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Families of the disappeared, activists and civil society across the North-East of Sri Lanka participated in demonstrations calling for international justice for the disappearances of their loved ones on the International Day for Victims of Enforced Disappearances.
In Jaffna, families of the disappeared marched from the Jaffna Kachcheri to the UN office carrying signs calling for “international justice for enforced disappearances.” The group handed over a memo to the UN office articulating their concerns based on the National Consultation Task Force’s interim report and the Office of Missing Persons (OMP).
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The OMP Act was signed into law this month after being passed by parliament. The OMP bill has been heavily criticized for the process by which it was formed, particularly regarding the lack of consultations with victims and their representatives. The National Consultation Task Force appointed by the Sri Lankan government released their interim report on the OMP on the same day the bill was put before parliament. The interim report was never considered by parliament as the debate which was expected to last two days was cut short to less than an hour.
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Protestors in Jaffna on Tuesday collected signatures for a campaign calling for international justice. Victims held signs asking for the whereabouts of those who surrendered with a white flag in 2009. They were lead by a truck holding a tree carrying pictures of those who have disappeared including Fathers Jim Brown and Joseph Francis.
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In Mannar families of the disappeared held signs asking the UN to become an equal partner in the transitional justice process to ensure justice for victims of enforced disappearances and asking for international justice. Victims held up pictures of their loved ones who had been disappeared.
Demonstrations were also held in Vavuniya, Kilinochchi and Batticaloa asking for “international justice for enforced disappearances.”
In Colombo, Northern Provincial Councillor Ananthy Sasitharan, whose husband was disappeared at the end of the war, participated in an event commemorating victims of enforced disappearances.
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The Report of the OHCHR’s Investigation on Sri Lanka released in September 2015 noted that Sri Lanka has one of the highest rates of cases of enforced disappearances in the world. A report by the ICRC last month noted that over 16,000 reported cases of disappearances remain unresolved in Sri Lanka.