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
Three International Experts tapped to assist with UN-Mandated Sri Lanka Conflict Probe Posted on September 27, 2023 25 June 2014 – Three distinguished experts have agreed to advise the United Nations-mandated investigation into alleged human rights violations committed during the final stages of the armed conflict in Sri Lanka. The experts are former Finnish President and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Martti Ahtisaari, former Governor-General and High Court… Read More
Navi Pillay: Speaking Truth to Power – The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights shares her Concerns Posted on September 27, 2023 “I think Christianity is under threat [in the Middle East] … I am very alarmed about what is happening to them.” Referemce on Sri Lanka, specifically threat on the Catholic Priests who defend Human Rights. Headlines and sharp rhetoric about war crimes and crimes against humanity seem so common that… Read More
Panel of Experts finds Credible Reports of War Crimes during Sri Lanka Conflict – UN Posted on October 2, 2023October 2, 2023 25 April 2011 – The panel of experts set up to adviseSecretary-General Ban Ki-moon on accountability issues with respect to the final stages of the conflict in Sri Lanka has found credible reports of war crimes committed by both the Government and Tamil rebels and calls for genuine investigations into the allegations,… Read More