Saturday, 9 January 2010

Blessings from the Buddhist clergy for Gen. Fonseka – Capital city spills over with Prelates - பொன்சேகா வெல்ல புத்த பிக்குகள் விசேட கூட்டம்















A ‘Ranahansa abhishek poojawa’ , a special Buddhist pooja was held today (09)at the Colombo Victoria Park attended by milling crowds of Buddhist Prelates and monks invoking blessings on the Opposition common Presidential candidate Gen. Fonseka.
The procession to the Park started from Jayawadena Center. Unprecedented crowd of members of the Buddhist clergy participated in the pooja.

Chief incumbents, prelates and monks all congregated at the Park for this event. Ven Aranhane Ratnapala Thero, Ven. Hangunwewe Somaratne Thero , from Mihintale Rajamaha Vihara, Ramangya Nikaye Anunayake Madithiywale Medalankara Thero, Girame Aannada Anunayake and Dr. Dambara Amila Thero wereamong the massive crowds which thronged the Park.

இன்று காலை கொழும்பு Victoria பூங்காவில் பொன்சேகா வெல்ல புத்த பிக்குகள்  விசேட கூட்டம் நடைபெற்றது . இதில் புத்த பிக்குகள் சுமார் இருநூற்றுக்கு மேலானவர் கலந்து கொண்டனர் .

அங்கு வந்திருந்த பல்லாயிரம் மக்கள் முன்னிலையில் பொன்சேக தனது உரையை ஆற்றினார் .

பொன் சேகாவிட்கு குவியும் மக்கள் கூட்டத்தை கண்டு மகிந்தா மன நோயால் அவதி படுவதாகா முக்கிய பேர் குறிப்பிட விரும்பாத அரிசியல் பிரமுகர் ஒருவர் தெரிவித்துள்ளார்

Friday, 8 January 2010

Dublin Tribunal to investigate Sri Lanka war crime allegations - சிறிலங்காவிற்கு எதிரான போர்க் குற்ற விசாரணை: அயர்லாந்தில் நடைபெறுகிறது!  

DUBLIN GOES IN FOR THE KILL : PERMANENT PEOPLES' TRIBUNAL ON SRI LANKA

An independent commission of jurists of the Rome based Permanent Peoples' Tribunal (PPT) will be meeting in Dublin, Ireland, on 14th and 15th of January 2010 to investigate allegations that the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and its armed forces committed war crimes and crimes against humanity during its final phase of the war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. The commission will also examine violations of human rights in the aftermath of the war and the local and international factors that led to the collapse of the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement. The provisional findings of the Peoples' Commission will be announced to the public on January 16.

The event is being organised by the Irish Forum for Peace in Sri Lanka (IFPSL). A press statement from the IFPSL said that the jury has been from across the global south and north in order to transcend geopolitical barriers and to ensure that its findings will be both credible and ethically binding.

The PPT has examined the cases of Tibet, Western Sahara, Argentina, Eritrea, the Philippines, El Salvador, Afghanistan, East Timor, Zaire, Guatemala, the Armenian Genocide, the intervention of the United States in Nicaragua, the Brazilian Amazon, and others.

Ireland has been chosen because of its historical status as a post-colonial nation, the success of the Northern Ireland peace process, and its traditional policy of neutrality, the organisers said.

Welcoming the move of the alternative international community, Tamil circles commented that such tribunal investigations should also be extended to cover the abetment to the war crimes by the UN and by the Establishments in New Delhi, Washington, Beijing and others.

None of the Establishments and the UN, which had been repeatedly calling for the people of Vanni to come out of the war zone into the hands of the SLA, were there to take the responsibility of protecting the people from the war crimes of the SLA, Tamil circles said.

The Indian Establishment and the UN, even underplayed the number of civilians in Vanni to defuse the gravity of international attention.

It is also now known that members of some leading Indian and International media were present in the war zone with the Sri Lankan forces. The Indian and international media not only failed in covering the story of the side of the victims on the pretext of Colombo's sanctions, but also came out with one-sided reporting hiding the truth and thus abetting the war crimes.

