This year, the Sri Lankan government marks Mullivaikkal Remembrance Day under growing international scrutiny and with renewed promises of reform. Yet the central reality remains unchanged: seventeen years on, there has still been no credible accountability for the mass atrocities committed during the final stages of the war.
Every May, survivors gather in cemeteries, on beaches, at universities and in their homes to light candles for the dead and the disappeared. They do so knowing that remembrance of Tamil victims has long been treated with suspicion – restricted, criminalised and too often portrayed as extremism.
Seventeen years after the massacres at Mullivaikkal, the struggle for truth and justice in Sri Lanka has entered a new phase. Though Tamil memorial events now face fewer overt disruptions than in previous years, the deeper architecture of militarisation and impunity remains.
Remembrance is Tolerated but Not Protected:
Tens of thousands of civilians were killed in 2009 as government forces shelled densely populated areas, including hospitals and so-called “No Fire Zones”. Thousands more disappeared after surrendering or being detained. Families of the disappeared are still searching for answers. Some have spent nearly two decades protesting continuously across the North-East and every May remembrance events are held across Sri Lanka and worldwide.
In 2025, Mullivaikkal remembrance events were largely permitted to proceed without the widespread crackdowns seen in earlier years in Sri Lanka. However, there were still reports of police disrupting at least one commemorative event in the eastern part of the country and security forces were present at multiple gatherings.
This relative easing of restrictions has not been accompanied by any meaningful shift in the state’s political position on remembrance itself. Prior to the 2025 commemorations, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s government publicly rejected Tamil claims of genocide as a “false narrative”, continuing the state’s refusal to acknowledge the scale and nature of wartime atrocities. On 19 May, the President also attended the state “War Heroes’ Day” commemorations as chief guest, paying tribute in his speech to the Sri Lankan armed forces, while the Ministry of Defence announced new promotions. The result is a dual narrative: Tamil mourning is tolerated but not affirmed, while state militarism continues to be formally honoured.
Lack of Justice and Ongoing Militarisation in 2026:
Successive Sri Lankan governments have responded to demands for accountability with commissions, consultations and repeated promises that have failed to deliver justice.
The current government came to power pledging democratic reform and the repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), long criticised by the UN and rights groups for enabling arbitrary detention, torture and repression. However, concerns remain over the proposed replacement legislation published in December 2025, the Protection of the State from Terrorism Act (PSTA). This draft law retains broad definitions of terrorism that can be used to criminalise protest, dissent and political expression. It also expands surveillance powers and can allow authorities to target activists and minority communities under the guise of national security. The UN human rights office in its 2025 report on Sri Lanka noted that “the structural conditions that led to past violations persist.” Human rights defenders in the North-East repeatedly report ongoing intimidation by police and intelligence officers, including warnings that their activism and documentation work could lead to terrorism-related accusations.
Militarisation in Sri Lanka today is measured not only by the number of soldiers on the streets but by the continued reliance on the military to perform roles that should fall under civilian institutions. As an analysis earlier this year in The Diplomat argues, successive governments have failed to rebuild civilian administrative capacity after the war, leaving the military to fill roles in disaster response, logistics, public administration and governance.
In the North-East, this blurring of civilian and military authority remains especially pronounced. Security forces’ commanders regularly engage with governors and district officials, reinforcing the military’s ongoing role in regional governance. In April 2026, the newly appointed Commander of Security Forces Jaffna met with senior civil administrators shortly after assuming office, underlining the military’s continuing institutional influence.
The continued placement of senior military figures, including individuals with wartime service histories, in influential positions across the North and East further deepens concerns about surveillance, intimidation and the persistence of the security- state apparatus in Tamil civilian spaces. Memorial events, protests by families of the disappeared and human rights documentation efforts continue to take place under military observation.
The International Community Must Act:
The creation and renewal of the UN’s Sri Lanka Accountability Project (OSLAP) marked an important shift in international engagement with Sri Lanka. By supporting independent evidence collection and preservation, members of the UN Human Rights Council acknowledged that domestic accountability mechanisms have repeatedly failed survivors and victims’ families.
But evidence gathering alone is not enough.
The international community, particularly the UK, EU, Canada and members of the UN Human Rights Council, must now match documentation efforts with meaningful political action. Seventeen years after Mullivaikkal, there remains no credible pathway to accountability inside Sri Lanka, while many individuals accused of overseeing wartime atrocities continue to hold power and influence.
Governments that have supported OSLAP cannot allow it to become another mechanism that documents abuses without consequences. They should:
– Expand targeted sanctions against individuals credibly accused of war crimes and serious human rights violations;
– Support international accountability mechanisms and universal jurisdiction cases linked to atrocities committed during the final stages of the war;
-Press the Sri Lankan government to ensure independent, transparent investigations into mass graves and disappearances;
-Increase support for families of the disappeared, victim-led documentation initiatives and grassroots advocacy efforts in the North-East;
-Oppose abusive counterterror legislation that enables surveillance, arbitrary detention and the repression of dissent;
-Publicly defend the right to remembrance, protest and memorialisation in Sri Lanka.
Governments that claim to support human rights cannot continue behaving towards Sri Lanka as if its government has overseen national reconciliation, while survivors still await true accountability and justice.
We Remember Because We Refuse Silence:
Mullivaikkal is not only about the past. It is about the ongoing consequences of denied justice.
Seventeen years on, families are still searching for the disappeared. Survivors are still demanding answers. Memorialisation is still treated with suspicion. And those accused of overseeing atrocities continue to enjoy protection and power.
