From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 2009 Tamil diaspora protests in Canada
2009 Tamil diaspora protests in Canada
2009 Tamil diaspora protests in Canada several thousands gathered in front of the Consulate of
the United States in Toronto to appeal to the Govern-
Part of 2009 Tamil diaspora protests ment of the United States to take action on ending the
civil war. A 5-kilometre (3.1-mile) human chain of several
thousands of citizens took place the next day along major
streets in Downtown Toronto. There after, demonstra-
tions began to escalate in size and occurred on Parlia-
ment Hill in Ottawa for sometime, until returning to con-
tinue in Toronto. Other tactics by protesters included oc-
cupation of major streets, sit-ins, hunger strikes and In-
ternet activism.
Major events
Protesters at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Early demonstrations
Date 2009
Location Calgary, Alberta; Montreal, Quebec;
Ottawa, Ontario; Toronto, Ontario; and
Vancouver, British Columbia
Goals End the Sri Lankan Civil War, restore
civil rights for Tamils in Sri Lanka, and
investigate war crimes by Sri Lanka
Characteristics Non violent protest, student protest,
occupation, sit-in, demonstration,
Internet activism, human chain,
hunger strike
The 2009 Tamil diaspora protests in Canada refers to a se- Tamil students conduct a one-day hunger strike at the Univer-
ries of demonstrations and protests which took place in sity of Toronto Scarborough on 27 January 2009
major Canadian cities with a significant Tamil diaspora
population, during the year 2009 regarding the alleged In the Greater Toronto Area, local Tamil communities
genocide of Sri Lankan Tamil people in the Northern and organizations began to set-up demonstrations by
Province of the island nation Sri Lanka. It was part of a January 2009, following similar movements in the United
global outcry by the Tamil diaspora to end the Sri Lankan Kingdom and India regarding the large civilian casualties
Civil War, investigate acts of war crimes by the Govern- from the Sri Lankan Civil War. Tamil Student Associa-
ment of Sri Lanka, and restore civil rights for Tamils in tions at the University of Toronto and Ryerson Universi-
Sri Lanka. The aim was also to create awareness and ap- ty staged demonstrations on campus to promote aware-
peal to leaders, notably the Prime Minister of Canada, ness of the ethnic conflict to fellow students. During the
Stephen Harper, the President of the United States, week of 25 January, several Tamil media outlets an-
Barack Obama and the Consulate General of Sri Lanka in nounced a strike, requesting all Tamils to not attend
Canada, Bandula Jayasekara, to take action in ending the work or school during the week and take part in the
conflict. Several Tamil Canadian citizens and business- protests that would happen in Toronto, Montreal, Van-
owners from different parts of Canada and the United couver and Calgary.[1]
States took part in major protests set up in Toronto and On 28 January, several Tamils gathered in front of the
Ottawa, while smaller scale demonstrations took place in Consulate of Sri Lanka in Toronto to protest, with hopes
Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary. to meet the consulate general. However, the consulate
The first notable demonstration took place on 28 Jan- general, Bandula Jayasekara, reportedly termed the pro-
uary 2009 in front of the Consulate of Sri Lanka in Toron- testers as "terrorists" and refused to admit them.[2] The
to involving a few hundred people. The following day, protest resumed until the evening. The following day, 29
1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 2009 Tamil diaspora protests in Canada
January, several protesters gathered in front of the Con- protest" in Ottawa came to an end.[8] Ottawa City Coun-
sulate of the United States throughout the day, appealing cillor Eli El-Chantiry announced the policing costs for the
to the consulate general of the United States to pressure protest to be nearly C$800,000 which the federal govern-
its government to take an action on ending the war. ment was expected to pay.[9]
The next demonstration took the form of a human
chain which took place on 30 January in Downtown University Avenue sit-ins
Toronto, comprising thousands of protesters. The length
of the human chain was expected to stretch from Union
Station to St. Patrick subway station. However the human
chain stretched through parts of Yonge Street, Front
Street and University Avenue, basically along 5 kilome-
tres (3.1 miles) of the Yonge-University-Spadina line,
amidst traffic and other pedestrians.[3] Slogans such as
"We want justice", "Sri Lanka, end the war" and "Canada
help us" were chanted by the protesters across the
streets. According to a Toronto Police Service spokesper-
son, "the protest took place in a very peaceful and order-
ly manner."[3]
Parliament Hill protests
The first major protest in Ottawa, the capital city of Cana- Protesters occupying University Avenue in Toronto on 29 April
