Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice

20/07/2026

Black July remains one of the darkest chapters in Sri Lanka’s post-independence history. Every year, SLC commemorates July 1983, when the Sri Lankan state committed a 7-day anti-Tamil pogrom, killing around 3,000 Tamil civilians and injuring, ra**ng, and forcibly displacing thousands more. In its 2023 Black July report, SLC established that not one single perpetrator was held accountable. What has changed since then?

Read our most recent blog post on our website where we revisit Sri Lanka’s accountability gap, 43 years after Black July.

https://srilankacampaign.org/43-years-since-black-july-the-accountability-gap-revisited/

16/05/2025

Read SLC’s latest blog-
In the lead up to Mullivaikkal Remembrance Day, SLC are thinking about the thousands of civilians who were killed in the final stages of Sri Lanka’s civil war. Sixteen years after the massacre, remembrance remains a contested act, still met with surveillance, intimidation, and silence.

In 2009, up to 70,000 Tamil civilians were killed, and nearly 147,000 remain unaccounted for. Survivors are still searching for answers, while the Sri Lankan state continues to deny them the basic right to grieve. The new government under President Dissanayake promised reform but has yet to deliver on repealing the PTA, demilitarising the North and East, or enabling independent investigations into wartime atrocities.

While the UN's accountability mechanisms like OSLAP have offered some hope, the Sri Lankan government refuses to cooperate with international efforts. In this context, UK-imposed sanctions on key figures signal growing international resolve, but more must be done.

Commemoration is not a crime. And justice delayed is justice denied.
This Mullivaikkal Remembrance Day, we honour those who died by demanding the truth be told. We stand with survivors, families of the disappeared, and Tamil communities around the world in calling for:

- The repeal of repressive laws like the PTA
- Full cooperation with international accountability mechanisms
- Protection of the right to remember and mourn without fear.

Let us ensure that memory is not erased- and that justice is not forgotten.
https://srilankacampaign.org/mullivaikkal-remembrance-day-2025-memory-mourning-and-the-long-struggle-for-justice/

17/04/2025

Six years on from Sri Lanka’s Easter Sunday bombings, justice remains elusive.

More than 260 lives were lost in the 2019 attacks—and to this day, survivors and families are still waiting for answers.
In our latest blog, we examine:

- New evidence suggesting possible state complicity
- Allegations of political interference in the original investigations
- The continued misuse of counter-terror laws
- The lasting impact on all communities, particularly Muslims, who faced mass arrests, hate speech, mob violence, and discriminatory policies in the aftermath
- Ongoing failures to support survivors and uphold their rights

Despite a recent pledge to reinvestigate the attacks, public trust remains fragile. Justice must be more than symbolic—it must be independent, transparent, and inclusive of those most affected.

Read the full piece and our renewed calls for actionhttps://srilankacampaign.org/six-years-since-the-easter-sunday-bombings-is-justice-still-elusive/

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07/04/2025

Watch here in Sinhala:

07/04/2025

This week, Sri Lanka’s Parliament will debate the Batalanda torture site, following Ranil Wickremesinghe’s interview with on Al Jazeera.But Batalanda was just one of many detention sites. Some were hidden in plain sight—like the torture chamber inside St. Sylvester’s College in Kandy.In this video, the International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP) shares the story of a man who survived that site and later testified before the Central Zone Commission on Disappearances, set up by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga.MCM Iqbal, secretary to the Commission, recounts what happened. Watch here in English:

06/04/2025

UPDATE: Mohamad Rusdi, detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act since 22 March 2025, has been released on bail following pressure from international groups. The PTA charges have been dropped, but he still faces Penal Code charges for pasting an anti-Israel sticker. Legal support continues.

Reform or Rhetoric? Sri Lanka’s New Government Faces Serious Human Rights Questions

When President Anura Kumara Dissanayake assumed office, he pledged a break from the past: an end to repression, the repeal of the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), and a commitment to justice and human rights.

Six months on, the reality tells a different story.

Our latest blog explores a series of deeply concerning incidents under the new administration:

* Mohamad Rusdi, a 20-year-old Muslim man, was arrested under the PTA for placing a Gaza solidarity sticker in a shopping centre. A peaceful political statement is being treated as terrorism.