In what way that happened and that has been happening in the island of Sri Lanka is less genocide than that happened elsewhere in such international cases, asked the Tamil circles. All involved parties now try to advice the victims to drop calling their plight genocide, which is in fact a continued abetment by them to crimes against humanity, Tamil circles commented.

Tamil circles pointed out to the affinities between the spirit of such Peoples' Tribunals and their own international efforts of forming alternative democratic polity.

Efforts of the alternative world in holding peoples' tribunals have to be extended further to examine the longstanding political cause of the concerned people so that such tribunals will be of more practical use to the victims, the Tamil circles commented.

The Permanent Peoples' Tribunal (PPT), based in Rome, was formed in 1979 as the successor to the Bertrand Russell Tribunals on crimes against humanity and is inspired by the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Peoples at Algiers (also named the Algiers Declaration of 1976).

The Tribunal attempts to fill gaps in international law, which it seeks to influence by elaborating on such documents as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (United Nations), the Nuremberg principles, United Nations General Assembly resolutions on de-colonization and the new international economic order.

Profile of the panel of Judges of the People’s Tribunal on Sri Lanka provided by the Irish Forum for Peace in Sri Lanka, follows:

1) Francois Houtart (UNESCO awardee for non-violence and tolerance, Chairperson of the UN Committee on Economic Recession., Prof. Emeritus, University of Louvain, Belgium. Founding Member of the World Social Forum, Honorary Member of the Academy of Sciences of Vietnam and Cuba, Laureate of the Camilo Torres Prize of the National University of Colombia, Bogota)

2) Rajinder Sachar (Former High Court Judge of Delhi, headed the Sachar Committee appointed by the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, to prepare a report on the social, economic and educational status of the Muslim community of India)

3) Nawal al Saadawi (Egyptian writer, trained as a medical doctor, known for her outstanding work for women's rights in Egypt and in the region. She has been imprisoned for her activities and writings in Egypt.She has been United Nation's Advisor for the Women's Programme in Africa (ECA) and Middle East (ECWA) from 1979 to 1980. She is a prolific author.)

4) Sulak Sivaraksa (Thai Buddhist peace campaigner and writer, initiator of a number of social, humanitarian, ecological and spiritual movements and organizations in Thailand. He was awarded the Alternative Nobel Prize, Right Livelihood Award)

5) Denis Halliday (Former Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations)

6) Gianni Tognoni (Secretary General, People’s Permanent Tribunal, Milan)

7) Daniel Feierstein (Director of the Centre for Genocide Studies at the 'Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero', and Professor in the Faculty of Genocide at the University of Buenos Aires)

8) Mary Lawlor (Director, Frontline, International Foundation for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, Dublin)

9) Oystein Tveter (A Scholar in International law and member of the People’s Tribunal on extra-judicial killings and violations of human rights in the Philippines)

10) Eren Keskin (Kurdish-born lawyer and a human rights activist in Turkey, Vice President of the Human Rights Association, Istanbul. She co-founded the project “Legal Aid For Women Who Were Raped Or Otherwise Sexually Abused by National Security Forces”, to expose the abuses happening to women in Turkish prisons. In 1995, she was imprisoned for her human rights activities and was adopted as a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International)

11) Francesco Martone (An ex-Senator in Italy, a leading activist in the non-governmental sector and an Ecologist)

Among those who cannot be on the Panel for various reasons but have agreed to publicise and interpret the findings of the Tribunal:

Arundhati Roy (Writer and Journalist and Booker prizewinner)

Krishna Iyer (Former Judge of the Indian Supreme Court, former Minister in the Kerala Parliament and a figure of considerable prominence in India)

Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann (Senior Advisor on Foreign Affairs in Nicaragua, the outgoing President of the UN General Assembly, the former Minister for Foreign Affairs in Nicaragua, a liberation theologian and laureate of the Lenin Peace Prize and winner of the Thomas Merton Award)

Irene Fernandez (A leading Malaysian Trade Unionist and a human rights campaigner)

Adolfo Perez Esquivel (Argentinian human rights campaigner, and a Nobel Peace Prize winner)

