Return to War: Human Rights under Siege

[...]

Sri Lanka is in the midst of a human rights crisis. The ceasefire between the
government and the armed secessionist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
exists only in name. Since mid-2006, when major military operations resumed,
civilians have paid a heavy price, both directly in the fighting and in the dramatic
increase in abductions, killings, and “disappearances.” The return to war has
brought serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law.
The LTTE is much to blame. The group, fighting for an independent Tamil state, has directly targeted civilians with remote-controlled landmines and suicide bombers, murdered perceived political opponents, and forcibly recruited ethnic Tamils into its forces, many of them children. In the areas of the country’s north and east under its control, the LTTE harshly represses the rights to free expression, association, and movement.

Human Rights Watch has long documented abuses by the LTTE, particularly the
LTTE’s systematic recruitment and use of children as soldiers, the targeted killings of political opponents, and its abusive fundraising tactics abroad. We will continue to report on LTTE abuses and press the LTTE to change its practices. This report, however, focuses primarily on abuses by the Sri Lankan government and allied armed groups, which have gotten decidedly worse over the past year. As the hostilities have increased, the government’s respect for international law has sharply declined, with it often appearing indifferent to the impact on civilians in the north and east.

This report does not aim to be a comprehensive account. Rather, it highlights with examples the main areas of concern, from violations of the laws of war and extrajudicial killings to unlawful restrictions on the media and nongovernmental
organizations and the widespread impunity enjoyed by state security forces. It uses victim and eyewitness accounts to document indiscriminate attacks on civilians, the forced return of internally displaced persons, and the spate of arrests and “disappearances” by government forces and allied groups. Case studies reveal how the rights to freedom of expression and association are increasingly under threat from a government intolerant of criticism and dissent.

[...]

Map of Sri Lanka

I. Summary

Abuses during armed conflict
Abductions and “disappearances”
Arbitrary arrests and detention
Karuna group abuses
Crackdown on dissent
Impunity reigns
An international role
Key recommendations
Methodology

II. Background

2002 ceasefire agreement
Return to hostilities

III. Internal Displacement

LTTE prevents civilian flight
Violence and intimidation by the Karuna group
Forced returns
High Security Zones

IV. Attack at the Kathiravelli School

V. Enforced Disappearances and Abductions

Jaffna
Colombo
Batticaloa, Trincomalee, and Ampara
Karuna group
The government’s response

VI. Tamil Evictions from Colombo

VII. Emergency Regulations

History of abuse
The Emergency (Miscellaneous Provisions and Powers) Regulations (EMPPR),
August 2005
Emergency Regulation (Prevention and Prohibition of Terrorism and Specified
Terrorist Activities) No. 7 of 2006

VIII. Freedom of Expression and Association

Attacks on media
Attacks on Uthayan and Sudar Oli
Blocking of Tamilnet website
Attacks on Sinhala media
Harassment by the Karuna group
Pressure on NGOs

IX. Karuna Group and State Complicity

X. Impunity for Rights Violations

Lack of witness protection
Non-implementation of the 17th Amendment
Inefficacy of the Human Rights Commission
Inadequacy of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry
The need for international leverage

XI. Recommendations

To the Government of Sri Lanka
To the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
To the Karuna Group (TMVP and its military wing)
To donor governments

Acknowledgements