Salem-News.com Sri Lanka articles Page 17

Sri Lanka Blocks Freedom Of Movement During CHOGM

Military personnel stopped the buses and turned the families back to their home districts at Madawachchiya and Madhu.

(COLOMBO) - Two days ahead of the Commonwealth Summit where Sri Lanka will assume the chair of an organisation that holds as its core values democracy, human rights and good governance.

Yet the military has stopped busloads of families of the disappeared from travelling to Colombo from the Northern Province.

Protesters Stop Journalists from Traveling in Sri Lanka

Foreign Secretary William Hague has expressed his concern over UK journalists being blocked from going to north Sri Lanka by protesters.

(COLOMBO ITV) - A team from Channel 4 News were escorted away by police after a group of people blocked their train.

Channel 4 News editor Ben de Pear tweeted: "It seems it is mob rule in Sri Lanka, albeit orchestrated by the authorities to prevent free press access to the north of Sri Lanka.

The Chaos in Sri Lanka

The role of Britain & the Commonwealth...

(BRISBANE) - It is not widely appreciated that the current chaos in Sri Lanka is partly due to the damage done by colonial Britain, and later by the failure of the Commonwealth, to act when all the Commonwealth ‘core values’ had been systematically and blatantly violated by a succession of Sri Lankan (Sinhalese) governments.

The result is a Totalitarian State where human rights have taken a bashing, democracy has been dismantled...

Sri Lanka Hosting CHOGM 2013 - A Serious Problem

CHOGM is not a farce. Hosting this event is an opportunity for the host country to make a lot of money.

(BRISBANE) - This paper was written a month ago under a different title: “Sri Lanka hosting CHOGM is a joke. Is the (British) Commonwealth relevant any more?”

I argued that the Commonwealth was a farce, and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) a joke. That is not correct. I have re-written it to draw attention to an entirely different ‘event’ associated with CHOGM, the Commonwealth Business Forum (CBF).

Solutions Needed in Sri Lanka

To secure lasting peace and stability, Sri Lanka needs a durable and equitable political system that ensures all citizens are fairly represented and afforded equal rights and protections.

(WASHINGTON, DC) - More than four years after Sri Lanka’s ethnic-fueled internal conflict came to an end after 26 years, the country has yet to implement a viable plan for lasting peace and reconciliation.

In March, the United Nations Human Rights Council passed a U.S.-led resolution calling for the “establishment of a truth-seeking mechanism as an integral part of a more comprehensive and inclusive approach to transnational justice” in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka: People `Putting Themselves at Risk`

Our story of reporting in Sri Lanka is totally insignificant compared to that of the countless thousands who have been killed, tortured or disappeared...

(LONDON ) - In the media pack given to all arriving journalists at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) being held in Sri Lanka next week is a 222 page book called "Corrupted Journalism".

It is an out and out attack on Channel 4 and our journalism. As we only received our visas this week (our accreditation process took 8-10 weeks as opposed to the 2-3 weeks it took everyone else) I do not have this weighty tome in my hands, so I can't react to everything it says.

Sri Lanka: Tamil Family`s Distress Over Footage of Daughter

CHANEL 4 Interviews Isaipriya's mother and two sisters claimed asylum in London last week.

(LONDON Channel 4) - The family of a young Sri Lankan Tamil separatist woman killed by government forces four years ago had no idea that she had been captured alive until Channel 4 News broadcast the pictures last week. Our Foreign Affairs Correspondent, Jonathan Miller, met them.

Three women are sitting on a bench. Two of them are staring into space, their demeanour: deadly serious and balefully sad. The other, older, her lined face wet with tears, sits there, sobbing. More than four years on from her violent death, they are mourning a daughter and a sister.

London Review of Books: Rajapaksa`s Rule

The problem is that Rajapaksa, for all his eagerness to seize the Commonwealth’s helm, has spent years undermining those values and principles.

(LONDON) - Sri Lanka’s authorities are in buoyant mood. As Prince Charles prepares to open the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Colombo, the Defence Ministry is helping to organise celebrations. But it isn’t the queen they are honouring.

The CHOGM is gathering to acknowledge the Sri Lankan president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, as chairman of the Commonwealth, a position he will occupy for the next two years. His allies at home are delighted.

PRESS TV: Sri Lanka: Making a Mockery of HRs at CHOGM 2013

The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) is held every two years to enable leaders of Commonwealth countries to come together to discuss global and Commonwealth issues, and to decide on collective policies and initiatives, the CHOGM Website states.

(SACRAMENTO) - This year, the CHOGM is taking place in Sri Lanka, a nation that stands accused of some of the most bold and revolting war crimes in history.

The charges stem from acts committed against the minority Tamils just four years ago. A large number of people, governments and human rights organizations are waging efforts to increase a boycott of the event.

Investigation Into Atrocities in Sri Lanka (WARNING - Contains Disturbing Video Images)

Tamils 'raped and tortured' by Sri Lankan security forces - Newsnight looks at Atrocities in Sri Lanka since the war ended

(LONDON BBC Newsnight) - As David Cameron and other world leaders prepare to meet in Sri Lanka for the Commonwealth Heads Of Government Meeting, allegations of rape and torture by the country's security forces have emerged - some of which date from earlier this year.

Four years ago the Tamil Tiger rebels were crushed by the Sri Lankan army and allegations emerged of abuses against Tamil civilians in the closing days of the war.