Sri Lanka

Beginning in 1983, the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) fought each other in an increasingly brutal civil war across the island. The twenty-five year old war is believed to have resulted in at least 70,000 deaths. Despite the government’s victory over the LTTE, it has yet to address the long-standing discrimination of the Tamil minority and engage in a comprehensive effort to reach a peaceful settlement and ensure the protection of all Sri Lankan civilians regardless of ethnic identity.

In late 2008, after the official collapse of an already violated ceasefire, the government had forced the LTTE back into a small area of the northeast of the country, near the towns of Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu. After a months-long siege of a LTTE-controlled territory, featuring widespread violence against civilians, the government declared the war over in May 2009, citing the official surrender of the LTTE. Despite this victory, the government continues to detain more than 105,000 Tamil civilians in displaced persons camps in the northern Vavuniya region. There has also been little progress on bridging the deep divides which still exist in the country.

Even though the last offensive was marked by violence against civilians primarily attributed to the government, the LTTE was also responsible for repeated instances of violence against civilians. This included the forced recruitment of civilians and recruitment of child soldiers as well as the widespread use of suicide bombings against civilian infrastructure throughout Sri Lanka.