da, took place on 4 February 2009 at Parliament Hill in 2009
an effort to attract the attention of Canada’s parliament
members. Thousands of Tamils gathered in front of the A week after the non-stop protests in Ottawa ended, non-
Peace Tower, subsequently drawing out a few politicians stop protests began on the evening of 26 April in front
from inside, notably Bev Oda and New Democratic Party of the Consulate of the United States in Toronto, urging
(NDP) leader Jack Layton. Layton announced that he Barack Obama to call for an immediate permanent cease-
would call parliament to an emergency debate at the fire. Protesters sat down on University Avenue, occupy-
House of Commons. Oda announced that the government ing a large portion of the street.[10] On the third day of
would provide financial aid to the affected civilians, with the non-stop protest (29 April), fifteen arrests were made
the help of World Vision and Médecins Sans Frontières.[4] while one woman was injured after a brief scuffle with
On 6 April 2009, a non-stop, continuous demonstra- police. This incident was the first one to happen among
tion began at Parliament Hill, organized by Tamil Student the Tamil protests in Canada.[11][12] The protests later
Associations and the Canadian Tamil Congress. The shifted to Queen’s Park with a diminished number of pro-
protest, similar to the non-stop demonstrations that testers.
were contemporaneously held in other world cities, such Another major human chain, which was expected to
as London and Sydney, saw bus-loads of protesters ar- occur 5 May, was abruptly postponed the previous night
riving. Ottawa Police Service, Ontario Provincial Police by organizers because of the impact of previous demon-
(OPP) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) strations.[13] The cancellation was reported throughout
oversaw the protests, which were termed to be "peace- Facebook, Twitter, Tamil television and radio stations
ful."[5] As of 20 April, the non-stop protest took its four- and word of mouth. Some thought the cancellation was
teenth consecutive day. A few streets in the vicinity of because of the recent swine flu outbreak.[14] The post-
Parliament Hill had closed down to make way for demon- poned human chain demonstration instead took place on
strators. The protest was the decision by several Tamil 9 May through Downtown Toronto, reminiscent of the
organizations after the Government of Sri Lanka ruled one that occurred on 30 January.[15]
out a ceasefire and allegedly forced an attack in Northern
Sri Lanka with an unknown chemical warfare substance, Gardiner Expressway blockade
claiming the lives of nearly 2,000 civilians.[6] Five pro- On 10 May, an immediate vigil and protest was launched
testers of varying ages also began fast-unto-death hunger in light of international reports of the shelling of Tamil
strikes, but were forced to end ten days later due to dete- civilians in the Sri Lanka Army-declared safe zone in
riorating health.[7] The protest was expected to continue which 378 civilians had been killed, while protesters
until the Government of Canada forced negotiations with claimed it to be nearly 3,000.[16][17][18] The protest began
the Government of Sri Lanka. on Spadina Avenue but abruptly spread past police cor-
After a climactic protest with an estimated 30,000 dons onto the Gardiner Expressway, a major freeway in
protesters at Parliament Hill on 21 April, the "non-stop the city, bringing all vehicular traffic to a halt. Police
2
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 2009 Tamil diaspora protests in Canada
protesters also ran a food-drive, asking for non-perish-
able food items. David Miller attended the protest and re-
marked, "some people would probably be offended by the
flag and afraid to show their support for these people,
but I’m not here about politics."[25] The very same day,
Barack Obama made a statement on the Sri Lankan Civil
War, calling apon the Sri Lanka Army and the Liberation
Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to stop the "bloodbath" and
to stop the use of human-shields[26]
Toronto’s Sinhalese community set-up a counter-
demonstration, condemning the Tamil protesters.[22]
The anti-Tamil protests blamed the Tamils to be "terror-
Protesters blocking vehicular traffic on the Gardiner Express- ists" and launched a private airplane with a banner at-
way on 10 May 2009 tached to it reading "Protect Canada - Stop the Tamil
Tigers" which circled Queen’s Park for some time.[25]
subsequently shut-down the Gardiner Expressway and
Toronto’s Don Valley Parkway, causing heavy traffic con- Post-civil war
gestions throughout other Toronto streets and high-
After the march from Queen’s Park, protests continued
ways.[19][20]
in front of the Consulate of the United States in Toronto,
York Regional Police, Peel Regional Police and the
even after Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse de-
OPP were called in for back up policing. It was the first
