For Immediate Release
April 3, 2024

Tamil Rights Group (TRG) welcomes the sanctions imposed by the UK on four Sri Lankan war criminals and wholeheartedly commends the UK Government for taking this resolute action against individuals responsible for grave human rights violations and atrocity crimes perpetrated against Eelam Tamils in Sri Lanka.

Background

These sanctions imposed by UK under the Magnitsky framework to include bans on travel and asset freezes, have been implemented against Shavendra Silva (former Chief of staff of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces), Wasantha Karannagoda (former Commander of the Navy), Jagath Jayasuriya (former Commander of the Army) and Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan (also known as Karuna Amman, formerly of the LTTE and then Commander of a paramilitary group working for the Sri Lankan Army). The UK has imposed sanctions on these four individuals responsible for grave human rights violations and atrocities during the ethnic conflict, including extrajudicial killings, torture and/or perpetration of heinous sexual and gender-based crimes.

The UK Government’s principled stand sends a clear and unequivocal message to these criminals that people who perpetrate such egregious crimes against innocent Eelam Tamil civilians will be held accountable and that the entrenched impunity will not be tolerated.

The above sanctions imposed by UK strengthens the collective efforts globally to isolate perpetrators, complementing previous sanctions imposed by the US and Canada on Sri Lankan individuals, some of them political leaders at the highest levels of governments and others including senior commanders of the armed and security forces of Sri Lanka. In this context, it should be noted that Shavendra Silva and Wasantha Karannagoda have also been sanctioned previously by the US Government. The Canadian Government has brought in sanctions against former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his brother former President and Defense Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

The Rajapaksa’s and above-named people have all got the blood of innocent Eelam Tamils on their hands, committing the most egregious and unconscionable crimes under the guise of counter insurgency, driven by a Sinhala-Buddhist majoritarian mindset. There is now mounting evidence from credible sources that the crimes committed by these individuals and the successive Sri Lankan regimes amount to War Crimes, Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide. 

The UK Government’s Commitment to Foster Human Rights, Justice and Accountability      

The imposition of these sanctions by the UK Government, particularly under the leadership of Prime Minister Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer MP and Foreign Secretary Rt Hon David Lammy MP, reflects a firm commitment to uphold international human rights standards and values of human dignity, offering a beacon of hope to Eelam Tamils who have endured unimaginable sufferings at the hands of evil Sri Lankan regimes.

We extend our gratitude to the UK Government, FCDO policymakers, the Human Rights NGOs, and the Tamil diaspora organizations for their unwavering commitment to human rights advocacy. We also acknowledge the invaluable contributions of United Nations entities and international NGOs in collecting and assembling irrefutable evidence that has facilitated these accountability measures.

Call for Further Action from the International Community

Even 16 years past the time when the ethnic conflict was brought to a brutal end through a bloodbath at the “Mullivaikkal Massacre” in 2009, successive Sri Lankan Governments have failed to initiate any credible measures to bring justice and accountability for the atrocity crimes committed against Eelam Tamils.

• We urge other countries worldwide to also initiate accountability measures, joining UK, US and Canada as leaders in upholding human rights and the fundamental values of justice, by imposing sanctions targeting all individuals in Sri Lanka, against whom credible evidence exists for alleged War Crimes, Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide.

• Given that Sri Lanka is unwilling to engage in genuine transitional justice processes and its complete failure to hold perpetrators of gross human rights violations and atrocity crimes to account, we reiterate the critical need for action through international courts of law to ensure that justice is served. In this context, we urge the international community, including the UK and other fair-minded countries to critically explore and implement actions necessary for: i) referring Sri Lanka to the ICC (International Criminal Court) and ii) instituting proceedings at the ICJ (International Court of Justice) for Sri Lanka’s violation of the Conventions on Torture and Genocide.

• We further urge the UK Government and other Member States of UNHRC to work in conjunction with the Sri Lanka Core Group led by UK, to engage in bringing a successful resolution at the September 2025/ 60^th session of UNHRC to extend the mandate for the OHCHR – Sri Lanka Accountability Project (O-SLAP). This resolution should include provisions to ensure that the mandate of O-SLAP for the invaluable evidence collection process is continued and further enhanced to the level of an Independent Investigative Mechanism to investigate the most serious international crimes and violations of international law and prepare files for criminal prosecution.

About Tamil Rights Group

We are a global human rights organization headquartered in Canada with a chapter in UK dedicated to advocating for the human Rights of Eelam Tamils. Our core mission is to relentlessly pursue justice and accountability for Eelam Tamils, including through legal avenues under international law and universal jurisdiction.

In line with this objective, TRG has submitted a major Article 15 Communications to the ICC. We are actively engaging in dialogue with ICC to seek a preliminary examination into crimes of deportation and persecution committed against Eelam Tamils in the territories of states parties.    

Furthermore, during the Canadian sanctions process on Sri Lankan individuals, TRG actively collaborated with officials and was invited to present as a witness before the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development in deliberations associated with Canada’s sanctions regime.

Navaratnam Srinarayanathas, President, TRG

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