Sri Lanka

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Trincomalee Under Siege
Land Grabs Target the Tamil Homeland in Sri Lanka
As the 57th session of the UNHRC addresses the human rights situation in Sri Lanka, a new report from the Oakland Institute, Trincomalee Under Siege: Land Grabs Target the Tamil Homeland in Sri Lanka uncovers the rapidly escalating colonization of Tamil and Muslim lands in Trincomalee District.
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Endless War
The Destroyed Land, Life, and Identity of the Tamil People in Sri Lanka
Endless War: The Destroyed Land, Life, and Identity of the Tamil People in Sri Lanka, brings forth shocking new evidence on the extent of the continued persecution of the minority Tamil population in the North and East of the country. Under the guise of “development projects,” government driven Sinhalese colonization is growing within Tamil areas with the intent to change demographics and deny Tamil communities access to their land.
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Driving Dispossession
The Global Push to “Unlock the Economic Potential of Land”
Driving Dispossession: The Global Push to “Unlock the Economic Potential of Land,” sounds the alarm on the unprecedented wave of privatization of natural resources that is underway around the world. Through six case studies — Ukraine, Zambia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka, and Brazil — the report details the myriad ways by which governments — willingly or under the pressure of financial institutions and Western donor agencies — are putting more land into so-called “productive use” in the name of development.
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Justice Denied
A Reality Check on Resettlement, Demilitarization, and Reconciliation in Sri Lanka
Justice Denied exposes the many issues that continue to plague land release and resettlement in the country, and the failure of the Sri Lankan government to fulfill its international commitments to transitional justice. The Sri Lankan military continues to occupy large quantities of land; land released by the government is often of poor quality, hindering the ability of many to rebuild their livelihoods; there is a vast and unmet need for housing and infrastructure for those displaced during the civil war; and ever-changing timelines for resettlement have bred mistrust in the government.
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Waiting to Return Home
Continued Plight of the IDPs in Post-War Sri Lanka
Threatened and despaired, a group of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Sri Lanka petitioned the Oakland Institute to help them return home. This inspired the Institute’s latest report, Waiting to Return Home: Continued Plight of the IDPs in Post-War Sri Lanka. Backed by extensive field research and interviews, the report highlights a harsh reality—amid United Nations resolutions, task forces, and numerous promises made by the Sirisena administration, tens of thousands of IDPs in Sri Lanka still await resettlement, seven years after the end of the civil war.
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La Larga Sombra de la Guerra
Lucha por Justicia en el Sri Lanka Post-Conflicto
La sangrienta guerra civil que asoló Sri Lanka durante 26 años terminó oficialmente en 2009 con la derrota de la minoría de los separatistas tamiles, encabezados por los Tigres de Liberación del Eelam Tamil (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, LTTE). El conflicto, en el que el LTTE se opuso al gobierno liderado por la mayoría cingalesa budista, mató alrededor de 200.000 personas, provocando el desplazamiento de más de un millón de personas y la destrucción de infraestructuras en todo el país, y arruinó las vidas de la población de las provincias del Norte y del Este.
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L'ombre de la guerre: lutte pour la justice dans le Sri Lanka de l'après-guerre
La guerre civile sanglante, qui a ravagé le Sri Lanka pendant 26 ans, s’est officiellement terminée en 2009 avec la défaite de la minorité séparatiste Tamoule menée par les Tigres de Libération de l’Îlam Tamoul (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, LTTE). Le conflit qui opposa le LTTE au gouvernement de majorité cingalaise bouddhiste fit environ 200 000 victimes, provoqua le déplacement de plus d’un million de personnes, détruisit les infrastructures du pays et ruina la vie des populations des provinces du Nord et de l’Est.
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The Long Shadow of War
The Struggle for Justice in Postwar Sri Lanka
The bloody civil war that ravaged Sri Lanka for 26 years officially ended in 2009 with the defeat of the minority Tamil separatists, led by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The conflict, in which the LTTE opposed the government led by the majority Sinhalese Buddhists, killed around 200,000, led to the displacement of more than a million people, destroyed infrastructure across the country, and took a heavy toll on the lives and livelihoods of the population of the Northern and Eastern Provinces.
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I Speak without Fear
Where Are Our Loved Ones Who Have Been Abducted, Arrested, and Disappeared?
In December 2014, the Oakland Institute carried out research and fieldwork in Sri Lanka in order to understand and document the state of land conflicts and displacement amid accusations of land grabs experienced by the Tamils and other minorities at the hands of the Sri Lankan army and the government. While investigating the land grabs, the research team witnessed discrimination, harassment by the police, and horrors of the civil war that continue to torment minority groups, especially the Tamils, even today.

Our Take

Our Take
Land Privatization: Why Sri Lanka Must Reject the MCC Compact
A recent report by the Oakland Institute examines the MCC compact with Sri Lanka and raises alarm over the irreversible consequences of embarking on land privatization – when most of the land is public in the country.
Our Take
Remembrance and Resilience: The Ongoing Plight of Sri Lanka's Survivors
May 18th is the Mullivaikkal Day for Tamils in Sri Lanka – a day of mourning and remembrance for the more than 40,000 civilians brutally killed in the final stages of the country’s civil war nine years ago.
Our Take
Justice Denied: Government and International Community Fail to Bring Justice to Sri Lanka
For the past two months, protests have erupted across Sri Lanka’s North and East. Communities have launched rolling hunger strikes, insisting that their land be returned. Relatives of the missing have held sit-ins, demanding answers about their loved ones fates and whereabouts. And in numerous cities and towns people have marched, calling for the creation of a court with international judges to prosecute war crimes committed during the civil war.
Our Take
This Human Rights Day, Stand Up for Human Rights in Sri Lanka
December 10, 2016. This International Human Rights Day – themed “Stand up for someone’s rights” – there’s a lot to stand up for. In the weeks since Trump won the US Presidential election, hate crimes against Muslims, people of color, and immigrants have spiked; white nationalists have been appointed to top positions in the White House; and many of Trump’s election pledges – from deporting undocumented persons, to enacting a ban on the entry to Muslims into America – have millions fearing for their basic rights and freedoms. Credit: Donald Trump photo: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0.

