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A Brief Colonial History Of Ceylon(SriLanka)
Sri Lanka: One Island Two Nations
A Brief Colonial History Of Ceylon(SriLanka)
Sri Lanka: One Island Two Nations
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Monday, April 22, 2013
Tangalle Rape Victim Has Spoken For The First
Time
April 22, 2013
A
student has spoken for the first time of her ordeal at a Sri
Lankan resort and tells David James Smith she will fight on for
justice
Victoria
Tkacheva was attacked at a hotel party on Christmas Eve 2011
A woman raped at a hotel in Sri Lanka has spoken for the first
time of the attack in which she was badly beaten and her British boyfriend was
killed.
Victoria
Tkacheva, 24, a Russian languages graduate, fears that the men responsible for
her rape and the murder of Khuram Shaikh, a 32-year-old Red Cross worker from
Rochdale, will not be brought to justice.
One
of the eight suspects who were arrested but later released is a local politician
whose family have close ties to the Sri Lankanpresident.
There
is currently no prospect of a trial, but Tkacheva insists she will not rest
until justice is done. “I know if Khuram was in my place he would go on to the
end,” she said. “That’s what I must do too.”
The
couple had met in 2009 in North Korea where he was working as a prosthetics
expert for the Red Cross, fitting artificial limbs to adults and children.
Tkacheva was in Pyongyang, the capital, to study the Korean language. The
relationship continued when Shaikh was posted to Gaza.
They
were enjoying a holiday in December 2011 at the Nature Resort in Tangalle, 100
miles south of the Sri Lankan capital Colombo, when a group of men arrived at a
hotel party on Christmas Eve.
After
a minor tiff with Shaikh during the party, Tkacheva was sitting alone on the
beach at midnight to cool down when she was approached by a man and asked
whether anything was wrong.
She
became anxious and ran back towards the hotel but was set upon by a number of
men. She does not know how many.
“I
couldn’t even see them. They started beating me. I fell to the ground — I was
covering my head with my arms so I couldn’t see anybody,” she said. “It was next
to the pool. It was so sudden, they were kicking and punching.”
Her
assailants pushed her into the swimming pool. “I was trying to escape from the
pool but they were not letting me.”
Tkacheva,
who had suffered a fractured skull, eventually managed to get away.
“I
got out from another side of the pool and in a few steps I found Khuram lying on
the ground. I ran to him and started to call his name but he wasn’t
responding.
“I
tried to make him conscious, trying mouth-to- mouth, but there was nothing I
could do to make him conscious,” she said.
Tkacheva
saw cuts on Shaikh’s face but did not notice the stab or bullet wounds that
killed him. “When I couldn’t bring him round I screamed very loud from
helplessness and then I think I lost consciousness because I don’t remember
anything else.”
It
appears that at this point she was raped. Her next memory is waking up in
hospital wearing a T-shirt that she did not recognise and finding that her dress
was blood-splattered and her underwear had gone. Her face was badly swollen and
her body was covered in bruises.
Witnesses
said Tkacheva had been found naked and unconscious in a room at the hotel on
Christmas morning. She had been raped or sexually assaulted and had suffered
vaginal injuries, according to a Sri Lankan police report.
Tkacheva
does not recall when or where she was found. “You try not to think that could
have happened but it’s disgusting because they killed Khuram and sexually
assaulted me,” she said.
To
the best of Tkacheva’s knowledge, her missing underwear has never been found and
her dress was thrown away. Both could have provided police with DNA
evidence.
The
eight suspects were identified through witness accounts. They include Sampath
Chandra Pushpa Vidanapathirana, the head of the local council in Tangalle, one
of the largest towns in Sri Lanka’s southern province. His family have links to
President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
While
there is no suggestion that Rajapaksa or members of Vidanapathirana’s family
have intervened in the case, the relatives of Tkacheva and Shaikh believe there
has been a lack of urgency during the investigation. All the suspects were
released on bail without charge last November.
Tkacheva,
who has waived her anonymity as a rape victim, is ready to give evidence at any
trial. “I was devastated when the men were freed on bail,” she said.
Last
month the Sri Lankan government said it was awaiting a report on DNA evidence
and had made every effort to find those involved.
Courtesy
Sunday Times UK
Khuram Shaikh, a 32-year-old Red Cross worker
April 22, 2013
A
student has spoken for the first time of her ordeal at a Sri
Lankan resort and tells David James Smith she will fight on for
justice
Victoria
Tkacheva was attacked at a hotel party on Christmas Eve 2011
A woman raped at a hotel in Sri Lanka has spoken for the first
time of the attack in which she was badly beaten and her British boyfriend was
killed.
Victoria
Tkacheva, 24, a Russian languages graduate, fears that the men responsible for
her rape and the murder of Khuram Shaikh, a 32-year-old Red Cross worker from
Rochdale, will not be brought to justice.
One
of the eight suspects who were arrested but later released is a local politician
whose family have close ties to the Sri Lankanpresident.
There
is currently no prospect of a trial, but Tkacheva insists she will not rest
until justice is done. “I know if Khuram was in my place he would go on to the
end,” she said. “That’s what I must do too.”
