Another Tamil Rally Descends On U.S. Consulate
Posted May 9, 2009 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
After weeks of protests that have captivated the city, forced countless road closures and even sparked a brief clash with police, Toronto’s Tamil community is staging yet another weekend rally and not even severe weather has dampened its efforts.
Thousands gathered in front of the U.S. Consulate on University Avenue Saturday afternoon to protest towards an end to sectarian violence in Sri Lanka reportedly perpetrated by the Sinhalese-dominated government.
The rally and march was organized by the Canadian Peace Alliance, Toronto Coalition to Stop the War, Canadian Federations of Students and dozens of other Union, Faith and Student organizations to show support for the Tamil cause.
“The world needs to know that this is not just a Tamil issue. It is a human rights issue that all people want to see resolved.” said Sid Lacombe, Coordinator of the Canadian Peace Alliance.
“The Tamil community is being faced with the genocide of their friends and families back in Sri Lanka, and any person concerned about human rights needs to join the demonstrations on Saturday and demand a permanent ceasefire.”
The gathering started at 12pm in front of the building at 360 University Ave with a march heading north on University to College, east on College to Yonge, south on Yonge to Queen West and across Queen to University.
At Queen’s Park, protester Gunabalasuntharam Veerakathipillai is on his seventh day of a hunger strike and says he will continue to go without food until his death.And student protesters are joining him on 24-hour rotations.
“Everyday I heard something. I was so fed up. I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t live a normal life. That’s why I made this very tough decision,” he said.
Last week’s demonstration tied up University Avenue for almost a full work week. And at one point, 15 people were arrested.
Protesters at Saturday’s rally have vowed to continue until they get results.
