As the United Kingdom imposed targeted sanctions on senior Sri Lankan military officials for their role in war crimes, a senior UK Foreign Office official visited Colombo for high-level meetings with government representatives and civil society groups.
The British High Commission in Sri Lanka confirmed the visit of Ben Mellor, Director at the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), in a post on social media earlier today.
“This week we welcomed back to #SriLanka @FCDOGovUK Director Ben Mellor,” the High Commission tweeted. “A positive set of meetings with government, including Deputy Minister for National Integration @mulaffermuneer, politicians, civil society and High Commission staff.”
This week we welcomed back to #SriLanka @FCDOGovUK Director Ben Mellor. A positive set of meetings with government, including Deputy Minister for National Integration @mulaffermuneer, politicians, civil society and High Commission staff. pic.twitter.com/hw4FzclpRY
— UK in Sri Lanka 🇬🇧🇱🇰 (@UKinSriLanka) March 28, 2025
The visit follows the UK’s announcement of sanctions on March 24, targeting four Sri Lankan individuals, including senior military commanders Shavendra Silva, Jagath Jayasuriya, Wasantha Karannagoda, and former paramilitary leader Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan (Karuna Amman). All four are implicated in gross human rights violations committed during the final stages of the armed conflict, in what Tamil civil society and international experts have increasingly recognised as a genocide.
The sanctions – which include travel bans and asset freezes – mark one of the UK’s most significant unilateral moves to date on Sri Lanka’s atrocities. Human rights organisations and Tamil survivor groups welcomed the measures, describing them as a long-overdue step towards justice. However, the move has triggered fierce backlash from the Sri Lankan political establishment, with figures from across party lines – including former president and accused war criminal Mahinda Rajapaksa – defending the sanctioned individuals.
Against this backdrop, Mellor met with Deputy Minister for National Integration Muneer Mulaffer, a first time parliamentarian and minister under the National People’s Power (NPP) government, as well as other political and civil society actors, including former parliamentarian M A Sumanthiran.
The High Commission did not specify whether the recent sanctions were discussed in these meetings.
