Tamil Sydney

Tamil Patriots Day - 25th April 2007 in Melbourne Australia

Hungarian Community Centre
760 Boronia Road Wantirna Victoria

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) has urged the Government of India to desist from providing lethal military assistance to Sri Lanka. Referring to recent media reports that the Indian Government is to either grant or lease a large warship to the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN), the Parliamentary group of the TNA in a press release issued Wednesday observed that these reports have come against the backdrop of repeated assurances given by the Indian leadership, including the Indian Premier Dr. Manmohan Singh, that the India, as a matter of policy, will not provide any lethal weapons to Sri Lanka.
SLN has a "long history of violence against Tamil civilians both at sea and on shore," the statement noted.

"..Amnesty International is extremely concerned by reports that 83 Sri Lankan men may be returned to their country without having their claims for asylum assessed. ..""..This is despite recent reports from the UNHCR highlighting the deteriorating human rights situation in Sri Lanka, and calls for governments not to send asylum seekers back at this time. .."
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Sri Lanka rebels express 'deep regret' for attack on ambassadors - Govt put their life at risk

Sri Lanka's Tamil Tiger rebels have expressed "deep regret" for an artillery attack which wounded three Western diplomats but accused the government of risking their lives by taking them to a war zone.The rebels said the Sri Lankan government and the diplomats had failed to inform them that they would be flying in two military helicopters into an area where only the air force operated.
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War Criminal Gen Janaka Perera great threat to 83 Sri Lankan Tamil Asylum Seekers

Press Release: Project SafeCom
"Bringing the Sri Lankans within the vicinity of Mr Janaka Perera is equivalent to notifying the local SS office of a shipment of Jews having arrived in town, and allowing the SS to take their photographs. It seems that the Immigration Minister is either totally incompetent to hold his portfolio, or refuses to look at the facts that blatantly stare him in the face. He would endanger all the families of the refugees back in Sri Lanka," Mr Smit said.

Greens Immigration and Multiculturalism Spokesperson, Senator Kerry Nettle, today warned the government that if they attempted to return the Sri Lankan asylum seekers on Christmas Island to Sri Lanka they would be threatening the integrity of the worldwide refugee protection system."The world is watching what Australia is doing on this issue," Senator Nettle said.
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Sri Lanka continues to harass journalist expose Human rights violations-detain Dushantha Basnayake

The Financial Director of the Sinhala language weekly "Mawbima", Dushantha Basnayake, has been detained by the Sri Lankan Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) Monday evening at his workplace in Colombo. Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse, in a televised address, Saturday had charged that the weekly was "pro LTTE." The paper is owned by Tiran Alles, a close confidante of Mangala Samaraweera, the former SL Foreign Minister who was recently sacked by Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse. Mr. Tiran Alles was also removed from Sri Lanka's Civil Aviation Authority this month.

"..LEE LIN CHIN: It has been suggested that the Sri Lankan Embassy here and officials there are being involved in discussions over the fate of the asylum seekers. Is that the usual process?
JOHN DOWD: No, it's not. The country from which these people are seeking refuge - and they may well be Tamils, they may well be a people at war with the government - should not have their lives and their danger...at risk by information being provided. This is contrary to normal international practice. Refugee countries like Australia don't do this kind of thing. And it's for political gain - tacitly at the moment with the support of the Opposition - that they are doing this to stop a further 'Tampa' incident as happened in 2001..."

ABC’s correspondence Geoff Thompson revealed in his report filed today that, 83 Sri Lankans will transit through Indonesia and be sent back to Sri Lanka in a deal cut by Governments of Australia, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Major Gen. K.J.C. Perera, Head of Sri Lankan Mission in Indonesia, is believed to the key man in striking this deal and who is alleged to be a war criminal, master minded the well documented massacre of hundreds of innocent minority Tamils. Australian Tamils fear that majority of asylum seekers would be minority tamils who flee the country due the escalating extra-judicial killings and abductions by Sri Lankan military forces and face persecution, if returned.

By : Kerry Smith
On February 24, the Refugee Council of Australia called on PM John Howard’s government to grant “full and fair hearing” in Australia to any claims for asylum by a group of 83 Sri Lankans rescued off Christmas Island by an Australian naval ship.The 83 Sri Lankan men and two Indonesian men, whose wooden-hulled boat sank on February 21, were being taken to the Christmas Island and classified as “offshore entry people” under the migration act, immigration minister Kevin Andrews announced on February 24.

Is it true that you play a Tamil Brahmin girl in Sivaji, and that Rajini falls for your Tamilness?
I play a Tamil girl, yes, and that is all I am allowed to say.
But your contract with (director) Shankar is over.
Yes, but the element of surprise is needed, we can’t snatch that away from the audience. Even producer Guhan used to ask me if I have seen the rushes (he hasn’t either), and the fact is none of us has. That way the film will be a magical unveiling for me as well.

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