Fleeing countries like Sri Lanka and Myanmar, refugees are risking their lives on a new smugglers route through Asia in search of a better life.

Tags: Australia, Burma, Malaysia, Myanmar, Refugees, Sri Lanka, UNHCR

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The United Nations reported that as of July 17, 2009, the Sri Lankan government was detaining 281,621 people in 30 military-guarded camps in the four northern districts of Vavuniya, Mannar, Jaffna, and Trincomalee.
In violation of international law, the Sri Lankan goverment has since March 2008 confined virtually all civilians displaced by the fighting between government [...]

Tags: Sri Lanka

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In Sri Lanka, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) says government security forces continue operations in the conflict zone. Intense fighting has been reported over the weekend with a heavy toll on civilians, resulting in the loss of hundreds of lives and more injuries.
The UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki Moon is [...]

Tags: Sri Lanka, War, War Crimes

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Sri Lankan authorities must ensure that the country’s media are allowed to work without restriction and in safety, Amnesty International said today.
“The Sri Lankan authorities are doing little to ensure the safety of the country’s media, or to prosecute those responsible for murdering or attacking them. They are also directly responsible for subjecting journalists to [...]

Tags: Sri Lanka

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Six US ambassadors have written in their personal capacities to the President of Sri Lanka expressing their concern over the deterioration of the situation in the country and urged him to take steps to re-establish accountability and the rule of law, by ensuring investigations into assassinations and human rights abuses.
The letter, according to the authors, [...]

Tags: Sri Lanka

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President Mahinda Rajapakse should order prosecutors to drop all charges against journalists held on politically motivated charges, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to the president today. J.S. Tissainayagam, a journalist, and N. Jashiharan, a publisher, and his wife, V.
The letter identified serious violations of due process and the right to a fair trial [...]

Tags: Sri Lanka

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Sri Lanka’s separatist Tamil Tigers are subjecting ethnic Tamils in their northern stronghold, the Vanni, to forced recruitment, abusive forced labor, and restrictions on movement that place their lives at risk.
The 17-page HRW report, “Trapped and Mistreated: LTTE Abuses against Civilians in the Vanni,” details how the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which have [...]

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The Sri Lankan government should immediately lift its September order barring humanitarian agencies from the Vanni conflict area in northern Sri Lanka so they can assist thousands of persons displaced by flooding from Cyclone Nisha.
Experienced and impartial humanitarian agencies have offered to respond to the crisis, but face government obstruction. Only government-approved food convoys have [...]

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The Sri Lankan government should take immediate steps to address the deteriorating human rights situation in the Eastern Province, where there has been an increase in killings and abductions in recent weeks.
Many abuses in the Eastern Province appear to have been carried out by armed elements of the Tamil Makkal Vidulthalai Pulikal (TMVP). The TMVP [...]

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The Sri Lankan government must immediately end its policy of blocking humanitarian aid needed to reach an estimated 300,000 displaced people in the Wanni region of northern Sri Lanka, Amnesty International said today.
Thousands of people displaced by the conflict between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and government forces are currently in desperate need [...]

Tags: Sri Lanka

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