What is Permanent Peoples' Tribunal?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permanent_Peoples%27_Tribunal

Kilde: IFPSL

பயங்கரவாதத்திற்கு எதிரான போர் என்ற பெயரில் ஈழத்தில் தமிழனப்படுகொலை நடத்திய சிறிலங்க அரசிற்கு எதிரான போர்க் குற்றங்கள்,மானுடத்திற்கு


எதிரான குற்றங்கள் ஆகியவற்றின் மீது ‘நிரந்தர மக்கள்நடுவர் மன்றம்’ என்றழைக்கப்படும் பன்னாட்டு நீதிபதிகள் கொண்டநீதிமன்றத்தில் வரும் 14, 15ஆம் தேதிகளில் விசாரணை நடத்தப்படவுள்ளது. ரோம் நகரை மையமாகக் கொண்டு செயல்பட்டுவரும் நிரந்தர மக்கள்நடுவர் மன்றம், ஐ.நா.வின் அங்கீகாரம் பெற்றது அல்ல என்றாலும், இதன்விசாரணையும் கண்டுபிடிப்புக்களுக்கும் பன்னாட்டு அளவில் மிகுந்தமரியாதையும் முக்கியத்துவமும்
வழங்கப்படுகிறது.

சிறிலங்க அரச படைகள் நிகழ்த்திய போர்க் குற்றங்கள், மானுடத்திற்கு எதிரானகுற்றங்கள் ஆகிவற்றை விசாரிக்கப்போகும் இந்த நிரந்தர மக்கள் நடுவர்
மன்றத்தின் நீதிபதியாக இந்தியாவின் குறிப்பிடத்தக்க நீதிபதிகளில் ஒருவரானஇராஜேந்திர சச்சார் அமர்கிறார்.
சிறிலங்க அமைதிக்கான ஐரிஸ் மன்றம் என்ற அமைப்பு நிரந்தர மக்கள்நடுவர் மன்றத்தினை அயர்லாந்து தலைநகர் டப்ளினில் நடத்துகிறது. இதில்தமிழர்களுக்கு
எதிரான போரில் நடந்த குற்றங்கள் குறித்த ஆதாரங்களையும்,புகைப்படங்களையும் அளிப்பது மட்டுமின்றி, முகாம்களில் அடைக்கப்பட்டமக்கள் எப்படிப்பட்ட
துன்புறுத்தல்களுக்கு ஆளாக்கப்பட்டனர் என்பதை நேரில்கண்ட பல பன்னாட்டு தொண்டு நிறுவனங்களின் உறுப்பினர்களும்சாட்சியமளிக்கவுள்ளனர்.

சீனாவின் ஆக்கிரமிப்பிலுள்ள திபெத், மேற்கு சஹாரா, அர்ஜெண்டினா,எரித்திரியா, பிலப்பைன்ஸ், எல் சல்வடார், ஆஃப்கானிஸ்தான், கிழக்குதிமோர், ஜைர்,
குவாட்டமாலா, ஆர்மீ‌னிய இனப் படுகொலை,நிகராகுவாவில் அமெரிக்காவின் தலையீடு உள்ளிட்ட பல பன்னாட்டுச் சட்டஅத்து மீறல்களை விசாரித்து தீர்ப்பு
அளித்துள்ளது என்பதுகுறிப்பிடத்தக்கது.

ஈழத்தில் நடந்த தமிழனப் படுகொலை குறித்து பன்னாட்டு விசாரணைநடத்த வேண்டும் என்று ஐ.நா. குரல் கொடுத்தாலும் அதற்கு சிறிலங்காஇணங்கவில்லை என்று கூறி, தனது பொறுப்பை தட்டிக் கழித்துவருகிறது. இந்த நிலையில் ஐ.நா.வும், இந்தியா, சீனா போன்ற தெற்காசியவல்லரசுகளும் மறைக்கும் சாட்சிகளற்ற அந்தப் போரில் நடந்த இனப்படுகொலை, போர்க் குற்றம், மானுடத்திற்கு

எதிரான குற்றங்கள்ஆகியவற்றை ஆதாரத்துடன் கொண்டு வரும் இந்த முயற்சி மனித உரிமைஆர்வலர்களால் மிகவும் வரவேற்கப்படுகிறது.

