NA: Timeline (Terrorist Activities) -2016

Date	Incidents	Expand All.. Collapse All...
May - 1	former President Mahinda Rajapaksa while speaking at the May Day rally of the Joint Opposition at Kirulapone Lalith Athulathmudali Stadium on May 1 said that they are never ready to stop the struggle they have launched against the government as the g Read more... former President Mahinda Rajapaksa while speaking at the May Day rally of the Joint Opposition at Kirulapone Lalith Athulathmudali Stadium on May 1 said that they are never ready to stop the struggle they have launched against the government as the government is the common enemy, reports Daily News. Rajapaksa said “I regret that the SLFP is now in the bosom of the elephant betraying the ideals of SLFP founder S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike. Bandaranaike formed the SLFP with the assistance of five social forces. But, the present leader brought the SLFP to the embrace of the elephant. As an outcome of this situation, the SLFP is now in danger of losing its identity as a political party.” Read less...
May - 1	Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne while speaking at the May Day rally organized by National Movemfor Democracy at Hyde Park ground in Colombo on May 1 said that the currGovernmwill not collapse despite attempts by the Mahinda Rajapaksa faction to bri Read more... Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne while speaking at the May Day rally organized by National Movemfor Democracy at Hyde Park ground in Colombo on May 1 said that the currGovernmwill not collapse despite attempts by the Mahinda Rajapaksa faction to bring it down, reports Daily News. The Minister said “We are with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesighe and PresidMaithripala Sirisena today, not because we want to build the UNP or SLFP government, but, to build the country. I challenge Mahinda that there won’t be an election till 2020, and this governmcannot be toppled to suit anybody’s whims and fancies. It will take a set of strong people to do so. Those people are now with us.” Read less...
May - 2	The Terrorist Investigations Division (TID) of Police on May 2 arrested another rehabilitated leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Kaththankudi of Batticaloa Districton suspicion of regrouping, reports Colombo Page. Krishnapillai Read more... The Terrorist Investigations Division (TID) of Police on May 2 arrested another rehabilitated leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Kaththankudi of Batticaloa Districton suspicion of regrouping, reports Colombo Page. Krishnapillai Kalinesan alias Prabha was arrested on charges of attempting to re-group the defunct LTTE. He was the former head of the LTTE intelligence wing in Batticaloa. Read less...
May - 3	Opposition Leader R. Sampanthan in a message to mark the World Press Freedom Day, on May 3 called on the Government to take all steps necessary to investigate the killings of journalists and bring the perpetrators of those crimes to justice, reports Read more... Opposition Leader R. Sampanthan in a message to mark the World Press Freedom Day, on May 3 called on the Government to take all steps necessary to investigate the killings of journalists and bring the perpetrators of those crimes to justice, reports Colombo Page. He said "It is no secret that previous regimes have overlooked serious incidents of intimidation and violence against journalists including the killing of media personnel in Sri Lanka. As such, I call upon the present government to take all steps necessary to investigate all such incidents and bring to justice perpetrators of crimes both past and present in Sri Lanka." Read less...
May - 3	Ten Tamil political parties are currently discussing moves to from a political alliance, reports Daily News on May 4. Veerasingham Anandasangaree the leader of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) had held discussions with other Tamil political l Read more... Ten Tamil political parties are currently discussing moves to from a political alliance, reports Daily News on May 4. Veerasingham Anandasangaree the leader of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) had held discussions with other Tamil political leaders to form the new political alliance. Douglas Devananda leader of the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP), former Deputy Minister Prabha Ganesan had participated in the meeting. The new alliance would be formed reportedly due to the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) not addressing the needs of the people. Read less...
May - 5	President Maithripala Sirisena, who is also the Minister of National Integration & Reconciliation, on May 5 launched national program to enlighten the school children on the national reconciliation process, reports Colombo Page. President Maithri Read more... President Maithripala Sirisena, who is also the Minister of National Integration & Reconciliation, on May 5 launched national program to enlighten the school children on the national reconciliation process, reports Colombo Page. President Maithripala Sirisena opened the inaugural session of the national program "Sisu Diviyata Nawa Aruthak” (New Meaning to Students' Life) on the national reconciliation process at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo. The Ministry of National Integration & Reconciliation organized the event with the intention to commence reconciliation from school as the first step. Read less...
May - 7	Nations (UN) Human Rights (HR) Expert Juan E. Mendez on May 7 said that torture still continues in Sri Lanka, reports Daily Mirror. Mendez told reporters in Colombo that he had found credible evidence of detainees being tortured and disappearances si Read more... Nations (UN) Human Rights (HR) Expert Juan E. Mendez on May 7 said that torture still continues in Sri Lanka, reports Daily Mirror. Mendez told reporters in Colombo that he had found credible evidence of detainees being tortured and disappearances since the end of the war in May 2009. He heard between 16,000 and 22,000 people had gone missing during the conflict and its immediate aftermath. “The current legal framework and the lack of reform within the structures of the armed forces, police, attorney-general’s office and judiciary perpetuate the real risk that the practice of torture will continue,” he warned. Read less...