This May, candles will once again be lit and each flame is an act of remembrance but also of refusal – a refusal to allow mass atrocity to disappear into silence.
The core demands from each Mullivaikkal Remembrance Day have not changed.
Mullivaikkal 2026: There is No ‘Reform’ Without Justice
This year, the Sri Lankan government marks Mullivaikkal Remembrance Day under growing international scrutiny and with renewed promises of reform. Yet the central reality remains unchanged: seventeen years on, there has still been no credible accountability for the mass atrocities committed during the final stages of the war.
Every May, survivors gather in cemeteries, on beaches, at universities and in their homes to light candles for the dead and the disappeared. They do so knowing that remembrance of Tamil victims has long been treated with suspicion – restricted, criminalised and too often portrayed as extremism.
Seventeen years after the massacres at Mullivaikkal, the struggle for truth and justice in Sri Lanka has entered a new phase. Though Tamil memorial events now face fewer overt disruptions than in previous years, the deeper architecture of militarisation and impunity remains.
Remembrance is Tolerated but Not Protected:
Tens of thousands of civilians were killed in 2009 as government forces shelled densely populated areas, including hospitals and so-called “No Fire Zones”. Thousands more disappeared after surrendering or being detained. Families of the disappeared are still searching for answers. Some have spent nearly two decades protesting continuously across the North-East and every May remembrance events are held across Sri Lanka and worldwide.
In 2025, Mullivaikkal remembrance events were largely permitted to proceed without the widespread crackdowns seen in earlier years in Sri Lanka. However, there were still reports of police disrupting at least one commemorative event in the eastern part of the country and security forces were present at multiple gatherings.
This relative easing of restrictions has not been accompanied by any meaningful shift in the state’s political position on remembrance itself. Prior to the 2025 commemorations, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s government publicly rejected Tamil claims of genocide as a “false narrative”, continuing the state’s refusal to acknowledge the scale and nature of wartime atrocities. On 19 May, the President also attended the state “War Heroes’ Day” commemorations as chief guest, paying tribute in his speech to the Sri Lankan armed forces, while the Ministry of Defence announced new promotions. The result is a dual narrative: Tamil mourning is tolerated but not affirmed, while state militarism continues to be formally honoured.
Lack of Justice and Ongoing Militarisation in 2026:
Successive Sri Lankan governments have responded to demands for accountability with commissions, consultations and repeated promises that have failed to deliver justice.
The current government came to power pledging democratic reform and the repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), long criticised by the UN and rights groups for enabling arbitrary detention, torture and repression. However, concerns remain over the proposed replacement legislation published in December 2025, the Protection of the State from Terrorism Act (PSTA). This draft law retains broad definitions of terrorism that can be used to criminalise protest, dissent and political expression. It also expands surveillance powers and can allow authorities to target activists and minority communities under the guise of national security. The UN human rights office in its 2025 report on Sri Lanka noted that “the structural conditions that led to past violations persist.” Human rights defenders in the North-East repeatedly report ongoing intimidation by police and intelligence officers, including warnings that their activism and documentation work could lead to terrorism-related accusations.
Militarisation in Sri Lanka today is measured not only by the number of soldiers on the streets but by the continued reliance on the military to perform roles that should fall under civilian institutions. As an analysis earlier this year in The Diplomat argues, successive governments have failed to rebuild civilian administrative capacity after the war, leaving the military to fill roles in disaster response, logistics, public administration and governance.
In the North-East, this blurring of civilian and military authority remains especially pronounced. Security forces’ commanders regularly engage with governors and district officials, reinforcing the military’s ongoing role in regional governance. In April 2026, the newly appointed Commander of Security Forces Jaffna met with senior civil administrators shortly after assuming office, underlining the military’s continuing institutional influence.
The continued placement of senior military figures, including individuals with wartime service histories, in influential positions across the North and East further deepens concerns about surveillance, intimidation and the persistence of the security- state apparatus in Tamil civilian spaces. Memorial events, protests by families of the disappeared and human rights documentation efforts continue to take place under military observation.
The International Community Must Act:
The creation and renewal of the UN’s Sri Lanka Accountability Project (OSLAP) marked an important shift in international engagement with Sri Lanka. By supporting independent evidence collection and preservation, members of the UN Human Rights Council acknowledged that domestic accountability mechanisms have repeatedly failed survivors and victims’ families.
But evidence gathering alone is not enough.
The international community, particularly the UK, EU, Canada and members of the UN Human Rights Council, must now match documentation efforts with meaningful political action. Seventeen years after Mullivaikkal, there remains no credible pathway to accountability inside Sri Lanka, while many individuals accused of overseeing wartime atrocities continue to hold power and influence.
Governments that have supported OSLAP cannot allow it to become another mechanism that documents abuses without consequences. They should:
Governments that claim to support human rights cannot continue behaving towards Sri Lanka as if its government has overseen national reconciliation, while survivors still await true accountability and justice.
We Remember Because We Refuse Silence:
Mullivaikkal is not only about the past. It is about the ongoing consequences of denied justice.
Seventeen years on, families are still searching for the disappeared. Survivors are still demanding answers. Memorialisation is still treated with suspicion. And those accused of overseeing atrocities continue to enjoy protection and power.
This May, candles will once again be lit and each flame is an act of remembrance but also of refusal – a refusal to allow mass atrocity to disappear into silence.
The core demands from each Mullivaikkal Remembrance Day have not changed.
Truth.
Accountability.
Justice.
Now.
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