About me: People for Equality and Relief in Lanka (P.E.A.R.L.) is a grassroots human rights advocacy organisation dedicated to the promotion of peace and equality in Sri Lanka. P.E.A.R.L. is a non-profit, non-affliated, non-governmental organisation, concerned with the innocent civilian populace affected by the war and violence in Sri Lanka.
WHAT DOES P.E.A.R.L. DO?
P.E.A.R.L. educates the U.S. government and individuals about the humanitarian and human rights crisis in Sri Lanka.
P.E.A.R.L. also seeks to influence U.S. foreign policy to promote justice for the millions of innocent civilians in Sri Lanka affected by the three and a half decade-long civil war. The U.S. provides military assistance to the Sri Lankan government, which is then used in attacks on predominately Tamil civilians. This indiscriminate violence has been condemned by prominent human rights groups such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and the United Nations Human Rights Council. P.E.A.R.L. tries to keep the US government aware of the continual, daily atrocities, and educate policymakers about the need to curtail military aid to Sri Lanka.
This video was created by one of our members to introduce individuals to P.E.A.R.L. and to the current situation in Sri Lanka:
WHY SHOULD I GET INVOLVED WITH P.E.A.R.L.?
P.E.A.R.L. is the foremost advocacy group in the U.S. focused solely on improving the lives of civilians in Sri Lanka. We aim to provide simple but effective ways to advocate for positive change.
Sri Lanka has once again deteriorated into full scale war: On January 2, 2008, Sri Lankan President Rajapakse officially withdrew from the ceasefire between the government and the LTTE, prompting outcries from foreign governments and human rights and humanitarian organizations concerned about the escalating death toll of innocent civilians.
Doctors Without Borders ranks Sri Lanka as one of the ten most under-reported crises in the world. Some 800,000 Tamils have already fled from Sri Lanka to India, Europe, North America, Australia, and Africa. Another one million Tamils have already been displaced internally and many more are suffering daily. As the Asian Human Rights Commission has reported, "As long as this situation remains, life will remain a nightmare for all civilians in the country."
WHAT HAS PEARL ACCOMPLISHED?
P.E.A.R.L. has established a nationwide coalition of activists concerned about this issue. Our growing membership of over 1500 Americans receives Action Alerts every two weeks describing changes in Sri Lankan situation. P.E.A.R.L. has worked with Congressional staff, media outlets and other advocacy groups to convey our concerns to the highest levels of American government.
READ ABOUT P.E.A.R.L. ACTION ALERTS TO GET INVOLVED IMMEDIATELY!
-P.E.A.R.L.
Who I'd like to meet: We recognise, empathise with and support those individuals all over the world who struggle for peace, equality, justice and freedom.
Thanks for the request and for supporting Ms. Roy!
"The only dream worth having is to dream that you will live while you are alive, and die only when you are dead. To love, to be loved. To never forget your own insignificance. To never get used to the unspeakable violence and vulgar disparity of the life around you. To seek joy in the saddest places. To pursue beauty to its lair. To never simplify what is complicated or complicate what is simple. To respect strength, never power. Above all to watch. To try and understand. To never look away. And never, never to forget." - Arundhati Roy
