The Illankai Thamil Arasu Kadchi (ITAK) was not party to a recent move by the Tamil National Council (TNC) to reive the 1985 Thmphu principals in a bid to make a joint proposal to the NPP government. This has been recently discussed at a recent meeting in Jaffna with the participation of Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam. The TNC is of the view that the proposed new Constitution should take Thimphu principles into consideration to pave the way for a federal structure.

When The Island sought ITAK’s response to the TNC’s move, top party spokesman M. A. Sumanthiran, PC, yesterday (22) said that his party had not taken part in that discussion.

Following Thimphu talks, the then terrorist groups, including the LTTE, demanded the recognition of the Tamils as a nation, the existence of a Tamil homeland, the right of self-determination of the Tamil nation and the right to citizenship and the fundamental rights of all Tamils.

The Democratic Tamil National Alliance (DTNA), affiliated with the TNC and the major northern political group ITAK, hadn’t participated in the 15 February talks, where a consensus was reached to pursue the Thimpu initiative. Previously known as Tamil Democratic National Alliance (TDNA), it was specially formed in 2008 to contest Provincial Council elections in the East. PLOTE and TELO are the main constituents of the DTNA.

Other Tamil sources said that basically all North based political parties, regardless of their attendance or absence at the recent talks, initiated by TNC, were of the view that the unitary status should be done away with to pave the way for federal structure.

Recently, JVP General Secretary Tilvin Silva declared that the preliminary work related with formulation of a new Constitution was underway.

by Shamindra Ferdinando

A group of Tamil lawmakers and former MP M. A. Sumanthiran, during talks with UK Deputy PM David Lammy, in Colombo, recently, have alleged that the ruling National People’s Power (NPP) hasn’t fulfilled election pledges.

 The UK Deputy PM met Tamil political leaders who called for renewed international action on accountability, justice and political rights.

The meeting brought together Tamil parliamentarians, including Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, S. Shritharan, Selvam Adaikkalanathan, and Shanakiyan Rasamanickam, as well as lawyer M. A. Sumanthiran.

The UK High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Andrew Patrick, confirmed the meeting in a post on X, stating:

“Joined Deputy Prime Minister @DavidLammy for a meeting with Tamil political leaders. The UK continues to stand firm in support reconciliation, transnational justice, and listening to their priorities on justice and equality.”

Tamil representatives used the meeting to set out long-standing grievances of the Tamil people and to raise concerns over what they described as the failure of the current National People’s Power administration to deliver on key pledges made to the Tamil people.

Speaking to the Tamil Guardian following the discussions, Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam said:

“The NPP came on an anti-establishment wave that called into question the politics of the previous governments of 76 years. That questioning of the past included the position previous governments had taken on the Tamil National Question. This made the NPP to boldly state that all previous govts had been racist towards the Tamils and that the NPP government will not be the same.

They promised to resolve the ethnic question with a new constitution that would address Tamil concerns. They promised to repeal the PTA and never replace it. They promised to release all private land occupied by the armed forces. They also promised to release all Tamil political prisoners and stop Sinhaslisation projects in the North-East.

On every one of these key issues faced by the Tamil people the NPP has defaulted. And when we as Tamil representatives point these failures out, we are labelled Tamil racists by the government.

If we are to give the benefit of the doubt to the government and assume that the government has failed because they fear a backlash from the extreme elements amongst the Sinhalese, the only way to deal with it would be to silence those extreme elements. Those elements happen to be also the very same sections that stand accused for [International Humanitarian Law] and human rights violations. So, we urged the UK to redouble its efforts to ensure international accountability.

Going after them will also eliminate any excuses the government can give for not pursuing a political solution to the Tamil National question as well.”

 Ahead of Lammy’s one day visit to the island, British MP Uma Kumaran said she had raised the issue directly with UK officials, stressing that justice for Tamil victims must be central to any engagement with Colombo.

“I have once again raised the need for the UK to press the Sri Lankan Government on human rights violations in Sri Lanka – including historic atrocities committed against the Tamil people,” she told the Tamil Guardian. “Those responsible for human rights abuses must face justice. Meaningful reconciliation requires truth, accountability and human rights guarantees. I hope this discussion takes place, alongside important conversations on the support the UK Government has given to Sri Lankan people following the devastation of Cyclone Ditwah.”

A customized capacity-building programme for 10 aquaculturists from the National Aquaculture Development Authority (NAQDA) under the Ministry of Fisheries, Aquatic and Ocean Resources of Sri Lanka, was organized recently at the Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (CIFA), Bhubaneshwar – the premier research institute for freshwater aquaculture in India under the aegis of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, according to a press release issued by the Indian HC in Colombo.

The programme encompassed technical sessions on themes such as species and system diversification; carp broodstock management, cryopreservation and induced breeding; nursery pond management and seed rearing protocols; biofloc-based fish farming in freshwater; application of advanced technology in aquaculture; use of plastics in aquaculture with special reference to aquaponics; comprehensive health management in freshwater finfish and shellfish; aquaculture field school & farmer-to-farmer extension; among others. The participants were provided the opportunity to visit major farms and laboratory facilities of CIFA, including the smart pond units, biofloc facility, freshwater prawn unit, ornamental fish unit, air-breathing fish unit, and selective breeding facilities.

Subsequent to successful completion of the programme, the participants engaged in an interactive feedback session with the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, Santosh Jha and Minister of Fisheries, Aquatic and Ocean Resources of Sri Lanka, Ramalingam Chandrasekar. Secretary, Ministry of Fisheries, Aquatic and Ocean Resources Dr. B. K. Kolita Kamal Jinadasa and Chairman NAQDA, Mr. Kithsiri Dharmapriya, also attended the session.

In his remarks, the High Commissioner underscored the growing partnership in the field of capacity building, an important pillar of the development cooperation between the two countries. He highlighted that India’s enhanced capacity-building endeavour now covers 1000 professionals and civil servants annually, over and above existing schemes such as the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation programme.