இறுதிக்கட்டப் போர் நடந்த வன்னிப் பகுதியில் கடைசி மூன்று நாட்களில்மட்டும் பல பத்தாயிரக்கணக்கான தமிழ் மக்கள் சிறிலங்கப் படைகளால்படுகொலை
செய்யப்பட்டனர். இந்தப் படுகொலை நிகழும் போது சிறிலங்கப்படைகளோடு இருந்த ஊடகவியலாளர்கள் தவிர, மற்றபடி நேரில் பார்த்தசாட்சியங்கள்
அனைத்தும் தற்போது வன்னி முகாம்களில் அடைத்துவைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளனர்.
படைகளோடு இருந்த அந்த ஊடகங்களும் சிறிலங்க அரசிற்கு சாதகமாகஉண்மையை மறைத்து செய்திகளை வெளியிட்டன. இந்த நிலையில்,இரண்டாம்
உலகப் போருக்குப் பின்னர் நடந்த மிகப் பெரிய இனப்படுகொலையை ஆதாரப்பூர்வமாக வெளிக் கொண்டுவரும் பெரும் முயற்சிஇதுவாகும்.

டப்ளின் நகரில் நடக்கவுள்ள நிரந்தர மக்கள் நடுவர் மன்றத்தில் நீதிபதிகளாகஅமரவுள்ளவர்க‌ள் பற்றிய விவரங்கள்:

1) ஃபிரான்கோயிஸ் ஹூடார்ட்: அகிம்சை மற்றும் சகிப்புத் தன்மைஆகியவற்றிற்காக யுனெஸ்கோ விருதளிக்கப்பட்டவர். பொருளாதாரபின்னடைவிற்கான ஐ.நா. குழவின் தலைவர், பெல்ஜியம் நாட்டின் லூவைன்பல்கலையின் முன்னாள் பேராசிரியர், உலக சமூக மன்றத்தின் தலைவர்.

2) இராஜேந்திர சச்சார்: டெல்லி உயர் நீதிமன்றத்தின் முன்னாள் நீதிபதி,இந்தியாவில் முஸ்லீம்களின் சமூக, பொருளாதார, கல்வி நிலை தொடர்பானவிவரம்
அறிய பிரதமரால் நியமிக்கப்பட்ட ஆணையத்தின் தலைவர்.

3) நாவல் அல் சாதாவி: எகிப்தின் மனித உரிமைப் போராளி, மருத்துவர்,எழுத்தாளர், சமூக சூழல்கள் குறித்து எழுதியமைக்காக எகிப்தில்சிறைப்படுத்தப்பட்டவர்.

4) சுலாக் சிவராக்சா: தாய்லாந்தைச் சேர்ந்த புத்த மத பிரசாகர், எழுத்தாளர்,சரியான வாழக்கைப் பாதை என்மு அமைப்பினால் மாற்று நோபல்
பரிசுவழங்கப்பட்டவர்.

5) டெனிஸ் ஹாலிடே:ஐ.நா. அவையி்ன் முன்னாள் உதவி செயலராகப்பணியாற்றியவர்.

6) கியானி டாக்னோனி: நிரந்தர மக்கள் நடுவர் மன்றத்தின் தலைமைப்பொதுச் செயலர், மிலன்.

7) டேனியல் பியர்ஸ்டீன்: அர்ஜெண்டினாவின் தலைநகரிலுள்ள பியனாஸ்அயர்ஸ் பல்கலையில் இனப் படுகொலை தொடர்பான ஆய்வு மையத்தின்இயக்குனர்.

8) மேரி லாலர்: டப்ளினில் செயல்பட்டுவரும் மனித உரிமை காவலர்களுக்கானபன்னாட்டு அமைப்பின் இயக்குனர்.

9) ஆய்ஸ்டின் டிவெட்டர்: பிலிப்பைன்சில் செயல்பட்டுவரும் சட்டத்திற்குப்புறம்பான படுகொலைகள் மற்றும் மனித உரிமை மீறல்கள் தொடர்பானபன்னாட்டு
நடுவர் மன்ற உறுப்பினர், பன்னாட்டுச் சட்ட நிபுணர்.

