Protest against NC Congressman in Asheville after his 2-day visit to Sri Lanka

Raleigh, NC June 5, 2009– Tamils Against Genocide is holding a protest march in Asheville, North Carolina on Saturday June 06th in response to Congressman Heath Shuler’s (D-11) two day visit to Sri Lanka last week. On his recent visit, Representative Shuler took a tour sponsored by the Sri Lankan government to the internment camps in northern Sri Lanka, in which 300,000 ethnic Tamil refugees are currently being held. Human rights advocates are angry after Representative Shuler commended the Sri Lankan government on the conditions in the internment camps after a government conducted tour. The protest will be held in Pritchard Park in downtown Asheville from 11am to 3pm.

Two weeks ago, the Sri Lankan government ended the island-country’s 26-year civil war in a final assault which killed more than 20,000 Tamil civilians. Shuler’s statements contradict reports by reputable human rights organizations like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, who accuse the government of intentionally shelling the civilian population and denying foreign media and non-governmental aid organizations into the conflict zones.