Candle-Light Vigil to Remember the Sencholai Massacre

Date: Friday, August 14, 2009
Time: 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Location: Dundas Square to Nathan Phillips Square.

Senchcholai Massacre Third Year Anniversary

Canadian HART to Hold Silent Vigil and Walk to Commemorate 53 School Girls Killed by Sri Lankan Ariel Bombing on Orphanage

(Toronto, ON)- Canadian Humanitarian Appeal for the Relief of Tamils (Canadian HART) will be holding a silent candlelight vigil and walk Friday August 14th, 2009. The vigil will begin at Dundas Square and participants will walk to Nathan Philips square.

The vigil is being held on the third anniversary of the Senchcholai massacre of 53 Tamil children.

On August 14, 2006 Sri Lankan air forces bombed an all-girls orphanage, killing 53 girls between the ages of 15-18 and wounding over 130. Kfir jet bombers flew over the school early in the morning and carried out a heavy aerial bombardment. The Sri Lankan Monitoring Mission counted 10 craters caused by the bombing and one undetonated bomb. The Sri Lankan government air offensive targeted the young girls’ residences.

The Senchcholai orphanage, located in Mullaitivu district, was a part of a “peace village” comprised of five orphanages within a 1 km radius of each other. The orphanages provide shelter and education to tsunami and war effected children. The coordinates of the orphanages were known to the Sri Lankan government and were in a recognized “safe zone” within the Tamil populated area of the North.

Sri Lankan government officials claimed they targeted an LTTE training camp. However, Ulf Henricsson, an official from the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission stated, “we couldn’t find any sign of military installations or weapons. This was not a military installation.”

UNICEF, who had an office near the orphanage, released the following statement. “These children are innocent victims of violence,” said Ann M. Veneman, UNICEF Executive Director. “We call on all parties to respect international law and ensure children and the places they live, study and play are protected from harm.”

The Canadian HART vigil comes at a time when nearly 300 000 Tamils, including over 50 000 children, continue to be held illegally in concentration camps. Amnesty International released a comprehensive report on August 10th, 2009 condemning the camps and demanding the release of the Tamil civilians. When asked about the camps, Amnesty International UK Director Kate Allen stated, “These are innocent people being treated in the most inhumane way.”

Through community outreach and media campaigns, Canadian HART seeks to raise awareness about the human rights abuses against the Tamil minority population in Sri Lanka. Working in collaboration with Canadian unions, student groups, faith-based organizations and community organizations, Canadian HART aims to draw Canadian and international attention to the situation of Tamils in Sri Lanka and to push for an international presence and monitoring of the humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka.

Facebook Group: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/event.php?eid=114840652855&ref=nf

Unlock the Camps in Sri Lanka

Hundreds of thousands of people displaced by the recent war in North Eastern Sri Lanka live now in camps and are being denied basic human rights.

For more information please see: Amnesty International USA

News on the Genocide In Sri Lanka:

Victims of SLA combustible bombs in Vanni - WARNING! Unedited Pictures
Colombo uses firebombs setting ablaze civilian targets in Vanni
SLA fired artillery shells create havoc inside safety zone
Eyewitness reports horrific experiences at makeshift hospital
Mangled bodies, torn limbs litter Safe Zone - medical official

What are the Tamil Media sources to follow the News?

TamilNet
LankaSri News
Tamil National
Tamil Canadian
Tamil Eelam News
EuroLive TV - Raw Genocide Footages

Urgent Appeal - Sign the petition!

CanadianHART IWD Appeal to the Special rapporteur on Violence against women

Please sign the e-petition to the United Nation's special rapporteur on violence against women and urge an immediate end to the massacre, sexual assaults, rapes, and all forms of violence against women.
Urge your friends and family to send out an appeal as well.
Each voice counts - make yourself heard!
Appeal - http://www.haltgenocide.org/appeal_iwd/appeal_iwd.html

Stop the Attacks on the Tamil People

If your group wants to sign on and endorse this statement please contact cpa@web.ca

The Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) has unilaterally abandoned the internationally mediated ceasefire agreement and has engaged in aerial bombings and artillery shelling of civilians in an intense war on the Tamil minority in the country. This war, which has killed as many as 70,000 Tamil civilians has become more brutal. In 2008 alone, thousands of civilians were killed.

According to former UN Human Rights Commissioner, Louise Arbour, “The most fundamental rights of people to be secure in their persons and homes are being violated almost daily.... There is an urgent need for the international community to monitor the unfolding human rights situation, as these are not merely cease-fire violations, but grave breaches of international human rights and humanitarian law”. She went on to say that the “weakness of the rule of law and prevalence of impunity is alarming.”

This devastating war has internally displaced over 500,000 Tamils and the Government of Sri Lanka has expelled all local and international NGO's from the war affected areas in the North. They have also placed an economic embargo on all food, medicine, fuel and other essential items reaching the civilians in the affected areas, creating a humanitarian disaster.

The Government of Sri Lanka has banned all reporters from the affected areas and has led a campaign of persecution against journalists. Reporters Without Borders has expressed outrage at the Sri Lankan government after they censored the BBC World Service reporters in the country and after the murder of prominent editor of the Sunday Times, Lasantha Wickrematunga. Wickrematunga, in his last editorial, published after his death said he knew that he was being targeted by the government. “When finally I am killed, it will be the government that kills me”, he wrote. The lack of access to international monitors is making it impossible to know exactly how many innocent civilians are being killed.

We call on the government of Canada to:
» Condemn the Government of Sri Lanka and call for an end to all attacks on Tamils
» Call on the Government of Sri Lanka to immediately allow international aid organizations and NGO's to bring emergency assistance to the civilians affected and to support the internally displaced Tamils
» Call on the Government of Sri Lanka to support the right to a free press and allow journalists into the affected areas.
» We also call upon the United Nations to condemn the Sri Lankan government's human rights violations and apply pressure on the Sri Lankan government to stop its genocidal war on the Tamil people.

For more information please see: TamilNet.com, Canadian Tamil Congress
For more information on the humanitarian crisis facing Tamils please see: http://www.tamilidpcrisis.org/http://www.tamilidpcrisis.org/

Sign up for CPA Action Alerts!