Today we mark the 15th anniversary of the bloody end of Sri Lanka's 30-year civil war. The anniversary marks a historical juncture, amidst the humanitarian catastrophe caused by Israel's attack on Gaza.
The global response to Gaza is rooted in a strong will across many countries, peoples, and international organizations to uphold international norms for the protection of civilians and to see the conflict itself as more than just a problem. It shows that there is a strong will to address political injustice. security and terrorism issues. The international failure to translate this will into concrete action is surprising, but sadly not unprecedented.
Fifteen years after the end of the armed conflict, the current situation in Sri Lanka is such that what happens when mass atrocities go unaddressed and the political fault lines that caused them in the first place remain unresolved and are undoubtedly getting worse. It shows what happens. There are also striking and unavoidable similarities between what is still happening in Gaza and what happened in the Vanni region of northern Sri Lanka, where the war ended.
In the final months of the conflict, the Sri Lankan army, along with an estimated 5,000 Tamil Tiger fighters, surrounded and shelled 330,000 civilians, trapping them in an even narrower strip of land on the Vanni River. The attacks were brutal and unrestrained. It not only destroyed and defeated the LTTE, the militant organization of the Tamil Tigers, but also denounced international humanitarian law, the laws of war, and basic norms of civilian protection.
The Sri Lankan military bombed and shelled food distribution centers, hospitals, and civilian shelters, despite receiving these exact coordinates from the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross. They order civilians into ever-shrinking “no-fire” zones and attack them relentlessly with unguided artillery shells and multi-barreled rocket launchers, firing hundreds or even thousands of shells a day. did.
The final fire exclusion zone was only a few square kilometers, and the civilian death toll often reached and sometimes exceeded 1,000 people per day. Sri Lanka has also restricted supplies of food and essential medicines, including anesthetics, in a move intended to exacerbate and further worsen the humanitarian predicament.
A subsequent United Nations investigation concluded that the Sri Lankan military's operations amounted to “persecution of the Vanni people.” At least 40,000 people are reported to have died in the fighting, although some estimates based on demographic statistics suggest the death toll could be as high as 169,000.
At the end of the war, Sri Lankan authorities summarily executed the surrendered LTTE cadres and forced the remaining civilians into concentration camps surrounded by barbed wire for “processing.” The government released them only after significant international pressure.
Sri Lanka justified its operation as the only way to defeat “terrorism” and declared “victory” over the LTTE as a military model for other countries to emulate. China has consistently and vehemently rejected international demands for meaningful accountability and has also refused to implement political changes that would ensure true political equality for Tamils ​​and address the root causes of the conflict.
However, Sri Lanka's trajectory since 2009 shows that mass atrocities and the “victories” it has won come with repercussions for more than just the Tamils. After the war ended, Sri Lanka further intensified its oppression of the Tamil people.
The heavy artillery bombardment resulted in a suffocating, all-out de facto military occupation that continues to this day. Five of his seven regional commands for the Army are stationed in the northern and eastern provinces, with some districts having one soldier for every two civilians.
The military is also participating in the ongoing process of “Sinhalization'' and “Buddhism'' in the northeast. Military personnel, accompanied by Buddhist monks and Sinhalese settlers, violently occupy Tamil lands and places of worship in order to convert them to Sinhalese.
Finally, military personnel constantly monitor the social, cultural, and political activities of everyday Tamils, exerting a chilling effect on daily life and threatening even a return to “reconciliation” or “normalcy.” It makes it meaningless.
However, the Tamils ​​in the former conflict areas and now widely dispersed were not cowed into submission. They have worked to keep the fight for justice and accountability alive. As a result of these efforts, Sri Lanka has been placed at an international disadvantage due to repeated UN investigations and resolutions at the UN Human Rights Council. Sri Lankan officials also have to live with the ever-present risk of sanctions and possible prosecution for involvement in war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The war and its aftermath energized the Rajapaksa family and their unvarnished Sinhala Buddhist nationalism. From 2005 to 2022, they dominated the Sinhala constituency and were hailed as the leaders who ultimately defeated the Tamil separatists. But their reckless and nepotistic approach to economics and international politics led to financial ruin and increasing isolation.
Although Colombo tried to defuse the geopolitical tensions between India, China, and the West, it was unable to secure any tangible material gains or avoid an escalating debt crisis. In April 2022, Sri Lanka defaulted on its debt due to severe shortages of food, fuel and essential medicines. Riots and loud protests sparked by the economic collapse ousted the last President Rajapaksa, but Sri Lanka has yet to find a viable and stable post-Rajapaksa solution.
Meanwhile, the same militarization and repression that was carried out against the Tamils ​​is now being extended to other communities. Sri Lanka has used “high security zones” extensively in Tamil-speaking countries to confiscate land, displace civilians, and militarize public spaces. This same tactic is currently being deployed to limit protests in the capital, Colombo. Counter-terrorism measures normally used only against Tamils ​​are now being deployed against other dissidents and critics.
In the years following the end of the war, Muslim and Christian communities also became targets of violence and hatred. Buddhist monks led attacks on Muslim homes, businesses, and churches. They have led campaigns against halal meat and scarves. During the pandemic, Muslims who died as a result of COVID-19 were forcibly cremated for spurious “public health” reasons.
The impunity of Sri Lanka's security forces currently poses a threat to all communities on the island. Nothing illustrates this better than Cardinal Malcolm Ranjis' ongoing campaign for an international investigation into the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks that killed 250 people.
Cardinal Ranjith had previously been a staunch ally of Rajapaksa, opposing demands by the Tamils ​​for international accountability for crimes committed at the end of the war. He now believes, like many on the island, that elements of Sri Lanka's security state were aware of the horrifying Easter Sunday attack plot but took no action to build on the ultimately successful 2020 operation. Therefore, we are calling for an international investigation. Gotabaya Rajapaksa's presidential campaign.
The impact of the Sri Lankan genocide extended far beyond May 2009 and the Vanni massacre site. These are evident in the continued de facto occupation of the Tamil-speaking areas by the military, which drains the scarce resources of a virtually bankrupt state. These are evident in the growing political instability and repression in Colombo. They also blamed the security forces, which had become so powerful that they were accused by once-loyal cardinals of authorizing brutal terrorist attacks to secure electoral victories for their preferred candidates. it is obvious.
Israel's attack on Gaza has rightly attracted international attention, highlighting the need to uphold and uphold humanitarian law. Sri Lanka shows what happens when you allow a country that has committed mass atrocities to release Scottish people.
Remembering and effectively dealing with the Vanni atrocities concerns not only the past but also the future. The most immediate concerns the future of Sri Lanka. But it is also about rebuilding and ensuring the viability and integrity of international humanitarian law, and the possibility of securing genuine and lasting peace, security and prosperity.
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial stance of Al Jazeera.