10) எரன் கஸ்கின்: இஸ்தான்புல் நகரை மையமாகக் கொண்டுசெயல்பட்டுவரும் மனித உரிமைச் சங்கத்தின் துணைத் தலைவர், ஈராக்கின்குர்தீஸ் பிரிவைச்
சேர்ந்த வழக்கறிஞர், தற்போது துருக்கியில் செயல்பட்டுவருகிறார். துருக்கி சிறையில் பெண்களுக்கு எதிரான இழைக்கப்பட்டபாலியல் வன்முறைகளை வெளிக்
கொணர்ந்தவர்.

11) ஃபிரான்செஸ்கோ மார்டோன்: இத்தாலி நாடாளுமன்றத்தின் முன்னாள்உறுப்பினர்., சுற்றுச் சூழல் போராள

Kilde: Webdunia

Thiruvendran Velupillai Died, Prabhakaran’s Father Passes Away - தேசியத் தலைவர் பிரபாகரனின் தந்தையான திருவேங்கடம் வேலுப்பிள்ளை இன்று காலமாகியுள்ளர் - இராணுவத் தகவல்


The father of LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran, Thiruvengadam Velupillai, passed away last night due to natural causes while in military protection. He was 86 years old at the time of his death, Army Spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said.
He and his wife were taken to the custody by the srilankan Army. Since last year he was suffering from several illnesses over a period of time before he passed away, the military said.

Continues after the Tamil Text

வன்னியில் இடம்தெற்ற இறுதி யுத்தத்தின் போது கொல்லப்பட்டதாக சிறிலங்கா அரசால் கூறப்படும் தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகளின் தலைவர் பிரபாகரன் அவர்களின் தந்தையான திருவேங்கடம் வேலுப்பிள்ளை இன்று காலமாகியுள்ளதாக இராணுவத் தரப்பு தகவல்கள் தெரிவிக்கின்றன. எனினும் அரசாங்கம் இதனை உத்தியோகபூர்வமாக அறிவிக்கவில்லை.

விடுதலைப் புலிகளுடனான இறுதி யுத்தத்தின் போது இலங்கை படையினர் வசம் தஞ்சமடைந்த மக்களிலிருந்து இனம்காணப்பட்ட தலைவர் பிரபாகரனின் பெற்றோர்கள் தனியானதொரு இடத்தில் தடுத்து வைக்கப்படிருந்தனர். இந்நிலையில் தலைவர் பிரபாகரனின் தந்தை திருவேங்கடம் வேலுப்பிள்ளை பனாகொடை முகாமில் வைத்து காலமானதாகத் தகவல்கள் தெரிவிக்கின்றன.

Thiruvengadam Velupillai joined the government service which he served for 39 years as a clerk and eventually became a district lands officer. Thiruvengadam Velupillai and his wife Parvati went in army custody when they were found in an IDP camp at the last stages of the war.

Velupillai Prabhakaran’s parents, who primarily had been living in a camp for displaced people in the north Sri Lanka, had been transferred to a military base on the outskirts of Colombo where the couple spend their lives nowadays.
Thiruvengadam has a daughter Vinothini Rajendran who has been living incognito in Canada, Toronto since 1997.

Thursday, 7 January 2010

Sri Lanka execution video ‘authentic’ - படுகொலைக் காட்சிகள் உண்மை தான் ஐக்கிய நாடுகள் சபை


UN envoy Philip Alston calls for an independent war crimes investigation

Reports by three independent experts strongly point to the authenticity of a videotape released by Channel 4 in Britain which appears to show the summary execution of bound, blindfolded and naked Tamils by Sri Lankan soldiers. This was announced today by the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Philip Alston, on the basis of detailed analyses conducted by recognized experts in forensic pathology, forensic video analysis, and firearm evidence.

Continues after the Tamil text..

