Author: TELO Admin

The Governor of the Northern Province is being accused of aiding and abetting a land grab at a time where continuous demands from the North and East to hand over land powers to the Provincial Councils are gaining international attention.

People in the Madagala area in Jaffna staged a protest in front of the Northern Province Governor’s Office on Wednesday (01), accusing the Governor of supporting the Navy’s attempts to seize their lands by force.

The Governor of the Northern Province, Jeevan Thyagaraja, is also the Head of the Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (CHA).

Local residents are accusing the Governor of supporting the land grab after he allegedly made a statement claiming he would take stern action against those who obstruct surveyors attempting to survey lands for land acquisition.

The statement came after villagers and politicians were able to thwart an attempt by the Navy and surveyors instructed by them from surveying several plots of allegedly privately owned land in the area in a bid to expand existing camps in the region.

The protest on Wednesday was attended by several of the landowners and their families affected by the situation.

The protesters accused the Governor of promising to give them an opportunity to discuss the land issues but had avoided the group citing various reasons.

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) is currently touring the North with the aim of exerting international pressure on the government to find a political solution that gives more power to the provincial councils in the region.

According to sources, the Navy has repeatedly attempted to forcefully obtain privately owned land in the recent past.

On 24 November 2021, the EU General Court dismissed an application brought by the European Political Subdivision of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to annul the 2019 and 2020 acts maintaining the inclusion of the LTTE on the EU’s terrorist sanctions list.

The Court said the Council could rely on the decision by the UK Home Secretary in 2001 to list the LTTE because the government was a “competent authority” for these purposes and the EU had a duty to review whether the 2001 assessment still justified the listing in 2019.

The Court found that the EU had sufficiently justified the listing in 2019 – 2020 and rejected the argument that the LTTE could not be classified as a ‘terrorist organization’ for the purposes of Article 1(3) of Common Position 2001/931.

The London Assembly has, through a unanimous vote, called on the Mayor of London and the London boroughs to ensure that January will be marked as Tamil Heritage Month.

The decision follows a similar declaration in Canada in 2016 and has been welcomed by Britain’s London Tamil Community.

Speaking at the debate, assembly member Nicholas Rogers, who had proposed the motion, stated:

“Tamils make a huge and important contribution to life in our city; whether in our schools, whether in our hospitals, whether in our care homes, whether on the groundbreaking AstraZeneca vaccination. They bring an ethos of public service in our communities and this public service takes place in a backdrop of persecution and oppression abroad”.

Dr Onkar Sahota also supported these statements telling the assembly:

“Tamils are an integral part of the tapestry of this city […] They have contributed to the economic, civic life of this country […] many came escaping torture and war in their own country”.

Their sentiments were supported by member Shaun Bailey who told the assembly:

“Tamils have survived serious, serious persecution and this sends a message to the world of the values of London how welcoming we are of people most in need”.

He further stressed the need for a Tamil heritage month saying:

“As someone from the Black community, who has benefitted massively from Black History month, I can tell you of the real cultural, personal, financial, emotional, and spiritual value of having your history recognised at a regular time in the year”.

Unmesh Desai shared these sentiments and reflected on his own personal experience participating in his first Tamil solidarity march in 1984, during “the first wave of Tamils coming over”. Desai condemned the bombardment of Jaffna and the horrors of the war noting that many Tamil refugees had settled in East Ham. “Every second home had lost someone during the war,” he told the assembly.

Krupesh Hirani, assembly member for Brent and Harrow expressed his pride in supporting the motion stating:

“I’m proud of the contribution of Tamils to Brent and Harrow and beyond. It makes me proud to represent the best part of the greatest city in the world”.

Speaking to the Tamil Guardian, the British Tamil Conservatives stated that they were delighted that the motion had passed unanimously. They further added:

“We believe this motion will lead to the Greater London Authority and the 32 London Boroughs promoting Tamil language and culture and celebrate the contributions of Tamil Londoners”.

Sen Kandiah, Chair of Tamils for Labour, told Tamil Guardian:

“This is a landmark resolution by the London Assembly for the whole of the Tamils around the world. I take this opportunity to thank all Assembly Members who supported this motion and particularly those who made brilliant speeches in support of this motion. Tamils for Labour will work with the Assembly on a cross-party basis to build on this to shine more light on the genocidal act that is continuing in North and East of Sri Lanka. We will continue to focus on all aspects of our struggle until our People are free”.

