Responds to UN Report on Conflict Related Sexual Violence in Sri Lanka

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
15th January, 2026

Canadian Tamil Congress Responds to UN Report on Conflict Related Sexual Violence in Sri Lanka
Toronto, Canada – The Canadian Tamil Congress (CTC) welcomes the United Nations report released on January 13, 2026, which concludes that sexual violence during Sri Lanka’s civil war was deliberate, widespread, and systemic, and amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. For the Tamil people, these findings reaffirm what has long been known and lived as a systematic campaign of genocide carried out with the intent to destroy Tamil communities through mass atrocities, sexual violence, enforced disappearances, and collective punishment.

Seventeen years after the war ended in May 2009, justice continues to be denied to survivors and families. The UN’s findings expose how sexual violence was institutionally enabled by state security forces and employed as a tool of repression, intimidation, and terror, targeting Tamil civilians. The report documents crimes against both women and men, most often committed in state run detention facilities, and highlights the enduring physical, psychological, and social harm suffered by survivors who continue to live under surveillance, fear, and stigma.

Despite repeated assurances of reform, Sri Lanka has failed to conduct credible investigations or prosecute those responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and acts that meet the legal threshold of genocide. Successive governments have concealed evidence, normalized abuse, and erected legal and institutional barriers that shield perpetrators and deny survivors access to justice. The current government’s promises of accountability have yet to translate into meaningful action, reinforcing the painful reality that justice delayed is justice denied.

The Canadian Tamil Congress calls on the Government of Sri Lanka to formally acknowledge these crimes, cooperate fully with international accountability mechanisms, and take immediate and concrete steps toward justice, reparations, and institutional reform. We also urge the international community, including the Government of Canada, to move beyond expressions of concern and take decisive action to ensure accountability for war crimes.

This UN report must not become yet another record of truth without consequences. The Canadian Tamil Congress remains unwavering in its commitment to truth, justice, and accountability for the Tamil people of Sri Lanka.

Canadian Tamil Congress
info@canadiantamilcongress.ca