Tamil parliamentarians joined relatives of the disappeared in Jaffna this week, where a relay hunger strike calling for international justice has entered its fourth day.
The protest, organised by the Association of Relatives of the Forcibly Disappeared in the North and East, began on 25 September in Chemmani and will continue until 1 October. It demands justice for enforced disappearances and other grave violations committed against Tamils during the armed conflict, rejects domestic mechanisms of accountability, and insists on an international investigation into atrocities including the Chemmani mass graves.
Relatives of the disappeared from across the five districts of the North joined activists and members of the public in the hunger strike. The protest opened with the lighting of a perpetual flame and floral tributes at the Chemmani memorial, before demonstrators declared: “We reject Sri Lanka’s domestic mechanisms; we call for an independent international investigation into Tamil genocide, enforced disappearances, war crimes, and mass graves.”
On Sunday, TNPF leader Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam and ITAK MP S. Shritharan visited the hunger strike to express their support. Both have repeatedly called for an international accountability process, warning that Colombo’s so-called domestic mechanisms have been designed to shield perpetrators.
The demonstration in Jaffna follows years of campaigning by Tamil families of the disappeared, who have consistently demanded answers about the fate of their loved ones and urged the international community to act. Despite repeated promises by successive Sri Lankan governments, truth and accountability have not been delivered.
