Celebrating Ten Years of PEARL

 

 

(Washington, DC; November 16, 2015) This month marks the tenth anniversary of People for Equality and Relief in Lanka (PEARL). We invite you to celebrate PEARL’s past and ongoing work on behalf of Tamils, by supporting us with a donation. Any amount will help further our work.

 

PEARL was founded in 2005 by young Tamil American activists who visited the Tamil homeland in Sri Lanka and witnessed the human rights violations and hardships faced by Tamils after decades of armed conflict. Upon returning to the U.S., we created PEARL to increase engagement between Americans and elected officials, and to urge the U.S. government to take a leadership role in improving the human rights situation in Sri Lanka. PEARL’s mission is to end Sri Lanka’s systemic human rights abuses against the Tamil population and promote human rights and justice on the island.

 

As the first youth-led organization of its nature in the U.S., PEARL has pulled together Tamil students and young professionals from across the country to further its mission and vision for the betterment of people in Sri Lanka. Over the past ten years, PEARL has become an important and influential stakeholder in public policy on Sri Lanka. In addition to engaging with U.S. policymakers, PEARL has advocated with the United Nations, European Union, and other inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations. PEARL has issued over 100 Action Alerts, on subjects such as accountability, genocide, Tamils’ right to remember and commemorate deaths of loved ones, and political prisoners. With these Action Alerts, PEARL has generated thousands of messages sent from around the world to policymakers about Tamil concerns. PEARL has also played an integral role in Congressional resolutions and letters over the past ten years. Additionally, PEARL has submitted reports on Sri Lanka’s Universal Periodic Review at the Human Rights Council, as well as delivered statements to the Council from the floor of the Council chambers.

 

PEARL would not have been able to achieve these many benchmarks without the generous assistance of our supporters.

 

Indeed, PEARL owes its existence to our well-wishers and donors and hopes to count on your continued support as it endeavors to expand engagements and membership. Please make a generous contribution to PEARL today, to support our continued work. You can make a donation by clicking here. PEARL is a 501(c)(3) organization, so your donation is tax-deductible in the United States.

 

 

 

Media Contact: +1(202) 471-0009