Sri Lankans in Switzerland

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Sri Lankan Swiss
Total population
46,000 – 55,000 (2010)
Languages
English, Sinhalese, Tamil, Swiss German, Swiss French, Swiss Italian
Religion
Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Christianity
Related ethnic groups
Sri Lankan people

Sri Lankans in Switzerland refer to Sri Lankans living in Switzerland. There are about 46,000[1] to 55,000[2] Swiss of Sri Lankan origin and Sri Lankan expatriates are living in Switzerland. Most of them are ethnic Tamils.

History

Since the 1990s Switzerland has had a relatively large Tamil population among Europe, almost all of them being refugees from Sri Lanka. Many had already been in the country for more than fifteen years due to the Sri Lankan Civil War.[3]

LTTE in Switzerland

As well a providing refuge for all Sri Lankans, Switzerland has been a haven for Tamil militant groups such as the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, or LTTE, the aggressors of the Sri Lankan Civil War against the government. The LTTE in Switzerland have been known as the Swiss Tigers.[3][4][5] The Sri Lankan Tamil community in Switzerland has become victim to these LTTE sympathisers who have created a network of money power, man power and muscle power towards the tiger cause back in Sri Lanka.[5] Because of this Switzerland has been regarded as the “Puligalin Kottai” (tiger fort) in Europe. Its contribution to the LTTE to the war effort has proportionately exceeded that of Tamils living in other Western countries.

End of the war

With the end of the Sri Lankan Civil War, LTTE networks around the world were being shut down by both Sri Lankan and foreign governments. In 2011 the Swiss police arrested ten former LTTE representatives in the country for threatening, blackmailing and extortion of Tamils of the Sri Lankan diaspora to support the LTTE and the war effort financially. The funds were mainly used to buy weapons in Sri Lanka. Those arrested included the head of the LTTE in Switzerland Vijaratnam Sivanesan alias 'Ragu alias Ragupathy', his predecessor Chelliah Kularajasekeram alias 'Kulam' and the Swiss Tiger finance chief Chelliah Jeyapalan alias 'Abdullah'. They are facing charges of money laundering and belonging to a criminal organisation.[4][6]

Demographics

Switzerland is home to around 32,000 to 42,000 Sri Lanka Tamils.[4][5]

Organizations

  • Sri Lankan Diaspora Switzerland (SLDS)

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ^ A Welcome by the Ambassador. Eda.admin.ch (2010-09-27). Retrieved on 2011-06-12.
  2. ^ Sri Lankan Diaspora – Switzerland. Srilankandiaspora.ch. Retrieved on 2011-06-12.
  3. ^ a b Social Change Among Sri Lankan Tamil Refugees in Switzerland. Forschungsportal.ch. Retrieved on 2011-06-12.
  4. ^ a b c Sri Lanka Perspectives – January 2011. Sri Lanka Guardian. Retrieved on 2011-06-12.
  5. ^ a b c Ramifications of crackdown on LTTE in Switzerland | Lanka Magazine. Lankamagazine.com (2011-01-29). Retrieved on 2011-06-12.
  6. ^ Onlanka News – Tamil Diaspora in Switzerland squeezed for money by LTTE «. Onlanka.com (2011-01-25). Retrieved on 2011-06-12.

External links

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