Some are past us, some ahead. Some are international, the others national. Some are of heroism, others of tragedy and darkness. All are significant. All teach us something, provide occasions for reflection. [TC]

    Reporting on Human Rights in Sri Lanka: [FI]

    Turning the trends that define our times to our advantage

    by Christopher Warren  

    News in a human rights framework

    by Jacqueline Park

    Gender equity in media charter

    by Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai

    All Lands Home

    In Pictures: Russian bombing campaign in Georgia [NYTimes]

    Q & A: Violence in South Ossetia

    Violence has escalated in South Ossetia, a breakaway province of Georgia and one of the “frozen conflicts” of the former Soviet Union. The conflict heated up dramatically in the early morning of August 8, 2008. Georgia declared that it intended to restore constitutional order and launched a large-scale military offensive. Russia sent additional troops to South Ossetia, saying they were reinforcements to Russian peacekeepers who are in the area to monitor a 1992 ceasefire between Georgian and South Ossetian forces. [HRW]

    Aug 3-9: "It is remarkable to what lengths people will go to avoid thought." -Thomas Edison (1847-1931) American inventor

    NY Times OpArt: on 08/08/08

    Access to newly displaced "critical" 

    Access to thousands of civilians who have fled fighting between government forces and the Tamil Tigers in the northwestern Mannar District between June and July was critical to prevent further hardship, according to UN officials. [TC] 

    Provincial Election Campaign: Battling for the Centre? 

    by Pradeep Peiris

    Today, the UNP, the SLFP and the JVP have zeroed-in all their resources to the Sabaragamuwa and North Central provinces. Ministers, Members of Parliament and the Pradeshiya Sabha politicians across the country have all been entrusted with specific tasks in this provincial council election campaign. These tasks are based on their individual capacities. Some of them strategize the campaign, some others speak at the rallies while others –unskilled labourers – have been assigned the popular traditional tasks of intimidating and harassing their opponents which has often been effective in election campaigns in Sri Lanka. [FI]

    HRW: Sri Lanka Government Misusing Emergency Regulations

    The Sri Lankan government should release a prominent journalist and two others connected to a website critical of the government, Human Rights Watch said today. The three have been held without charge since March under emergency regulations. [FI]

    Frontline positions shift rapidly in Northern theatre of war

    D.B.S. Jeyaraj

    Significant strides made by the armed forces on the one hand and consequential withdrawals (strategic or otherwise) by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on the other, have caused rapid shifts in the frontline positions of both sides in the northern theatre of conflict. [TC]

    Military and the Mess Up in Media Relations

    by Col R Hariharan (retd.)

    "The Sirasa TV crew who went to cover the opening of the second flyover in Kelaniya met with hostility from the bodyguards of Minister Mervyn Silva. An eye witness at the scene claimed that the minister had inquired whether a Sirasa TV crew was present and upon identification had ordered his guards to forcibly remove the video tapes from the camera." News item in a Colombo daily August 5, 2008. [TC]

    Tamil separatism survives on the strength of Sinhala nationalism

    By Kusal Perera

    Reminiscing “Black July” is almost over. There were plenty of articles in most of our print media and in web portals with differing points of view on “Black July”. Yet what was missing in most of that discussion was a reading about the LTTE psyche, 25 years after the Black July. Does the LTTE work towards achieving any justification or sympathy from the South for their struggle, liberation or separatist war or what ever label one may wish to stick on it in the South? This is the single most important question the South needs to ask itself.  The southern political leadership had from the very beginning of the conflict opposed this Tamil homeland complete. [FI]

    Army gaining advantage as fighting rages in the North

    By D.B.S. Jeyaraj 

    Medical personnel travelling last week from Government controlled Vavuniya to the hospital in Tiger controlled Puliyankulam were surprised to find the town deserted and hospital closed.

    It was then that they came to know of the latest orders issued by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to the helpless civilian population under their control in the Northern mainland known as Wanni.

    All civilians living between Puliyankulam and Kanakarayankulam along the Jaffna – Kandy road known as A – 9 highway had been instructed by the LTTE to leave their dwellings and re-locate to areas between Oddusuddan and Puthukkudiyiruppu in the Mullaitheevu district. [TC]

    Dr. Nesiah: President wanted me to quit the commission
     
    by Namini Wijedasa

    Devanesan Nesiah - veteran public servant and activist - controversially quit the Presidential Commission of Inquiry to Investigate and Inquire into Serious Violations of Human Rights after counsel for the army and STF, Gomin Dayasiri and S L Gunesekera, claimed a conflict of interest due to his involvement in the Centre for Policy Alternatives. The CPA had obtained the CoI’s permission to intervene on behalf of the victims and of civil society. In his first interview since the resignation, Dr Nesiah (emailing us from Australia) said he left because the two counsels had attacked and threatened him constantly. [FI]

