Protest against the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting

Protest against the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting

We, .................................................................. [union branch, group, area, committee, conference], protest against the decision to hold the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Sri Lanka in November 2013.

We also strongly oppose the decision to send Prime Minister David Cameron and Prince Charles as representatives of the British government and crown.

The Commonwealth meeting will provide a world stage and lend legitimacy to the Sri Lankan government which stands accused of the most savage war crimes against civilians during its conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, in particular in the final few months ending in May 2009.

According to reports by the United Nations, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Channel 4, and others, many tens of thousands of Tamil civilians were killed as Sri Lankan armed forces systematically attacked so-called ‘no-fire zones’.

An effective military occupation now operates in the predominantly Tamil north and east of Sri Lanka.

In addition, the Sri Lankan government is becoming ever more authoritarian. Trade unionists, journalists, human rights and political activists from all ethnic/religious origins, including from the Sinhala majority, face increasing repression.

Given this appalling human rights record, we call on the government to reverse its decision to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Sri Lanka.

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Please mail this protest, or a version of it, to:
Foreign and Commonwealth Office, King Charles Street, London, SW1A 2AH Or email to: fcocorrespondence@fco.gov.uk

Please mail a copy to:
Tamil Solidarity, 205 Well Street, London, E9 6QU Or email to: info@tamilsolidarity.org

Contact us if you would like:

•   Any further information about this issue or the Tamil Solidarity campaign

•   To invite a speaker to your union branch/organisation/event

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