The
couple had met in 2009 in North Korea where he was working as a prosthetics
expert for the Red Cross, fitting artificial limbs to adults and children.
Tkacheva was in Pyongyang, the capital, to study the Korean language. The
relationship continued when Shaikh was posted to Gaza.
They
were enjoying a holiday in December 2011 at the Nature Resort in Tangalle, 100
miles south of the Sri Lankan capital Colombo, when a group of men arrived at a
hotel party on Christmas Eve.
After
a minor tiff with Shaikh during the party, Tkacheva was sitting alone on the
beach at midnight to cool down when she was approached by a man and asked
whether anything was wrong.
She
became anxious and ran back towards the hotel but was set upon by a number of
men. She does not know how many.
“I
couldn’t even see them. They started beating me. I fell to the ground — I was
covering my head with my arms so I couldn’t see anybody,” she said. “It was next
to the pool. It was so sudden, they were kicking and punching.”
Her
assailants pushed her into the swimming pool. “I was trying to escape from the
pool but they were not letting me.”
Tkacheva,
who had suffered a fractured skull, eventually managed to get away.
“I
got out from another side of the pool and in a few steps I found Khuram lying on
the ground. I ran to him and started to call his name but he wasn’t
responding.
“I
tried to make him conscious, trying mouth-to- mouth, but there was nothing I
could do to make him conscious,” she said.
Tkacheva
saw cuts on Shaikh’s face but did not notice the stab or bullet wounds that
killed him. “When I couldn’t bring him round I screamed very loud from
helplessness and then I think I lost consciousness because I don’t remember
anything else.”
It
appears that at this point she was raped. Her next memory is waking up in
hospital wearing a T-shirt that she did not recognise and finding that her dress
was blood-splattered and her underwear had gone. Her face was badly swollen and
her body was covered in bruises.
Witnesses
said Tkacheva had been found naked and unconscious in a room at the hotel on
Christmas morning. She had been raped or sexually assaulted and had suffered
vaginal injuries, according to a Sri Lankan police report.
Tkacheva
does not recall when or where she was found. “You try not to think that could
have happened but it’s disgusting because they killed Khuram and sexually
assaulted me,” she said.
To
the best of Tkacheva’s knowledge, her missing underwear has never been found and
her dress was thrown away. Both could have provided police with DNA
evidence.
The
eight suspects were identified through witness accounts. They include Sampath
Chandra Pushpa Vidanapathirana, the head of the local council in Tangalle, one
of the largest towns in Sri Lanka’s southern province. His family have links to
President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
While
there is no suggestion that Rajapaksa or members of Vidanapathirana’s family
have intervened in the case, the relatives of Tkacheva and Shaikh believe there
has been a lack of urgency during the investigation. All the suspects were
released on bail without charge last November.
Tkacheva,
who has waived her anonymity as a rape victim, is ready to give evidence at any
trial. “I was devastated when the men were freed on bail,” she said.
Last
month the Sri Lankan government said it was awaiting a report on DNA evidence
and had made every effort to find those involved.
Courtesy
Sunday Times UK
Khuram Shaikh, a 32-year-old Red Cross worker
No tourist arrivals?
Missing
or delay in release of statistics for February and March causes industry
concern
By
Cheranka Mendis-April
22, 2013 Despite two-thirds of April being gone, Sri Lanka Tourism has failed to release data of tourist arrivals for the months of February and March, raising concerns in the industry.
Only January tourism statistics have been published so far, listing arrivals of 97,411 tourists in the country, a 13.4% increase from January last year.
Given
the fact that questions over accuracy have been raised with regard to the
arrival of one million tourists last year, the delay in February and March data
has prompted the leisure industry to wonder whether “data is being
cooked”.
When contacted Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) officials told the Daily FT that the data was in the process of being released and could be expected sometime this week. “The data has not been finalised yet. It is being analysed at the moment,” officials added. When questioned on the delay, they expressed that the data had to be processed manually by collecting and going through the Disembarkation Cards handed over to travellers at the airport. “We have also been understaffed this year,” officials noted. “We hope to release the data sometime next month for February and the March stats will be released by the end of this month.”
However, the data of the previous month has always been released by mid next month so far until this year.
Last year, the February figures were released on 15 March, showcasing 83,549 arrivals for the month. The March figures along with Q1 details were published closer to 17 April.
First quarter 2012 showcased 260,525 arrivals in total, a 21% increase over the same period the year before. The end-March performance accounted for 25% of the one million arrivals target last year.
When contacted Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) officials told the Daily FT that the data was in the process of being released and could be expected sometime this week. “The data has not been finalised yet. It is being analysed at the moment,” officials added. When questioned on the delay, they expressed that the data had to be processed manually by collecting and going through the Disembarkation Cards handed over to travellers at the airport. “We have also been understaffed this year,” officials noted. “We hope to release the data sometime next month for February and the March stats will be released by the end of this month.”
However, the data of the previous month has always been released by mid next month so far until this year.
Last year, the February figures were released on 15 March, showcasing 83,549 arrivals for the month. The March figures along with Q1 details were published closer to 17 April.
First quarter 2012 showcased 260,525 arrivals in total, a 21% increase over the same period the year before. The end-March performance accounted for 25% of the one million arrivals target last year.