clared a victory over the LTTE on 17 May, which officially
time a major highway was unlawfully occupied in the
marked the end of the Sri Lankan Civil War.[27] Post-civil
city. CP24 aired special live breaking news coverage on
war, the goal of the protests were to ensure peace and
the protest throughout the evening. The protest contin-
better treatment of Tamil civilians and investigate war
ued throughout the night, demanding an immediate re-
crimes by the Government of Sri Lanka.[28] Protests also
sponse to the latest casualties in Sri Lanka. The highway
continuously happened in front of the Consulate of the
was cleared and reopened after a message from the Lib-
United States in Montreal.[29] Protesters held non-stop
eral Party of Canada stated that they would make a state-
protests, urging Stephen Harper, who had not yet given
ment on the issue soon. Three individuals were arrested
any remarks on protests, to make a statement on the is-
during the protest for assaulting a police officer while on
sue and request immediate humanitarian aid to be sent
duty.[20]
to the island nation.[30] The Canadian Tamil Congress
The next day, peaceful protests continued in front of
urged the European Union for a unanimous investigation
the Consulate of Sri Lanka on the sidewalk of Spadina Av-
of war crimes. Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs
enue and at Queen’s Park simultaneously. York Region-
Lawrence Cannon reflected by announcing that "Canada
al Police, Peel Regional Police, the OPP and the RCMP
would work with the United States helping the United
continued to help Toronto Police Service to prevent civil
Nations deliver humanitarian aid to Sri Lanka."[31] In the
diobedience as what had happened the previous night.
meantime, Toronto’s Sinhalese community continued to
Toronto Mayor David Miller urged that such tactics as
hold counter-Tamil protests, claiming that they were in
blockading the Gardiner Expressway not be used again.
danger by the LTTE.
Police officials decried the use of children during such
Throughout the remainder of 2009, the protests con-
dangerous tactics.[21]
tinued but became smaller as attendance decreased to
about two dozen at most, happening only in front of
Queen’s Park rally the Consulate of the United States on University Avenue,
On 13 May several thousands of protesters crowded in and only during the daytime. On the 150th day, petitions
front of Queen’s Park protesting another offensive by were given out to protesters to sign, as they were in
the Sri Lanka Army, resulting in a situation which was many other Tamil diaspora demonstrations around the
termed by the United Nations as a "bloodbath."[22][23] world, and given to a guard at the Consulate of the United
Traffic was blocked and police forces with riot control States. As of 13 October, the protest had reached its 173rd
mounted on horses were present. After demonstrations day.[32]
took place at Queen’s Park, the protesters flooded por-
tions of College Street, Yonge Street, Queen Street and
University Avenue for a march. The immediate demands
of the protest were to call for an immediate permanent
ceasefire, allow media and journalists into the warzone
and to place diplomatic sanctions on Sri Lanka.[24] The
3
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 2009 Tamil diaspora protests in Canada
Impact government should pursue a whole-of-government
strategy to ensure that Canadian assistance of all
sorts encourages longer-term reconciliation among
Government response communities in Sri Lanka.
During the first Parliament Hill protest in Ottawa, Jack 4. The Government of Canada should call on the United
Layton had called for an emergency debate on 4 Febru- Nations Security Council to seriously engage itself in
ary, gathering all members of parliament at the House the resolution of the conflict in Sri Lanka, and to
of Commons.[33][34] A few members of parliament, such investigate the conduct of both parties during the
as John McCallum and Robert Oliphant, brought up con- conflict with respect to international law. The
cerns of whether the aid the government sends, which Government of Canada should also initiate a dialogue
was announced to be C$3 million, would successfully with the Government of Sri Lanka, in conjunction
reach the affected civilians or not. Canada’s Minister of with the international community, aimed at laying
State for the Americas Peter Kent, in an argument, sug- the groundwork for a political reconciliation
gested that extortions and funds underlying of the LTTE between the communities. If these efforts fail, the
may still be present in Toronto. Immediately, Liberal Government of Canada should consider financial and
member of parliament Jim Karygiannis assured that diplomatic sanctions, including, but not limited to,
there were no cases of such extortions in recent times advocating for Sri Lanka’s suspension from the
after phoning a few national security agencies. Kent re- Commonwealth, as well as incentives.