பல மாதங்களுக்கு முன் சனல் 4 தொலைக்காட்சியால் வெளியிடப்பட்ட தமிழ் இளைஞர்கள் இலங்கை ராணுவத்தினரால் கொடூரமாக படுகொலை செய்யப்படும் காட்சி தமிழ் மக்கலையும் மனிதனேயமுள்ள உலகமக்கள் மனங்களையும் தட்டியெழுப்பியிருந்ததுடன்,

பல அமைப்புக்களும் மனித உரிமை அமைப்புக்களும் கண்டனம் தெரிவித்திருந்தது.nஆனால் இதை இலங்கை அரசு மறுத்ததோடு புலிகள் தம்மீது உலகலாவிய அளவில் இலங்கை அரசுக்கும் ராணுவத்துக்கும் அவப்பெயரை ஏற்படுத்த முயயல்வதாக குற்றம் சுமத்தியிருந்தனர்.

ஆனால் இந்தக்காணொளி உண்மையானதே என்று பல காணொளி நிபுனர்களும் உறுதிப்படுத்தி தெரிவித்திருந்தனர். இன்று வியாழக்கிழமை நடைபெற்ற ஊடகவியலாளர் மாநாட்டில் ஐக்கிய நாடுகள் சபையின் சிறப்புப் பிரதிநிதி பிலிப் அல்ஸ்டன் சனல் 4 தொலைக்காட்சியில் வெளியான காணொளி உண்மையானது என்று தெரிவித்துள்ளார்.

Reports by three independent experts strongly point to the authenticity of a videotape released by Channel 4 in Britain which appears to show the summary execution of bound, blindfolded and naked Tamils by Sri Lankan soldiers. This was announced today by the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Philip Alston, on the basis of detailed analyses conducted by recognized experts in forensic pathology, forensic video analysis, and firearm evidence.

Alston commissioned the three reports following the publication of four opinions by Sri Lankan experts, all of which concluded that the video was a fake. The Government of Sri Lanka informed the UN Human Rights Council that it would therefore not be undertaking any investigation of the allegations made. “Senior Government officials called upon me to apologize and to withdraw the allegations,” said Alston. “They also criticized me for not having undertaken my own technical analysis. In response to that criticism and to what seemed to me the patent inadequacies of the reports commissioned by the Government (two of which were prepared by officials of the Sri Lankan army), I requested highly qualified and totally independent experts to undertake evaluations.”

Alston released the full text of the expert opinions in a “Technical Note” made public in New York today. “Together, the reports by these experts strongly suggest that the video is authentic,” Alston stated.

“Given these conclusions, and in light of the persistent flow of other allegations of extrajudicial executions by both sides during the closing phases of the war against the LTTE, I call for the establishment of an independent inquiry to carry out an impartial investigation into war crimes and other grave violations of international humanitarian and human rights law allegedly committed in Sri Lanka.”

Alston summarized the key findings of the experts:

Mr Peter Diaczuk, an expert in firearms evidence, concluded that the recoil, movement of the weapon and the shooter, and the gases expelled from the muzzle in both apparent shootings were consistent with firing live ammunition, and not with shooting blank cartridges.

Dr Daniel Spitz, a prominent forensic pathologist, found that the footage appeared authentic, especially with respect to the two individuals who are shown being shot in the head at close range. He found that the body reaction, movement, and blood evidence was entirely consistent with what would be expected in such shootings.

Mr Jeff Spivack, an expert in forensic video analysis, found no evidence of breaks in continuity in the video, no additional video layers, and no evidence of image manipulation.

Alston added that the independent experts’ analyses also systematically rebutted most of the arguments relied upon by Sri Lanka’s experts in support of their contention that the video was faked. He gave the following examples:

(a) A Sri Lankan expert stated that there was no recoil or movement of the weapon discharged. However, Mr Spivack and Mr Diaczuk described the recoil visible on the video, and the way in which the movement was consistent with firing live ammunition.

(b) A Sri Lankan expert stated that the lack of audio synchronization with the video indicated manipulation. However, Mr Spivack stated that the video/audio synchronization in the video was well within acceptable limits, and that audio can be ahead or behind video, subject to various variables.

