Sri Lanka Human Rights

Human Rights Concerns

Since 1983, Sri Lanka has been wracked by a civil war between the security forces (who are mostly from the majority Sinhalese community) and the armed Tamil opposition group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), who were seeking an independent state for the Tamil minority in the north and east of the island. A ceasefire was negotiated in 2002 but broke down by mid-2006. The resumption of fighting was accompanied by soaring human rights abuses including hundreds of enforced disappearances, unlawful killings of aid workers, arbitrary arrests, torture and the use of child soldiers. On May 17, 2009, the Sri Lankan military announced that it had defeated the LTTE, recapturing all the territory controlled by them and killing their leaders.

Unlock the Camps in Sri Lanka!

Download the petition in PDF | RTF | MS Word formats.
» Background Information
» Briefing Paper
» Attacks on free media put displaced civilians at risk

Broken Pottu - a poem written by Mahesh Munasinghe inspired by the plight of children held inside camps for the displaced.  © PR

Unlock the camps in Sri Lanka video © Amnesty International

End the Cycle of Abuse and Impunity in Sri Lanka
According to testimonies,the Tamil Tigers were responsible for using civilians as human shields during the final stages of the armed conflict with the government of Sri Lanka. However, there is evidence that many civilians were killed as a result of shelling. The Sri Lankan military continued to use heavy weapons despite promising previously that it would stop using them. » More actions

Yolanda Foster, the Sri Lanka researcher at Amnesty International's International Secretariat, gave a talk about a month ago, focusing primarily on the Unlock the Camps campaign.

Click here to watch part 1 of 3

Click here to watch part 2 of 3

Click here to watch part 3 of 3

In the closing stages of the government’s recent offensive, the Sri Lankan army forced the LTTE into a progressively smaller area. Trapped in the war zone with the LTTE were thousands of civilians, who were used as human shields by the LTTE and prevented from leaving the area. Government forces repeatedly bombed and shelled the area, despite the dense concentration of civilians. Over 7,000 civilians were killed and 13,000 injured during 2009 due to targeted or indiscriminate shelling. The fate of those civilians remaining in the war zone when it was overrun by the army is still unclear.

People who were able to flee the conflict area in recent weeks have been detained by the government in overcrowded internment camps which they are unable to leave. The security forces have been screening them to separate LTTE fighters from the civilians. There are reports that some young Tamil men have disappeared after being detained by the security forces during the screening process.

Outside the conflict zone, journalists and other media workers have been attacked. At least 14 media workers have been the victims of unlawful killings since the beginning of 2006; one has allegedly disappeared in the custody of the security forces, while others have been tortured and arbitrarily detained. Emergency regulations issued by the Sri Lankan President have been used to silence critical media and generally violate freedom of expression in Sri Lanka, including through detention without charge or trial for periods lasting up to 18 months.

» Briefing Paper: Unlock the camps
» Read the Latest News about Sri Lanka on our Blog
» Twenty Years of Make Believe: Sri Lanka's Commisions of Inquiry

Click Here to view a postcard about the case of five Tamil students who were killed by the Sri Lankan security forces in 2006. You can sign and send the postcard to the Sri Lankan President and urge the Sri Lankan government to provide accountability for human rights violations.
Below is a video of an interview with the father of one of the students.

Featured:
» President Obama Urged to Act on Sri Lanka by Six Rights Groups
» Sri Lanka: Government misrepresentations regarding the scale of the crisis
» Sri Lanka: Human Rights Council should demand immediate access and accountability
» Full text of Tissainayagam's statement to the Court
» See pictures from the March 6th vigils for detained journalist J.S. Tissainayagam
» See pictures from the vigil for World Press Freedom Day

Sri Lanka Actions:

» J.C. Weliamuna (m), aged 47, human rights lawyer; His Family
» Further Information on UA 110/08 (25 April 2008)Ill-treatment/Fear of Torture/Medical concern/Arbitrary detention
» "Journalist Silenced by Terrorism Legislation"  from Amnesty International's The Wire

Not Enough Tears
Rajani Thiranagama was a doctor, a successful scientist, and a committed teacher at Jaffna University. She also served as a Tamil activist so dedicated to exposing the human rights abuses being perpetrated on her people that she paid for it with her life. In 1989 she was shot dead as she cycled home from work, and her family believes it was a gun held by a Tamil Tiger that killed her. Listen to the radio program, Not Enough Tears »

This radio program was made by Radio Netherlands Worldwide. Visit their site »

Protect Sri Lankan Journalist
Since 2006, at least 14 media workers have been killed in Sri Lanka, with no one held accountable for these murders. Call on the Sri Lankan government to ensure Dileesha Abeysundera’s safety and to investigate the intimidation attempted against her and other Sri Lankan journalists and media workers. » More actions

What Else You Can Do:

Join Amnesty International USA as an individual or group.

AIUSA members can continue receiving actions on Sri Lanka and other South Asian nations by signing up with the South Asia Regional Action Network. Please send an email with "SARAN Sign Up" in the subject line to cgintern@aiusa.org.

News

Reports

Success Stories!

En Español

Annual Reports
2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006
2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002
2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998
1997 | 1996 | 1995