* Muthuwadige Sathsara Nimesh, a 26-year-old Sinhalese man, died in police custody amid serious allegations of torture. The police claim he harmed himself — but rights groups and his family are demanding an independent inquiry.

* Manoharan Kajendroopan, a Tamil father of two, was detained for a Facebook post honouring a Tamil rebel figure during Maaveerar Naal — a personal act of remembrance criminalised.

Despite campaign commitments, the PTA remains in force and continues to be used to suppress dissent. Meanwhile, custodial deaths and police impunity persist.

SLC are urging the government to act — not merely speak — in the name of reform.

This is a pivotal test for President Dissanayake’s administration. Will it deliver the systemic change so urgently needed, or reinforce a legacy of authoritarianism under a new name?

Sri Lanka’s new administration, led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, came to power pledging a break from the past – including promises to reform draconian security laws and uphold human rights. Yet a series of chilling incidents in late 2024 and early 2025 suggest a troubling continuity in...

27/03/2025

Read our press release here! The UK’s sanctions are a vital step but more must follow. Justice demands sustained international action

The Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice (SLC) welcomes the UK Government’s announcement of targeted sanctions against senior Sri Lankan military officials involved in serious human rights violations during the final stages of the civil war. This action marks a significant milestone in the l.....

26/03/2025

The fight for justice isn’t over! The UK’s latest sanctions on Sri Lankan military figures are a step in the right direction, but much more needs to be done to ensure true accountability.

Our Campaign Director spoke to about what these sanctions mean, the broader struggle against impunity, and why sustained international pressure is crucial for justice.

Read the full interview here:

Photo courtesy of Open Global Rights The UK government has announced sanctions on three top former war time military commanders and a former LTTE commander accused of serious human rights violations and abuses such as extra judicial killings, torture and sexual violence. The sanctions aim to seek ac...

25/03/2025

After years of tireless campaigning, a significant step forward has been taken with the UK government announcing sanctions on key Sri Lankan perpetrators.

This is a monumental moment for those who have sought justice for the victims of the civil war and its aftermath.

The individuals sanctioned include:
* former Head of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces, Shavendra Silva
* former Navy Commander, Wasantha Karannagoda
* former Commander of the Sri Lankan Army, Jagath Jayasuriya
* former military commander of the terrorist group, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan. Also known as Karuna Amman, he subsequently created and led the paramilitary Karuna Group, which worked on behalf of the Sri Lankan Army.

This action underscores the importance of Magnitsky sanctions in holding those responsible for violations accountable, regardless of their position or power.

It is a moment of recognition for the hard work and dedication of advocates, organisations, and individuals pushing for human rights and accountability for years.

You can read more about the sanctions and the government’s stance https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-sanctions-for-human-rights-violations-and-abuses-during-the-sri-lankan-civil-war?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=govuk-notifications-topic&utm_source=6671d68f-e2b8-462a-a07a-86ad430f6c69&utm_content=immediately

Check out our previous blog for Magnitsky Sanctions Month https://srilankacampaign.org/magnitsky-month-targeted-sanctions-as-a-tool-for-justice-in-sri-lanka/

Together, we continue to move forward in our pursuit of justice.

The UK has today sanctioned figures responsible for serious human rights violations and abuses during the civil war in Sri Lanka.

05/09/2024

Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) has too often been dismissed as an "inevitable by-product of war," minimising its severity as a human rights violation and ongoing crime. In Sri Lanka, SGBV was used strategically during the civil war and continues to be a pervasive issue post-conflict. Despite ratifying the UN CEDAW in 1981, the Sri Lankan government has largely ignored critical recommendations, especially those safeguarding women’s rights and access to justice.

Even today, military presence in the Northern and Eastern provinces exacerbates the problem, particularly for Tamil women, war widows, and displaced women. The economic crisis and systemic failures in the justice system have allowed SGBV to persist, with less than 10% of cases leading to prosecution.

Read our NEW BLOG advocating gender transformative justice—where women’s voices are central, and the root causes of SGBV are addressed. This involves recognising gendered experiences, ensuring equitable access to resources, and promoting women’s representation in justice and political processes. The new Women’s Empowerment Act in Sri Lanka is a step in the right direction, but we must ensure it leads to real, actionable change.



https://srilankacampaign.org/silenced-in-sri-lanka-the-struggle-against-sexual-and-gender-based-violence/