    SAARC and the Tamil National Question

    by P Shantikumar

    Sri Lanka is obviously drifting towards a two state solution. The easiest way to tell that is by looking at the manner in which successive governments had unleashed brutal military terror against hapless Tamil civilians to what is essentially a political problem. If war is said to be the extension of politics then it follows, at least in the Sri Lankan context, eventual solution is inevitable secession. To try and impose any other solution would only result in continuation of the war – which means a very resourceful island continuing to burn itself – because of the Sinhala Political Establishment’s ineptitude and selfishness. Only the Sinhalese can settle this conflict amicably. [FI]

    Assassination of Alfred Durayappah

    by Tissa Devendra 

    1975 was my fifth year as Government Agent of Trincomalee District. I now counted twenty-two years in nine District Kachcheries and looked forward, at long last, to working in a Department or Ministry in Colombo. A call from on high dashed my hopes. [TC]

    Tamil Nadu Survey finds support for Tamil Eelam and LTTE but also for arresting its leader

    A just-released survey by Ananda Vikatan, The popular Tamil weekly magazine of Tamil Nadu shows a small yet surprising comfortable majority (54.25 percent) of people in Tamil Nadu supporting the LTTE, while only 17.4 percent oppose it. 28.34 percent said they supported LTTE before the assassination of Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. [TC]

    Appreciation

    In memory of my father

    by Rohini Hensman 

    The twenty-fifth anniversary of Back July 1983 is an appropriate time to remember my father, C.R. (‘Dick’) Hensman, who died peacefully on 9 July 2008. At that time, under the pseudonym L. Piyadasa, he wrote a book – Sri Lanka: The Holocaust and After (published by Marram Books in 1984) – which documented and analysed the events not only of that fateful day but also of the periods preceding and following it. [TC]

    Arts - Culture- Heritage

    Ballet in Pictures: Kaaraikkaal Ammaiyaar, embodiment of prayer and devotion

     

    By Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai

    “Kaaraikaal Ammaiyaar” means the mother of Kaaraikaal. She was born in Kaaraikaal, which is situated in Tamil Nadu. Her childhood name is Punithavathy, meaning a pure one. She is called “Kaaraikaal Ammaiyaar” due to her exceptional devotion to Lord Siva.

    The students of the Fine Arts Society of the Saiva Mangaiyar Vidyalayam known for their talents and commitment under the guidance of their Guru Smt.Triveni Shankar presented this unique story as a ballet. Together with the students two wellknown Indian artistes Ashwatha Shrikanth and Nikhil Raveendran of Nrityaalaya Kerala joined in presenting the Shiva Thaandava dance. The ballet was performed at Kathiresan hall in Bambalapitty on July 26th 2008 at dusk. [HA]

    July 27-Aug 2: "We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand." - Randy Pausch (1960-2008) American professor of computer science

    Pictorial: ‘Honouring the courage of all who have dared to rebuild’

    By Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai

    Military Victory: Is it worth the price?

    By Fr. Alex Dassanayake

    The long protracted ethnic war has brought about such an amount of death in our country that one can hardly imagine: so many valuable lives lost — the, flower of the nation both in the South and the North, destruction of valuable property through bomb blasts, aerial bombings, land mine blasts and shootings, both on land and sea; thousands of widows and orphans, the maimed and the homeless; those who live in refugee camps for ten, fifteen years, undergoing untold sufferings and ever living in fear of fresh attacks. [FI]

    Significance of SAARC summit for the LTTE

    By MSM Ayub

    One can interpret the ceasefire offer of the LTTE as an expression of weakness in the face of the intense military operations , also it may be considered as a ploy to attract the international attention in the light of the forthcoming South Asian Association of Regional Corporation (SAARC) summit which is already in the limelight of the world politics for several reasons. [TC] 

    Neelan Tiruchelvam and the challenge before Sri Lanka 

    by Lynn Ockersz

    Neelan Tiruchelvam is continuing to tremendously sway hearts and minds in Sri Lanka and the very widely attended ninth lecture delivered in his memory on July 27th at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute, Colombo, by Prof. Gowher Rizvi, Director, Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, was ample proof of this. [TC]

    Winning the War, winning the peace 

    by Dayan Jayatilleka

    "The walls between races and tribes; natives and immigrants; Christian and Muslim and Jew, cannot stand. These now are the walls we must tear down” - Barack Obama , Berlin , July 24

    We must not settle for a draw in a game we can win and are winning. As we draw closer to victory, those who wish to deny it to us will intensify their efforts.Let us do everything that can help us win the war, and desist from anything that may prevent or divert us. [TC]

    Profile: Navanethem Pillay, New UN Human Rights Chief

    United Nation's new commissioner for human rights, wants to be the "the champion of human rights in every part of the world" [BBC]

    Some Thoughts on LTTE's Military Response

    By Col R Hariharan  (Retd.)

