"Australian Tamils demand protection not persecution" was the theme of a gathering of more than 500 members of the Tamil community outside the Victorian parliament on May 22.
Participants at the 3.5-hour vigil carried placards of Tamil students, educators, politicians and priests who have been murdered or "disappeared" by the Sri Lankan army. Speakers, including Tamil Relief Organisation president Dr Kanapathipillai and Eeelam Tamil Association president Siva, as well as Tamil students and professionals, called on Australian authorities to free Aruran Vinayagamoorthy and Sivarajah Yathavan, who are in jail awaiting trial under "anti-terror" laws for raising money for victims of the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami.
The Sri Lankan government has used international tsunami relief as a weapon of war, and has stopped any of it getting to the Tamil parts of the island. The speakers pointed out that Melbourne's Tamil community is mostly comprised of refugees from decades of Sri Lankan government terrorism against civilian areas including aerial bombardment and military offensives by the army and death squads.
Solidarity messages were read out by Tim Doughney from the Civil Rights Defence, George Seitz, ALP member for Keilor, Tamil Youth Organisation representatives, Piergiorgio Moro from Community Radio 3CR, Chris Slee from Green Left Weekly and Margarita Windisch from the Socialist Alliance who condemned the"anti-terror" laws for criminalising support for Tamil self-determination.