Sri Lanka: Detention of Tamil civilians to continue indefinitely

It is now three months since the army overran the last stronghold of the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in northern Sri Lanka. Thousands of civilians were killed in the final battles as the military indiscriminately bombarded the LTTE’s positions with artillery and from the air. Many of those who survived were injured and suffering from malnutrition and dehydration. They were herded into “welfare villages” surrounded by barbed wire and heavily armed troops.

Amid widespread international criticism, the government initially promised to resettle 80 percent of the detainees within 180 days. However, that pledge was quickly dropped after Sri Lanka with the backing of Russia and China blocked a resolution in the UN Human Rights Council that called for greater access to the detention camps.

The arbitrary detention of hundreds of thousands of Tamils, including the elderly and the very young, underscores the communal character of the war. For all the official propaganda about “liberating” Tamil civilians, the latest comments by Defence Secretary Rajapakse in the Island on Monday make clear that the government and the military regard all Tamils as the enemy—members of the “terrorist Tigers”.

Read More