    During the last one week, Sri Lanka army has kept up its momentum of advance. According to defence sources, the troops of 57 Division are on the periphery of line Tunukkai-Mallavi, west of A9 highway. [TC] 

    War-torn Sri Lanka no where near political settlement

    By Dr. S. Narapalasingam

    The reality that Sri Lanka needs political solution to the problems pestering the entire population in varying degrees and that there is no militarily solution is widely recognized. Any devious move to avoid the required changes to the failed system of governing centrally will only prolong the suffering of the people. The unity and peace the country needs for moving forward will continue to elude with dire consequences. [FI]

    The Colombo SAARC Summit: Big India and her small neighbours

    by Rajan Philips

    Founded by Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in 1985, and joined by Afghanistan in 2007, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation should by now have become not only a force among the global trading blocs but also a supranational plane for political and economic cooperation for the member states. [TC]

    The Longest War: Sri Lanka’s Identity Conflicts & Conflicted Identities

    by Dayan Jayatilleka 

    This month, July, the 25th anniversary of July 83, has quite appropriately seen significant commentary in the press over the interrelated themes of the war, its character or its perceived character, and contending interpretations of Sri Lankan identity. [TC]

    In Pictures: "Dhammapada and Other Works"

    By Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai

    Being an anti-war artist, Chandraguptha Thenuwara has sought to remind his fellow Sri Lankans of Lord Buddha’s teachings about tolerance and peace. The exhibition will remain open till 29th July 2008 from 10am-7pm. Chandraguptha Thenuwara is a senior lecturer at the University of Visual Arts in Colombo. He is also the Director of Vibhavi-Academy of Fine Arts, which was founded in 1993. [HA]

    All Spruced up

    By Namini Wijedasa

    Tch. Can’t go anywhere in Colombo these days for the smell of wet paint. And God forbid that you should lean against anything. Every lamppost, garbage can, hosepipe and pebble from here to the South Pole is painted for the SAARC summit. [TC]

    All Lands Home

    In Pictures: Picturing Casualties

    Zoriah Miller, the freelance photographer who took this image and others of marines killed in a June 26 suicide attack and posted them on his Web site, was subsequently forbidden to work in Marine Corps-controlled areas of Iraq. [NY Times]

    Randy Pausch, 47, Dies; His ‘Last Lecture’ Inspired Many to Live With Wonder

    Randy Pausch, the professor whose “last lecture” made him a Lou-Gehrig-like symbol of the beauty and briefness of life, died Friday at his home in Chesapeake, Va. He was 47, and had lived five months longer than the six months a doctor gave him as an upside limit last August. [NY Times]

    Arts - Culture- Heritage

    http://humanityashore.com/ha/archives/58Ganeshism: a celebration of Lord Ganesh in art

    By Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai

    Mahen Chanmugam has been painting for over thirty five years, and has devoted the last twelve to portraying Lord Ganesh. His art attempts to present the complex symbolism and iconography surrounding Lord Ganesh in a colourful, contemporary form.

    With his paintings, Mahen tries to reach back to the past, while looking forward, balancing the challenges between the spirit of modernism and the need to capture the essence of a traditional art form, undiluted.

    Drawing inspirations from the mythology and philosophies of Hinduism, his canvases are saturated with intense colour, evocative of the bright powdery pigments that decorate the entrance to Hindu temples. Bright fluorescent pink cells sit alongside lime-green lotus petals and multicoloured Chakras float across saffron skies, with tiny mirrors shimmering around silvery Ganeshes. [HA]

    Jul 20 - 26: " Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for a kindness " - Lucius Annaeus Seneca (5 BC - 65 AD), Roman Statesman

    Remembering the riots that triggered 25 years of conflict

    For a quarter of a century, Selvadurai Sornalingam has treasured a faded, yellowing document. "It is a reminder of my honeymoon," he told IRIN, only half-jokingly.

     

    He received the document when he registered at a welfare centre established in an airport hanger south of the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, during the fourth week of July 1983, when deadly anti-Tamil riots spread through the Sri Lankan capital and into outlying neighbourhoods. [TC]

    LTTE's Ceasefire move: public relations or more?