(c) A Sri Lankan expert stated that the movement of the second victim after being shot was not consistent with the normal expected reaction. However, Mr Spitz stated that the movement was entirely consistent with the manner in which the individual was apparently shot.

(d) A Sri Lankan expert stated that while wind could be heard on the audio, it was not evident in the video. Mr Spivack however described multiple places in the video where there is clear evidence of wind.

(e) Sri Lanka’s experts argued that the footage was likely to have been recorded on a digital camcorder, and not a mobile phone. Mr Spivack concluded that the metadata he retrieved from the video was entirely consistent with multimedia files produced by mobile phones with video recording capability, and that it would have been very difficult to alter the metadata.

There are a small number of characteristics of the video which the experts were unable to explain. These included the movement of certain victims in the video, 17 frames at the end of the video, and the date of 17 July 2009 encoded in the video. Each of these characteristics can, however, be explained in a manner entirely consistent with the conclusion that the videotape appears to be authentic.

In sum, while there are some unexplained elements in the video, there are strong indications of its authenticity. In addition, most of the arguments relied upon by the Government of Sri Lanka to impugn the video have been shown to be flawed.

Mr. Philip Alston was appointed Special Rapporteur in 2004 and reports to the United Nations Human Rights Council and the General Assembly. The United Nations Commission on Human Rights first decided to appoint a Special Rapporteur to examine questions relevant to summary or arbitrary executions in 1982. Mr. Alston is Professor of Law and Faculty Director of the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice at New York University School of Law.

Full texts of technical note & its appendix containing independent experts’ analyses:
Technical Note prepared by the Special Rapporteur
Appendix to the Technical Note containing the opinions of the three experts

Kilde: Tamil Insight

Tuesday, 5 January 2010

Rebeka (2) ble født i skjul, nå får hun lovlig opphold


Året startet med en salutt for tamilske Rebeka (2) og hennes foreldre som har levd i skjul i over ni år. De er innvilget lovlig opphold.
Tårene rant mandag fritt i den muggluktende kjellerleiligheten hvor Rebeka (2) bor sammen med foreldrene Uthayarani (Uthaya) Selvanayagam (42) og ektemannen Ragunath Krishnapillai (43). Den tamilske familien og deres støttespillere kunne endelig slippe jubelen løs over det nye vedtaket fra Utlendingsnemnda (UNE).
Omgjøringsanmodningen er tatt delvis til følge, slik at alle tre gis opphold på humanitært grunnlag.

Tillatelsen for Krishnapillai er begrenset fordi det skal være tvil om hans identitet.

Livslang behandling
Rebeka har en alvorlig medfødt stoffskifteforstyrrelse (hypothyreose) som ifølge leger på Haukeland universitetssykehus krever livslang behandling og regelmessige legekontroller hos spesialist. I tillegg har hun utviklet astma.
Foreldrene har oppholdt seg ulovlig i landet, og har levd over ni år i skjul etter et utall avslag på sine søknader. De har også tapt rettssaker som de har reist mot staten for å få omgjort vedtakene. Men nå får de allikevel bli.

Kåre Bakken som har vært Uthayas støttespiller i over ti år, er rørt til tårer.

–Nå er jeg så glad. Men jeg har aldri vært i tvil om at det skulle gå bra, sier Bakken.

–Jeg er veldig lettet og glad på vegne av familien, sier May Britt Løvik, familiens advokat.

Papirløse innvandrere

Aftenposten skrev om den tamilske familien i 2007 i forbindelse med en serie om papirløse innvandrere. I fjor høst sto Uthayarani Selvanayagam (42) frem i Aftenposten i desperasjon over enda et avslag fra Utlendingsnemnda (UNE), ikke minst på grunn av sin alvorlig syke datter Rebeka.

UNE la i sin avgjørelse til grunn at barnets sykdom er alvorlig og at videre behandling og oppfølging er nødvendig, men at dette kan skje i hjemlandet. Dette vedtaket ble fattet før UNE mottok en legeerklæring fra behandlende leger, en erklæring som Utlendingsdirektoratet (UDI) skulle ha sendt til UNE, men som ved en feil ble liggende i UDI.

