by Maison du Tamil Eelam, Paris, June 17, 2025
Maison du Tamil Eelam Mass Graves of Silence June 17 2025
Press release
Sri Lanka: Mass Graves of Silence
Since gaining independence, Sri Lanka has been the scene of serious, systematic
human rights violations, particularly targeting a segment of its population. These
abuses have left deep and lasting scars, particularly in Tamil regions.
Among the most notable crimes are enforced disappearances. In several Tamil areas,
mass graves have been unearthed, revealing the extent of past violence. Over the past
two decades, 23 such sites have been identified. Yet, numerous investigations have
been interrupted or deliberately obstructed, often without clear justification, fuelling a
climate of impunity.
The announcement on June 4, 2025, of the discovery of a new mass grave in the
Chemmani region has rekindled the pain of the past and rekindled calls for truth and
justice. The Chemmani Discovery
As early as 1998, a Sri Lankan soldier convicted of rape and murder revealed that
hundreds of people who had disappeared in the Jaffna peninsula—after its recapture by
government forces in 1995 and 1996—had been executed and then buried in mass
graves near Chemmani. At the time, it was estimated that 300 to 400 bodies had been
buried there.
In June 2025, excavations at the Chemmani-Sindubathi site in Jaffna’s Nallur Division
unearthed the remains of 18 people, including three children and a baby under one
year old. These discoveries reinforce the urgent call for independent international
monitoring to investigate the mass graves scattered across the island.
But Chemmani is sadly not an isolated case. The recent discoveries in Kokuthoduvai,
as well as those earlier in Mannar, add to an already alarming list. More graves could
yet be unearthed in Tamil regions, where the scars of the conflict remain deeply
buried—in the earth as well as in memories.
“We are walking on land littered with human remains, in a country ranked by
the UN as the second largest country in the world for unsolved enforced
disappearances,” said a human rights activist following the release of a report
based on an in-depth investigation into Sri Lanka’s mass graves.
“We belong to a humanity that honors its dead and treats their remains with
dignity. Yet here, thousands of forgotten bodies are left in unmarked graves,”
said Sri Lankan human rights activist Brito Fernando”
The silence surrounding these graves was highlighted in the report “Mass Graves
and Failed Exhumations in Sri Lanka – June 2023,” written by four
organizations: the Center for Human Rights and Development (CHRD), Families
of the Disappeared (FOD), the International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP),
and Journalists for Democracy in Sri Lanka (JDS).
Over the past 32 years, marked by youth uprisings in the south and communal violence
in the north and east, 23 mass graves have been discovered across the country. Among
the most high-profile are those in Chemmani, Mannar, Mullaitivu, Matale,
Sooriyakanda, and Hokandara.
“Sri Lanka, once known for its Ceylon tea and cricket, is now infamous as the
second-largest country in the world for enforced disappearances,” lamented Brito
Fernando.
After more than three decades of struggle, the families of the disappeared are still
waiting for the creation of a truly credible institution to honor the memory of
their loved ones. When the Office of Missing Persons (OMP) was created, these
mothers, despite their mistrust, had placed their hopes in this body. Sadly, they
all ended up losing faith in it.
The Comptroller General recently revealed that the OMP had recorded nearly
38,000 reports of disappearances, but that only 21,000 files had been officially
opened.
“Information concerning more than 17,000 missing persons remains unclear and
unfollowed,” denounced Brito Fernando.
The Tamil regions remain heavily militarized today, with hundreds of military camps
still active in the north and east of the country. This massive presence imposes
constant surveillance on the local population, severely restricting freedom of
expression and movement.
The discovery of mass graves continues. Mullivaaikal, in the northeast of the country,
was one of the last areas bombed by the Sri Lankan army in 2009. Tamils hastily
buried their dead there before surrendering. Even today, some areas around
Mullivaaikal remain off-limits. According to Bishop Joseph Rayappu of Mannar,
147,679 people are still missing there.
Appeal to the International Community
We demand that international observers be allowed to move freely in Tamil regions,
including areas still occupied by the Sri Lankan army. Unhindered access to these
territories is essential to ensure transparency, truth, and justice.
We call on the European Union, France, parliamentarians, and human rights defenders
to:
• Support the opening of an independent international investigation.
• Facilitate the intervention of international forensic experts, independent of any
political influence.
• Provide clear and tangible answers to the families of the disappeared, who have been
searching for the truth for decades.
• Recognize the Sri Lankan government’s persistent impunity for these crimes.
Without justice, there can be neither lasting peace nor true reconciliation.
The international community must place human rights at the heart of its priorities and
ensure that the voice of the Tamil people is finally heard, respected, and considered.
Thiruchchoti.T
Political Officer
Tamil People’s Rights Protection Center
Letter to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights ahead of his visit to Sri Lanka
Maison du Tamil Eelam Letter to HCHR June 17 2025