flected back, saying that both the LTTE and the Sri Lanka
Army must drop their weapons in order for the war to Other political remarks
end. Karygiannis stated that the wish of his constituency,
Scarborough—Agincourt, was that the ceasefire should
not be initiated by the Government of Sri Lanka or by the
Government of India but should be a United Nations-ini-
tiated, internationally-sponsored ceasefire. Liberal mem-
ber of parliament Irwin Cotler condemned Sri Lanka’s
restrictions on international humanitarian aid, journal-
ists and media to reach the affected areas of northern
Sri Lanka, which has been in place for several years. He
suggested to bring forth an immediate ceasefire and be-
gin negotiation talks. The United Nations, too, were con-
demned for not taking an active part in ending the civil
war. Deepak Obhrai, a Conservative member of parlia-
Police officers prepare to confront protesters on the Gardiner
ment, was the only member to label the LTTE at fault, re-
Expressway
ferring to the assassination of former Indian Prime Min-
ister Rajiv Gandhi.[35]
During the non-stop protests in Ottawa, Lawrence Can-
Stephen Harper was notably absent for the assembly.
non requested the Government of Sri Lanka for an imme-
A final report from the debate outlined four recommen-
diate ceasefire. He also rejected calls from the High Com-
dations of action:[36]
missioner of Sri Lanka in Canada to stop all protests in Ot-
1. The Government of Canada should continue to call
tawa. Cannon condemned the LTTE for preventing civil-
upon all parties in Sri Lanka to immediately cease
ians from leaving areas being attacked and using them as
fire and end hostilities.
human shields.[37] Protesters and citizens of Ottawa con-
2. The Government of Canada should redouble its
demned Harper for not taking initiative in the protests.
efforts in cooperation with other states to meet the
Liberal Party of Canada leader Michael Ignatieff had
humanitarian needs of all civilians in northeastern
made statements on the protests in a few occasions. On
Sri Lanka, including those still in the combat zone
21 April, Ignatieff met with a few Tamil leaders in Ottawa
and those in IDP camps, by securing a sufficient
to discuss the humanitarian crisis. On the occasion, he
humanitarian pause and through international
said the following:
supervision of assistance.
3. The Government of Canada should stand ready to "I am deeply concerned about escalating violence
increase Canadian assistance to Sri Lanka in in Sri Lanka, and the resulting deaths of thousands
collaboration with other partners, as on-the-ground of civilians. It was important for me to hear from
assessments and capacity to absorb warrant, not Tamil Canadians, whose family and friends in Sri
only for relief purposes but also for development and Lanka are suffering first hand from this crisis. We
reconstruction. In addition to ensuring that cannot sit back and watch as thousands of innocent
assistance reaches those who need it most, the
4
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 2009 Tamil diaspora protests in Canada
lives are lost in the cross-fire, and we condemn any
attempt to use civilians as human shields."[38]
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• Tamils Against Genocide 626630. Retrieved 2009-06-02.
5
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[37] "CTV Ottawa- Tamil protest in downtown Ottawa detain-sri-lanka-tamil-tigers285.html.
enters second week - CTV News". Ottawa.ctv.ca. [43] "Bob Rae denied entry to Sri Lanka".
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?hub=OttawaHome. Retrieved 2011-10-04. [44] Author lalith Colombo, Western, Sri Lanka
[38] "Michael Ignatieff meets with members of Tamil (2009-05-13). "Misguided Tamil protesters |
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and dialogue". Liberal.ca. 2009-04-21. http://www.nowpublic.com/world/misguided-
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michael-ignatieff-meets-with-members-of-tamil-
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/in-
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Categories:
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• Tamil Eelam
• Tamil diaspora
• 2009 in Canada
• Student protests in Canada
• Protests in Canada
• 2009 protests
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