–Saksbehandlingen i denne saken har vært ekstremt utmattende for familien. Det er mange eksempler på skremmende dårlig saksbehandling, den har vært alt annet enn betryggende, sier advokat Løvik.

Premieres med opphold
Utlendingsnemnda (UNE) har i dette siste vedtaket gitt familien opphold etter en helhetsvurdering.

Men nemndleder gjør det klart at det i denne saken er sterke innvandringspolitiske hensyn som taler mot at foreldrene gis opphold. Begge har oppholdt seg ulovlig i landet i en årrekke. UNE mener at de ikke på noe tidspunkt har hatt et beskyttelsesbehov.

UNE skriver at det er «svært uheldig at denne type adferd premieres med oppholdstillatelse».
Allikevel får familien opphold, fordi UNE har valgt å legge stor vekt på hensynet til familiens barn og at det nå samlet sett foreligger «sterke menneskelige hensyn».

Kilde: Aftenposten.no

Kiddu Anna - 16.01.2010


Dato: 16. januar 2009
                    
Tid: 18:00
                      

Sted: Grorud Samfunshus

La oss bidra, Solheim!


PANCHAKULASINGAM KANDIAH - leder, Landsrådet for eelam-tamilerSri Lanka. Utviklingsminister Erik Solheim har nå gått ut offentlig og forsikret om at den norske hjelpen til Sri Lanka når frem, og at han vil følge pengene nøye. Vi tviler ikke på de gode intensjonene, men frykter at situasjonen ikke er så enkel som Solheim vil ha det til.

Bør nå dit de skal.

Erfaringene fra tiden etter tsunamien viser at pengene den gangen ikke nådde de mest trengende. Regjeringen på Sri Lanka kanaliserte pengene til private kontraktører i sør, og den singalesiske eliten beriket seg ytterligere.

Dette må vi nå unngå. Situasjonen for tamilene på Sri Lanka er så alvorlig at det vil være svært uheldig hvis de ikke får den støtten de trenger. Som norske skattebetalere mener vi dessuten vi har krav på å vite hvordan pengene brukes, vi trenger gjennomsiktighet. Det nyvalgte Landsrådet for eelam-tamiler håper derfor utviklingsminister Solheim vil inkludere oss i gjenoppbyggingsarbeidet fra norsk side.

Tung dag.

17. mai i år var en spesiell dag for oss tamiler i Norge. Vanligvis gleder vi oss over feiringen av nasjonaldagen, men i år sørget vi. Denne dagen knuste den srilankiske regjeringshæren den tamilske motstandsbevegelsen. Det ble starten på interneringen av hundretusener av tamiler. 17. mai 2009 ble den tyngste dagen i vår historie.

Nå sier regjeringen at den i løpet av desember vil løslate de 150000 tamilene som fortsatt er internert. Det er ikke én dag for tidlig. I en rapport fra oktober konkluderte Human Rights Watch med at forholdene i leirene var forferdelige, med desperat mangel på mat, vann og helsestell.

Få får vende tilbake.

Men flyktningene slippes ut uten noen plan for gjenbosetting. De færreste får vende tilbake til områdene de bodde i før de ble tvunget inn i interneringsleirene. De vil fortsatt være internflyktninger. Årsaken er at store landområder på Jaffna-halvøya og i Vanniregionen er okkupert av militæret og definert som «høysikkerhetssoner».

Mens kampene raste på Sri Lanka i vår, rykket Folkehelseinstituttet ut og advarte om at konflikten påførte den norsk-tamilske befolkningen store traumer. Vi i Landsrådet for eelam-tamiler tror konstruktiv handling er veien ut av håpløshet, frustrasjon og depresjon.

Mye kompetanse.
Vi vil bidra til det norske gjenoppbyggingsarbeidet på Sri Lanka. Vi vil bidra til at midlene når de som virkelig trenger dem. Vi har mye kompetanse og lokalkjennskap som norske myndigheter bør nyttiggjøre seg av. Vi håper Solheim tar imot utfordringen: Bruk oss i gjenoppbyggingsarbeidet på Sri Lanka!

Kilde: aftenposten.no