08/06/2025
August 06, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Update on the engagement between Canadian Tamil Collective and Canadian Tamil Congress.
After months of failed dialogue and continued misrepresentation, the Tamil community has no choice but to reject the Canadian Tamil Congress ("CTC") and its signature event, Tamil Fest.
Five in-person meetings and several virtual discussions took place between the CTC and the Canadian Tamil Collective (the "Collective"). Throughout, the Collective’s position was clear: The Executive Director, Danton Thurairajah ("Mr. Thurairajah") must be removed. At every stage, the CTC refused to have him step aside, resign, or be removed. This is in spite of the Collective proposing a six month transition plan for Mr. Thurairajah's exit from the organization.
Despite its most recent press release suggesting that a resolution had been reached between the CTC and the Collective, no such agreement ever existed. The CTC has blatantly misrepresented the nature of those discussions and cannot be trusted to engage in good faith. It continues to shield Mr. Thurairajah, even in the face of sustained and widespread community opposition.
The organization has a track record of decisions that run counter to Tamil interests. Notably, Mr. Thurairajah admitted to the Collective that he personally requested Raj Thavaratnasingham attend a meeting with Mahinda Rajapaksa. That meeting, and the widely circulated photograph that followed, continues to haunt and retraumatize Tamils globally. This act defied common sense, community values, and the aspirations of a people still seeking justice for genocide. It was either a serious lapse in judgment or, worse, a calculated choice with lasting harm.
This was not an isolated misstep. It is part of a broader pattern of anti-Tamil decision-making that has defined Mr. Thurairajah’s leadership and underscores the urgent need for reform. Yet the CTC has refused to change.
Instead of pursuing genuine reform, it proposed an internal review process modelled on discredited Sri Lankan government mechanisms, designed to preserve power, preordain outcomes, and silence criticism. While it offered the appearance of community input, it insisted on retaining majority control over all decisions. This was not reform. It was damage control. And it was categorically unacceptable.
The CTC has demonstrated it is not committed to transparency, accountability, or rebuilding trust.
The Collective has already documented a series of harmful decisions made under Mr. Thurairajah’s leadership. His continued presence obstructs any meaningful reconciliation between the organization and the broader Tamil community.
With his resignation, Tamil Fest could proceed in a manner aligned with community values. Without it, both the CTC and Tamil Fest must be fully rejected and boycotted.
One individual must not be allowed to stand in the way of a united community determined to celebrate its history, culture, and identity.
If Mr. Thurairajah remains in place and Tamil Fest is cancelled as a result, then CTC's President Kumar Ratnam bears full responsibility. His refusal to act makes him directly accountable for the consequences.
The community cannot, must not, and will not be held responsible for the failure of a single individual or of the organization that chose to protect him. The CTC must look inward before attempting to shift blame outward.
This situation must not be allowed to stand. Until Mr. Thurairajah is removed, we call on Tamils in Canada and around the world to boycott the CTC and Tamil Fest.
The community must boycott Tamil Fest if CTC fails to act on Executive Director, Danton Thurairajah.
For further inquiries, please feel free to contact Canadian Tamil Collective by email at [email protected]
Sincerely,
Canadian Tamil Collective