Wellington's Tamil community says New Zealanders should support political moves to protect civilians caught up in conflict in Sri Lanka.
The Wellington Tamil Society held a vigil on Saturday after hearing reports that hundreds of civilians have been killed or injured by shelling in the government-declared safe zone in the Vanni region of Sri Lanka.
One of those at the vigil, Samson Jeremiah, says he has relatives living in Vanni, but because of a communications blackout he has no idea whether they are still alive.
Mr Jeremiah says he hopes people around the world will push their governments to take action to protect civilians in Sri Lanka.
