2009 Tamil protests in the United Kingdom

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The 2009 British Tamil protests refers to a series of demonstrations and protests, which took place in London, along with other world cities with a significant Tamil diasporal population, during the year 2009, regarding the alleged genocide of Sri Lankan Tamil people in the northern province of the island nation Sri Lanka.

Background

See also: 2008–2009 Sri Lankan Army Northern offensive and Eelam War IV

Throughout the year 2008 and early 2009, several civilian casualities and fatalities in the northern area of Sri Lanka had occurred where the Sri Lankan Civil War had been taking place.

Protests

Protesters in Parliament Square in January 2009

These protest was organized by the British Tamil Forum, a prominent Diaspora organisation and a key association organizing of the event.

The first protest in 2009 began on Saturday, 18th January 2009 with around 9000 British Tamils in front of No. 10 Downing Street in London participating in a mass vigil from 3:00 p.m till 7:00 p.m. [1]

Sit-down protest in Whitehall in May 2009

There were two major protests in London one in January and one in April. The first protest began on Saturday January 31st 2009[2] which attracted a crowd of around 150,000 Tamils. The protest started at around 10 am but people arrived earlier than expected. The protest lasted till 2pm. The marchers began gathering at 1pm on Millbank, near the Tate gallery. By 2pm the riverside road, which had been closed to traffic was filled and roads leading back to Pimlico and Vauxhall stations were also full of Tamil protesters.

The second protest began on Saturday, 11th April 2009 which attracted more than 200,000 Tamils. This protested started at around 10 am. 3,000 protesters who were at parliament who were already there since 6th April joined the protest to show their support. The protest was started by the second generation diaspora Tamil youth and students with the help of British Tamil Forum and TYO. [3] The protest carried on until night but the non-stop protest carried on. [4]

Non-stop protest

On 6 April an ongoing protest began, which continued into the middle of May. The aim of protest is encourage British intervention in the Sri Lankan Civil War. Two British Tamils, 21-year-old Sivatharsan Sivakumaravel and 28-year-old Parameswarn Subramaniyan, went on hunger strike.[5] On 11 May, the protesters in Parliment Square "spilled through police lines" causing roads to be blocked, with the protesters "noisy but peaceful."[6]

Post-civil war

Reaction in Sri Lanka

Several Sinhalese in Sri Lanka protested in front of the British embassy in Colombo, following the Sri Lankan Army's claim of defeat over the LTTE and the ambush of its leader Velupillai Prabhakaran on May 18, 2009. The protesters accused the British government of supporting the LTTE, as protesters threw eggs and stones at the embassy compound along with vandalising the building by spray painting graffiti on the wall, chipped out large stones from the facade and painted over a security camera. They also burned an effigy of British Foreign Secretary David Miliband before throwing it over the high walls and into the embassy compound.[7]

See also

Protesters flying the LTTE flag in Parliament Square in May 2009

References

  1. ^ http://tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=28055
  2. ^ http://tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=28240
  3. ^ http://www.tamileelamonline.com/en/Apr_11_19:14_-_Two-thirds_of_British_Tamils_march_for_Ceasefire_and_Tamil_Eelam
  4. ^ http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i99-WLWbuW7nyagJUxASZ29ygy2Q
  5. ^ http://www.tamileelamonline.com/en/Apr_10_02:36_-_Tamil_hunger_strikers%27_condition_deteriorates_in_London
  6. ^ "BBC NEWS". news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2009-05-12. {{cite web}}: Text "Tamil protesters take to streets" ignored (help); Text "UK" ignored (help)
  7. ^ http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Asia/Story/STIStory_378343.html
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