    By B. Raman 

    On July 22, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam announced that it would observe a unilateral ceasefire coinciding with the forthcoming summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation in Colombo from July 26 to August 4. It projected the proposed ceasefire as a goodwill gesture to extend its support to the "countries of our region, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan and Maldives." [TC]

    In pictures: School fear in Sri Lanka

     

    Sri Lankan airforce planes fly over the northern Tamil district of Kilinochchi. The planes were not attacking this area, but everyone rushed for shelter. [BBC]

    Mounting Sri Lanka bombing campaigns curtail school attendance in Kilinochchi

    The environment of war and hostilities is drastically reducing the school and education activities in Mullaitivu and Kilincochchi districts, reports premier Colombo Tamil daily Virakesari. [TW]

    National Guilt and Expiation: What happened at the end of July 1983?

    By Bishop Lakshman Wickremesinghe

    Former Anglican Bishop of Kurunegala, Lakshman Wickremesinghe issued this message after the July violence of 1983. He passed away shortly afterwards thereby making this his last message. We reproduce it here as it is of poignant relevance at this time. Bishop Lakshman as he was popularly known is the paternal uncle of Opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and the maternal uncle of Rajiva Wijesinghe , secretary , ministry of human rights: [TC]

    Escape to Freedom

    Survivors of Sri Lanka's infamous Black July riots 25 years ago recall the terror -- and their relief to find a haven in Canada. [TC]

    25 Years later: The haunting spectre of 1983

    By D.B.S. Jeyaraj 

    The last week of July this year would mark the 25th anniversary of one of the darkest chapters in the history of our island nation. It was the week when a racist rabble encouraged by those in power went against a helpless minority living within Sinhala majority regions of Sri Lanka. It was a shameful episode that created immense problems and caused great harm to the country’s image. Twenty five years have passed but the country is yet to recover from that fateful July. [TC]

    Commemorating July 1983: Bridges that Continue to Hold

    Statement by National Peace Council of Sri Lanka 

    In July 23, 1983 law and order in Sri Lanka virtually collapsed as mobs went on a rampage, inciting anarchy and fear, uprooting Tamil people, looting and burning their property and killing many of them. [FI]

    Challenges facing the church today

    The Rt Revd Duleep de Chickera, Bishop of Colombo, was chosen by the Archbuihop of Canterbury to deliver the sermon at the opening Eucharist of the Lambeth Conference of all Anglican Bishops world-wide held once in ten years. It is being held this year at the University of Kent at Canterbury. The following is the text of his sermon delivered at the Canterbury Cathedral on Sunday 20th July 2008: [TC]

    War after the fall of Vidattlthivu

    By Col R Hariharan (Retd.)

    Keeping up the momentum of their offensive, Sri Lanka army's 58 Division and Commando troops advanced another 10 km to the north to capture Illuppakkadavai on Sunday July 20, 2008 close on the heels of their success in capturing the Sea Tiger base of Vidattalthivu on the Mannar coast on July 16, 2008. According to Defence sources, the Commandos pursued and attacked the cadres of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) fleeing  Iluppakkadavai, three km to the north on the A32 Mannar- Pooneryn road. [TC]

    Impunity, a debilitating fixture in state culture

    25 Years after the Welikada massacre 

    by Rajan Hoole

    Colombo’s Welikada high security prison was the scene of two massacres of Tamil political prisoners during the communal violence of July 1983, first after lunch on July 25 claiming 35 prisoners and second, about 4.00 PM on the July 27 claiming a further 18.

     

    On both occasions Secretary of Justice Mervyn Wijesinghe asked Colombo Magistrate Keerthi Srilal Wijewardene to hold inquests with the assistance of Tilak Marapone and C.R. de Silva (the present AG) from the Attorney General’s Department. No culprits were identified and the case was hushed up. [TC]

    The infamous white van: A symbol of shame

    By Dr. Baptist Croos F.S.C.

    The colour white generally stands for purity, truth, innocence and cleanliness, virtues we proudly cherish; virtues that are pivotal for our well being.

    Unfortunately, with the subtle deployment of the infamous white van, this time-honoured traditional notion, so sagaciously handed down to us by our venerable forefathers, has been shattered in our resplendent island where white stands for duplicity, treachery, trauma, suspicion, fear and death! [TC]

    Attack on free expression

    By Kshama Ranawana

    An on-line poll by the Asian Tribune asks “Should the Sri Lanka Government appoint a Press Commission, with full powers to probe the media?

    And, I’d rather ask, should the people appoint a commission to probe all the attacks, physical and verbal that have been carried out against the Sri Lankan media, with impunity, in the recent years? [TC]

    All Lands Home

    In Pictures: Treasures From the Mughal Empire

    "Akbar Fights with Raja Man Singh," from a copy of the Akbarnama. (circa 1600-03)  [NY Times]

    In Pictures: Mandela celebrates 90th birthday

    Nelson Mandela, one of the world's most revered statesmen and the icon of the anti-apartheid movement, has marked his 90th birthday by calling for the rich to do more for the poor. [BBC]

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