EYEWITNESS FROM INDONESIA: Labor, refugees and the Indonesian solution. Mahendra is a trade union activist who became a vital figure in organising the refugee rights coalition in Indonesia. His coalition has supported the rights of the Tamil refugees stranded at Merak, when both Australian and Indonesian governments have left them to rot. He and his coalition also supported and helped Australian refugee supporters, including Ian Rintoul and Pamela Curr, who got into strife when they were visiting the Merak refugees in Indonesia.
HUMAN RIGHTS DAY FORUM - SRI LANKA: THE WORLD MUST ACT SUNDAY 13 December 5pm-7pm Toowong Seniors Hall 9 Maryvale St, Toowong NB: No longer at Parliament House Annexe
Hindu Ahlaya Sangam, Queensland presents A Grand Carnatic music concert by Maharajapuram Santhanam Ramachandran with Shri B U Ganesh Prasad (Violin) & Shri Arthavan Selvanathan (Mridangam) Date & Time: 6:30pm, Saturday , 13 February 2010 Venue: Schonell Theatre Union Road, University of Queensland, St Lucia
THIS is Suvanthili Esvaran, the 10-month-old Tamil girl from the Oceanic Viking, whom Kevin Rudd promised not to put in an Indonesian detention centre. Suvanthili's father died in the final days of fighting, early this year, when the Sri Lankan government finally put down the decades-old Tamil Tiger rebellion killing many civilians in the process. Suvanthili's five-year-old sister, Sudar Esvaran, is also in the Tanjung Pinang detention centre, along with their mother, who refused to give her name. So, too, are Atpudha Rahavan, 5, and her brother Abi Rahavan, 2, as well as Denuvan Srikanthan, a three-year-old boy.Yesterday, with their mothers, they stared and called from behind bars at Tanjung Pinang's detention centre, which was built with Australian funds.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has brushed off emotional appeals from Tamils aboard the boat he had the Indonesians intercept, and whose fate is at the centre of a political row over asylum seekers.The 253 asylum seekers, who have refused to leave the boat for five days, last night started a hunger strike and erected a banner in a bid for ''international community support''.This followed a plea from nine-year-old girl, Brindha, who wept before the Australian media. ''Please help us and save our lives. We are your children. Please think of us, please, please,'' she said, recounting a month in a Malaysian jungle waiting for people smugglers to collect them.''Please sir, please take us to a country. It's OK if it is not Australia. It's better if any other country takes us. We can't live in Sri Lanka.'' - The Age
The Asian Human Rights Commission is saddened, disappointed and shocked but not surprised at the judgment of the High Court of Colombo in sentencing J.S. Tisssainayagam to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for a simple piece of writing which he had done and which was interpreted as aiding and abetting terrorism. The AHRC is not surprised by this judgment because at the very inception of this case the AHRC pointed out that this is purely a political case, the first of its kind in which the accused, Mr. Tisssainayagam’s guilt or innocence was not an issue but an opportunity to send a message to society on the changed circumstances of the country where freedom of expression does not matter at all. That was the real aim of this case. It is the sort of prosecution that could have happened under the regime of Joseph Stalin through the prosecutor, Andrei Vyshinsky.
BRISBANE archdiocese's Catholic Justice and Peace Commission (CJPC) has launched a petition calling on the Federal Government to pressure the Sri Lankan Government over its treatment of almost 300,000 Tamil civilians in internment camps.The petition urges the Australian Govern-ment to call on the Sri Lankan Government to allow aid agencies, journalists, diplomats and human rights organisations better access to the camps.It also calls for action to speed up the release of Tamils from the camps, to initiate an independent investigation of possible human rights violations during the military battle between Government forces and Tamil Tigers earlier this year, and to establish a process which promotes reconciliation by addressing the grievances of Tamils.
The Australian Tamil Congress, a national body representing Australian Tamils, wishes to bring to your attention the disturbing video evidence of members of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces executing Tamil men. The footage shows nine young men, stripped naked, hands bound and eyes blindfolded being shot execution style by members of the Sri Lankan military. The executioners speak in Sinhala, the language of the island’s majority and ruling government. One army officer compares the taking of turns at shooting the Tamil men to buru, the Sinhala name for a card game.
Our Crusade for Peace and Justice will officially begin today ( 15th August 2009 ) with the national launch in 5 major states in Australia said an official close to Australian Tamil Congress. Australian Tamil Congress, the unified voice of Australian tamils will be launched in New South Wales , Queensland, South Australia , Victoria and South Australia by Australian Tamil Intellectuals. Sen. Mark Furner will be the Chief Guest for the launch in Queensland, organisers said. On behalf of the Australian Tamil Congress, we invite you to join us and work with us to bring lasting justice and peace to our people in Sri Lanka. This work must start today; it cannot wait until tomorrow. Please join with us and make a difference and we shall rise from the ashes like the phoenix, a statement from ATC said.
Public forum: What solution for Tamil refugees? Fortress Australia or human rights and justice?
Our Crusade for Peace and Justice will officially begin today ( 15th August 2009 ) with the national launch in 5 major states in Australia said an official close to Australian Tamil Congress. Australian Tamil Congress, the unified voice of Australian tamils will be launched in New South Wales , Queensland, South Australia , Victoria and South Australia by Australian Tamil Intellectuals. Sen. Mark Furner will be the Chief Guest for the launch in Queensland, organisers said. On behalf of the Australian Tamil Congress, we invite you to join us and work with us to bring lasting justice and peace to our people in Sri Lanka. This work must start today; it cannot wait until tomorrow. Please join with us and make a difference and we shall rise from the ashes like the phoenix, a statement from ATC said.