The full text of the motion is:

“London’s Tamil community, originating from Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa and elsewhere, makes a strong contribution to the life of our city.

There are an estimated 15,000 Tamils working for NHS England as doctors, nurses and front-line health professionals, thousands of Tamils serving as teachers and teaching assistants in our schools. Over a hundred adult social care facilities are operated by Tamils in and around London, caring for some of the most vulnerable in our society.

Tamils have made significant contributions to the social, economic, cultural and political fabric of the UK; from serving in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War to Tamil scientists working on the Astra Zeneca vaccine.

This incredible work takes place against the backdrop of persecution and abuse abroad, deeply affecting the wellbeing of the family and friends of Tamils in the UK.

The London Assembly thanks the Tamil community for their invaluable contribution to our city. We are profoundly grateful for the work that they do.

The Assembly notes that January marks Tamil Heritage Month and that Pongal – the Harvest Festival – commences on 14th January. We call on the Mayor of London and the London boroughs to ensure these occasions are marked and that our much-valued Tamil community is supported across the city.”

A meeting between Minister of Finance Basil Rajapaksa and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which was scheduled to be held yesterday (2), has failed to materialise for what government sources indicated were scheduling issues, The Morning learnt.

Rajapaksa is set to return to Sri Lanka today, after a two-day official visit to India to seek support amidst an unprecedented economic crisis in Sri Lanka. It is as yet unclear if the meeting with Modi would take place today (3) before Rajapaksa’s departure from India.

However, the Minister of Finance did meet India’s National Security Advisor Shri Ajit Doval in New Delhi yesterday. Doval is the fifth National Security Advisor of India and holds the rank of a Cabinet Minister.

According to a press release, Doval had extended a warm welcome to Minister Rajapaksa and engaged in an extremely cordial conversation with him and discussed a range of issues pertaining to the mutual strategic interests of the two countries. Sri Lankan High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda as well as Ministry of Finance and Treasury Secretary S.R. Attygalle accompanied Minister Rajapaksa to the meeting.

Last week, Minister of Foreign Affairs Prof. G.L. Peiris told The Morning that Rajapaksa’s discussions with Indian Prime Minister Modi would be to procure foreign investment into the country.

“Rajapaksa will be going to New Delhi, India on an official visit in a few days. He will meet with Premier Modi, Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, and other members of the Indian leadership. This visit is not merely to get loans. Our policy as a government is to not just get loans. But we are also focused on getting capital and foreign investments through other means – investments, business relationships, and the development of the tourism sector,” said Prof. Peiris.

Prof. Pieris noted that since Sri Lanka is currently trapped in the biggest economic crisis post-Independence, Sri Lanka should not isolate itself diplomatically.

“The economic crisis is due to many reasons, including mainly international ones such as the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. However, to face this crisis, we must not act in solitude. We have many good relationships with many countries. There is space for us to arrive at some agreement with friendly countries. We especially have a very good relationship with India, our neighbouring country, who has come to our support in times of both economic and other needs,” he noted.

Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa who is on a two-day official visit to India, met with the National Security Advisor of India Shri Ajit Kumar Doval, in New Delhi today (02)

National Security Advisor Doval extended a warm welcome to Minister Basil Rajapaksa and engaged in an extremely cordial conversation with him and discussed a range of issues pertaining to the mutual strategic interests of the two countries.

Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda and Finance Secretary S R Attygalle accompanied the minister to the meeting.

Shri Ajit Kumar Doval is the fifth National Security Advisor of India. He holds the rank of a Cabinet Minister.

Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella has requested the Chief Government Whip to allow Members of Parliament to enter universities and law colleges.

He made this request during the Budget Committee debate on the Expenditure Heads of several Ministries including the Ministry of Education.

Kiriella said that the educational background of the MPs was being widely discussed in society today and that a program could be initiated to provide them with an education.

“The MPs representing the House are capable and intelligent individuals. It is not an easy task to win an election and become Parliamentarians,” Kiriella said.

He said that after five or six years in Parliament, a great deal of knowledge can be gained by experience and MPs can be given the opportunity to enter universities and law colleges.

He said that some Members of Parliament were able to enter the Law College without an examination in the 1970s and that the opportunity was created by former Secretary General of Parliament Sam Wijesinghe.