War Widows Turn to Sex Work in Sri Lanka By Feizal Samath – Inter Press Service (IPS) Posted on September 27, 2023September 27, 2023 By Admin COLOMBO, May 11, 2012 (IPS) – On May 18, some 800 women in Sri Lanka’s northern region will hold Hindu religious ceremonies for the welfare of thier husbands who disappeared or surrendered to the military as it moved in to mop up nearly three decades of armed Tamil separatism. “These women continue to live in hope even though many of those Tamil men may have died in the last days of the fighting,” says Shreen Abdul Saroor, a prominent rights activist working with conflict-affected women in northern Sri Lanka. “On the other hand, even if they do acknowledge that their men have died, they don’t want to be known as widows as that could result in them being seen in a negative light in the community,” Saroor explained to IPS. “They prefer to be known as single women or as women heading households.” Traditionally, Hindus consider widows to be inauspicious and the religion does not favour remarriage. Tamils, who form 12 percent of Sri Lanka’s 20 million population, mostly follow Hinduism while Sinhalese, who make up 74 percent of the population, are predominantly Buddhist. According to government estimates, the ethnic conflict has widowed 59,000 women, the bulk of them in the Tamil-dominated north and east. With rehabilitation tardy and options to earn money few, many women have been compelled to resort to sex work to earn a livelihood and provide for their families. Read Full Article Uncategorized
Alleged Sri Lankan war criminal Jagath Dias withdrawn as diplomat from Berlin Posted on October 2, 2023 The European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) According to media reports, Jagath Dias, a former Sri Lankan Army Commander suspected of having committed war crimes, was withdrawn from the Sri Lankan Embassy in Berlin. Dias held the position of a deputy ambassador for Germany, Switzerland and the Vatican… Read More
Will UN Report bring Justice for Sri Lanka War Victims? Posted on September 27, 2023September 27, 2023 Will UN Report bring Justice for Sri Lanka War Victims? By Amantha Perera UNNICHCHI, Sri Lanka, 2 September 2015 (IRIN) – Thavarasa Utharai says she isn’t exactly sure where Geneva is, but she is anxiously awaiting a report soon to be made public in the Swiss city that is expected… Read More
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC STATEMENT -JUNE 2012 Posted on September 27, 2023 AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PUBLIC STATEMENT AI Index: ASA 37/009/2012 13 June 2012 The Human Rights Situation in Sri Lanka, June 2012 A statement for the June Human Rights Council Session Sri Lanka is not fulfilling many of its international human rights obligations. Impunity remains the norm for gross violations of human… Read More