For Immediate Release
March 13, 2024

Markham, Canada – In commemorating the fifth anniversary of the passing of the late Vairamuttu Varadakumar, Executive Director, Tamil Information Centre (TIC) in the United Kingdom, Tamil Rights Group (TRG) is honored to announce TIC’s donation of a large and significant volume of archival documents to the Maheswary Nadarajah Tamil Rights Reference Library (MNTRRL).

Consisting of a vast collection of books, magazines, and other archival materials related to the political history of the Eelam Tamils and broader international human rights issues, this donation is part of a unique collection of 25,000 documents painstakingly collected and catalogued by the TIC Resource Centre over several decades. The TIC Resource Centre continues to serve as an important source of support for researchers, activists, media, and others engaged in understanding or advocating for the rights of Eelam Tamils.

TRG is now housing this collection in Canada at the MNTRRL. The aim is to continue expanding the scope and volume of community-generated and collected documentation on the Eelam Tamil struggle. This effort will complement several other archival projects underway in Canada. It aims to cement Canada as a global site of new academic research and community mobilization in the fight against the ongoing genocide of the Tamil-speaking people in Sri Lanka. In the coming months, TRG will engage a variety of stakeholders in reviewing this new volume of documents, cataloging, and preparing it for access by scholars and community members alike.

“We are deeply grateful to the Tamil Information Centre for entrusting a significant portion of their archives to the Maheswary Nadarajah Tamil Rights Reference Library. There can be no more fitting tribute to the quiet fortitude and courageous spirit of Mr. Varadakumar – as well as that of the late Mrs. Maheswary Nadarajah – than to know that his life’s work will continue to live not only in the United Kingdom but in Canada as well as we continue to globalize the scholarship and activism of the struggle for the rights of Eelam Tamils and our ongoing fight for genocide recognition, justice, and accountability.” – Navaratnam Srinarayanathas, President, Tamil Rights Group

For all media enquiries: Katpana Nagendra, General Secretary and Spokesperson | [email protected] | + 1 (778) 870-5824