Press Releases & Public Statements

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Press Release
Escalating Land Grabs Threaten Tamils & Muslims in Sri Lanka
As the 57th session of the UNHRC addresses the human rights situation in Sri Lanka, a new report from the Oakland Institute, Trincomalee Under Siege: Land Grabs Target the Tamil Homeland in Sri Lanka uncovers the rapidly escalating colonization of Tamil and Muslim lands in Trincomalee District. While Sinhalese colonization and settlements have taken place in Sri Lanka under the guise of development since independence, this new research exposes an intensification since the end of the civil war in 2009 and details the different methods deployed by successive governments and the military to further disempower Tamil and Muslim communities.
Public Statement
Sri Lanka – The Long March for Justice
Swift international action is needed to pressure the Sri Lankan government to take steps towards demilitarization and the return of stolen land in the North and East of the country
Press Release
Sri Lanka: Time for War Criminals to Face Justice
With the fall of the Rajapaksa dynasty, both Rajapaksa brothers and other perpetrators of war crimes and human rights abuses must be brought to justice.
Police warning communities protesting in front of an army camp
Public Statement
Response to August 27, 2021 Statement from Sri Lankan Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Honorable Michele Bachelet UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Geneva Re: Oakland Institute’s response to the August 27, 2021 statement from the Sri Lankan Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the progress made on peace and reconciliation Honorable Michele Bachelet, On August 27, 2021, the Sri Lankan Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement on the progress made by the government of Sri Lanka on peace and reconciliation in advance of the forthcoming UN Human Rights Council session.

Audio & Video

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Webinar Video — A Reckoning: Holding Perpetrators Accountable in Sri Lanka
On August 9, 2022 one month after tens of thousands of citizens stormed the palace of the Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who is now on the run after fleeing the country, The Oakland Institute and the Politics of Sexual Violence Initiative at the City College of New York held a timely webinar focused on the struggle for justice in Sri Lanka.
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Sri Lanka: Statement at the 46th Regular Session of the UNHRC
“A government-led effort to geographically fragment the North and East is accompanied by a strategy to systematically erase Tamil culture and history through the establishment of Sinhalese settlements, Buddhist temples, archaeological reservations, and more.” During the 46th session of the UNHRC, the Oakland Institute in partnership with the Association Bharathi Centre Culturel Franco-Tamoul delivered a statement urging the HRC Resolution on Sri Lanka to emphasize the immediate end of land grabbing and planned settlements; ensure immediate demilitarization of the North and East; appoint a Spec
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New Report Exposes Sinhalisation and Colonization of North and East in Sri Lanka
As the 46th session of the UNHRC assesses the new resolution on Sri Lanka, a new report from the Oakland Institute, Endless War: The Destroyed Land, Life, and Identity of the Tamils in Sri Lanka, brings forth shocking new evidence on the extent of the continued persecution of the minority Tamil population in the North and East of the country. The report is based on fieldwork conducted in 2020 and 2021 and the Oakland Institute's continued engagement with human rights activists, journalists, politicians, and civil society representatives.
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We Cannot be Silenced, We Cannot Forget.
While the brutal civil war in Sri Lanka ended over a decade ago, the process of reconciliation and justice for the victims and their families remains elusive. The Sri Lankan government has continually failed to fulfill its international commitments to transitional justice.

News Articles

The New Indian Express
What does Sri Lankan President's promise to return state-occupied land mean for the Tamils?
As Sri Lankans headed to the polls on Thursday to make a crucial decision about cementing the 'new era of politics' ushered in by President Anura Kumara Dissana
Tamil Guardian
Trincomalee under siege - New report finds rapidly escalating
A new report by the Oakland Institute looking at Trincomalee, a city once dubbed the capital of Tamil Eelam, has found that over the last 12 months, there has been rapidly escalating colonization of the Tamil homeland.
Tamil Guardian
Trincomalee under siege - New report finds rapidly escalating Buddhisation of homeland
A new report by the Oakland Institute looking at Trincomalee, a city once dubbed the capital of Tamil Eelam, has found that over the last 12 months, there has been rapidly escalating colonization of the Tamil homeland.
Samakalam
குச்சவெளி பிரதேசத்தில் மட்டும் 26 விகாரைகள்; 50% க்கும் அதிகமான காணி அபகரிப்பு : ஓக்லாண்ட் நிலைய அறிக்கை
திருகோணமலை மாவட்டத்தில் அரசு மற்றும் அதன் திணைக்களங்கள் மிக மோசமான நில அபகரிப்பில் கடந்த சில வருடங்களில் ஈடுபட்டுள்ளதாக நில ஆக்கிரமிப்பு தொடர்பில் பல்வேறு நாடுகளிலும் ஆய்வு நடத்திவரும் கலிஃபோர்னியாவை அடிப்படையாக கொண்ட ஓக்லாண்ட் நிலையம் அதிர்ச்சியளிக்கும் ஆய்வு அறிக்கை ஒன்றை வெளியிட்டுள்ளது.