On June 25, 2025, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, visited Jaffna as part of his official mission to Sri Lanka. During his engagements, he visited the Chemmani mass graves - a known site linked to enforced disappearances of the Tamil people.
The site was first confirmed in 1998, following the testimony of former Army Corporal Somaratne Rajapakse. He was found guilty of the rape and murder of Krishanthi Kumaraswamy in 1996. During his trial, Rajapakse alleged that between 300 and 400 bodies of missing Tamil civilians had been buried in Chemmani. His testimony aligned with prior reports by Amnesty International, which had cited credible evidence of mass disappearances and clandestine burials. Rajapakse provided specific details, implicating several high-ranking Sri Lankan officers in abductions, torture, and killings. He described locations of torture chambers, named victims, and pointed to specific burial sites. His statement, made under tight security in open court, directly challenged the Sri Lankan state's narrative and exposed systemic impunity.
After years of silence, Chemmani returned to the spotlight in February 2025. Workers preparing a crematorium at the Ariyalai Sindhubath burial ground stumbled upon human remains. By June 8, 2025, the site was formally declared a mass grave, with excavations of the site that led to the discovery of 19 skeletal remains, 3 of which belong to infants. On June 29, 2025, the skeletal remains of a small child were also unearthed alongside a blue school bag featuring printed text of the Tamil and English alphabets. The discovery of children's remains-especially alongside items like schoolbags-reinforces long-standing claims that children were among those killed and buried at the site. The Tamil people have consistently urged for forensic investigation with international supervision, pointing to the Sri Lankan state's record of evidence suppression and obstruction of justice.
The total number of human remains unearthed at the Chemmani mass gravesite now stands at 33, with 22 of those already exhumed. Additionally, satellite imagery has also identified additional burial sites, which have now been prepared for future excavations.
During his visit, the High Commissioner called for "... thorough investigations, robust investigations, by independent experts with forensic expertise who can bring out the truth and close the pain and suffering of family members whose loved ones have disappeared." He later paid tribute to a vigil set up by Tamil protestors.
The excavation of the Chemmani mass grave is clear evidence that successive governments in Sri Lanka have committed deliberate acts of Tamil Genocide against the Tamil people. Numerous mass graves have been found across the North and East of Sri Lanka since the beginning of the Tamil Genocide. Successive Sri Lankan governments have actively tried to hide the truth behind the mass graves to protect those responsible. The continued lack of accountability reflects the deeply entrenched culture of impunity that persists in the country.
The High Commissioner's visit to Chemmani brings renewed international attention to mass graves in the North and East of Sri Lanka and the Tamil people's long and resilient journey to achieve international recognition, international accountability, and remedial justice for the Tamil Genocide.
At the end of the High Commissioner's mission to Sri Lanka, he reiterated that "Sri Lanka has struggled to move forward with domestic accountability mechanisms that are credible and have the trust and confidence of victims." The National Council of Canadian Tamils (NCCT) welcomes High Commissioner Volker Türk's engagement and thanks him for acknowledging the failure of Sri Lanka's domestic accountability mechanisms. NCCT also urges the United Nations (UN) to ensure and oversee an independent investigation into mass grave sites across the North and East of Sri Lanka. This can be achieved only by establishing an international independent investigation and prosecutorial mechanism that identifies the perpetrators and holds them internationally accountable and has the trust and confidence of the victims of the Tamil Genocide.
Over the last week, NCCT participated in the 59th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva as part of advancing its human rights advocacy efforts that are crucial to achieving the legitimate aspirations of the Tamil people. During this session, NCCT engaged with UN member states regarding the importance of strengthening and implementing Resolution 51/1 and emphasized the integral role of OHCHR's Sri Lanka Accountability Project (OSLAP) team. In particular, NCCT emphasized the importance of incorporating mass grave sites as part of OSLAP's mandate in collecting, consolidating, analyzing and preserving information and evidence to develop strategies for future accountability processes.
NCCT also continued its advocacy with the core group countries assigned to Sri Lanka and the broader UN Human Rights Council to support judicial and other proceedings in Member States and develop strategies for accountability processes as they relate to the genocide committed against the Tamil people.
Moreover, NCCT calls on the UN to ensure such mass grave sites remain a central focus of human rights monitoring and international accountability processes. Such efforts must be embedded within a broader, sustained, international commitment to truth, accountability, and remedial justice for the Tamil Genocide. Independent forensic investigations, legal accountability mechanisms, and meaningful engagement with victims are critical foundations for progress after decades of impunity by the Sri Lankan state.