May - 7	Opposition Leader and Tamil National Alliance (TNA) laeder R. Sampanthan called on the Tamil Diaspora to take part in the development of North and East, reports Colombo Page on May 8. The Opposition Leader made this request while participating in a c Read more... Opposition Leader and Tamil National Alliance (TNA) laeder R. Sampanthan called on the Tamil Diaspora to take part in the development of North and East, reports Colombo Page on May 8. The Opposition Leader made this request while participating in a ceremony to open a community center in the Thennamarawadi area of Trincomalee District built with the assistance from the Tamil Diaspora in Australia. Mr. Sampanthan said largescale development plans in some areas of the North and East including Trincomalee can provide employment for the youth in the areas. He said the Tamil Diaspora also can invest in these development activities, open factories and contribute to employment opportunities for the youth. Read less...
May - 10	Two United Nations (UN) experts, who visited Sri Lanka on a weeklong mission, on May 10 urged the Government to establish democratic institutions in line with international human rights standards, reports Colombo Page. Special Rapporteur on the Indep Read more... Two United Nations (UN) experts, who visited Sri Lanka on a weeklong mission, on May 10 urged the Government to establish democratic institutions in line with international human rights standards, reports Colombo Page. Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers Mónica Pinto and Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, Juan E. Méndez visited the island from April 29 to May 7 on an invitation extended by the Government. In a press release issued by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), the two UN experts said "Sri Lanka is taking steps to draft a new constitution, an undertaking that presents an opportunity to reinforce the independence and impartiality of the justice sector and provide more safeguards against torture and other serious human rights violations. The change in Government has led to some promising reforms, such as the reinstatement of the Constitutional Council. But more reforms are needed before Sri Lanka can be considered to be on a path to sustainable democratization." Read less...
May - 12	State Minister of Defense Ruwan Wijewardene at a media briefing in Colombo on May 12 said that this year giving priority to reconciliation efforts will mark the end of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) war with a cultural show instead of a Read more... State Minister of Defense Ruwan Wijewardene at a media briefing in Colombo on May 12 said that this year giving priority to reconciliation efforts will mark the end of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) war with a cultural show instead of a military parade, reports Colombo Page. The Minister said the National War Heroes Commemoration Ceremony 2016 will be held under the patronage of President Maithripala Sirisena at the War Memorial in Battaramulla on May 18. The event will be followed by a cultural show at the Independent Square in Colombo. The Government also said the people affected by the war are free to commemorate their dead but events hailing the defeated LTTE would not be permitted. Read less...
May - 18	President Maithripala Sirisena speaking at the national ceremony to commemorate war heroes, held on May 18 at the War Hero Monument in the Parliament premises in Colombo said that the Government is committed to strengthen the national reconciliation Read more... President Maithripala Sirisena speaking at the national ceremony to commemorate war heroes, held on May 18 at the War Hero Monument in the Parliament premises in Colombo said that the Government is committed to strengthen the national reconciliation in order to prevent another war, reports Colombo Page. The President said"The new government is now working for fulfilling the responsibility to prevent another war in the country through strengthening of the national reconciliation. It is not an easy task to unite the hearts of the people while fulfilling of the responsibilities of a post-conflict era after ending the war physically. Politicians, war heroes and the people of the entire country should get together to strengthen the reconciliation process." Read less...
May - 30	President Maithripala Sirisena during a special meeting held on May 30 at the President's Office on the resettlement of displaced people in North and East advised the relevant officials to finish the process of identifying lands for the resettlem Read more... President Maithripala Sirisena during a special meeting held on May 30 at the President's Office on the resettlement of displaced people in North and East advised the relevant officials to finish the process of identifying lands for the resettlement of the displaced people in the North by June 3, reports Colombo Page. The President further instructed the authorities to finish showing the lands for the resettlement before the end of June. Secretary to the President P.B. Abeykoon, Defense Secretary Karunasena Hettiarachchi, Secretary to the Land Ministry I.H.K. Mahanama, Ministry Secretaries, tri-forces commanders and other senior officials participated in the meeting. Read less...
May - 31	National Peace Council, an independent and nonpartisan organization working towards peace in Sri Lanka in a press release said that credibility of transitional justice mechanisms is essential and has called for a credible mechanism to probe the fate Read more... National Peace Council, an independent and nonpartisan organization working towards peace in Sri Lanka in a press release said that credibility of transitional justice mechanisms is essential and has called for a credible mechanism to probe the fate of the 20,000 persons who went missing during the ethnic conflict, reports Colombo Page on June 1. The Council requested the Government to publicize the draft legislation and give an adequate opportunity for public feedback on the proposed legislation prior to passage into law in Parliament. Read less...

*Data till , January 22, 2021

Source:Compiled from news reports and are provisional.

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