Sri Lankans Say: “No Need for a Truth Commission – The Truth is already known”

 

 

Sri Lanka suffered a three-decade conflict led by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The LTTE remains a proscribed terrorist movement in 32 countries. For 30 years, the Sri Lankan state followed Western/UN prescriptions for peace negotiations, ceasefires, and political solutions. Every effort failed because the LTTE pursued violence, not peace. In 2002 Norway brokered a ceasefire positioning a Nordic Monitoring Mission in Sri Lanka which recorded over 3800 ceasefire violations by LTTE showing LTTE was not concerned for peace or solutions.

 

In 2006, after repeated terror attacks and the closure of water supply to some 30,000 farmers, the Government of Sri Lanka exercised its sovereign right and legal duty under international law to protect its citizens and restore peace. International law is clear: states not only have the right but also the obligation to counter armed non-state actors threatening national and civilian security.

 

The defeat of the LTTE in May 2009 ended an era of terror, restored peace, and safeguarded the rights of millions of citizens. A factor that peace talks, cease fires and negotiations over 30 years failed to do. No one can accuse Sri Lanka of resorting to a military solution to end terror. Sri Lanka did so after exhausting all the avenues prescribed by the international community and conflict resolutionists in the UN.

 

Anyone visiting the North and East today — and remembering how these provinces were before 2009 — would see the undeniable transformation from war zones into regions of peace, development, and freedom facilitated by the Govt & the Armed Forces.

 

Sixteen years on, the truth is already known and documented — there is no justification for a Truth Commission that risks rewriting history especially mooted by those who were silent supporters of LTTE.

 

The Truths that cannot be denied

 

Truth 1: LTTE was a terrorist movement

 

• Proscribed by 32 countries including the US, UK, EU, Canada, and India.
• Waged a campaign of suicide bombings, assassinations, ethnic cleansing, and mass killings.

 

Truth 2: LTTE committed premeditated murders and atrocities

 

• Assassinated leaders including Sri Lankan President Ranasinghe Premadasa, Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, ministers, intellectuals, and civilians.
• Targeted temples, buses, airports, trains, banks, and marketplaces.

 

Truth 3: LTTE committed gross violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL)

 

• Recruitment of child soldiers– violated Article 77(2) of Additional Protocol I (1977) and Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Including training them to commit suicide by biting cyanide capsule.
• Attacks on civilians– violated Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions and Article 51(2) of Additional Protocol I (prohibiting targeting civilians).
• Use of human shields– violated Article 51(7) of Additional Protocol I.
• Summary executions, torture, and hostage-taking– violated Geneva Conventions (Common Article 3) and Additional Protocol II, Article 4.
• Over3,000 Tamils tortured and killed in Thunukkai one of  LTTE prisons and torture chambers, which UN officials refused to even visit.

 

Truth 4: The Armed Forces saved civilians, not killed them

 

• By May 2009, nearly300,000 Tamil civilians were rescued despite LTTE using them as human shields.
• The Armed Forces risked their own soldiers’ lives to create humanitarian corridors, provide food, water, and medical aid.
• Civilians ran toward the Armed Forces, away from the LTTE, confirming who the real savior was.

Truth 5: The LTTE does not represent all Tamils.

 

• LTTE represents only those Tamils who want to continue terrorism and separatism
• Most Tamils do not support terrorism or separatism
• LTTE has eliminated all the leaders of other Tamil militant groups
• LTTE has killed every Tamil who has gone against them while LTTE foreign networks continues extortion & bullying of Tamils abroad.
• The greatest victims of LTTE were Tamils themselves — proving LTTE never stood for their interests, only for its separatist agenda

 

 

Truth 6: The LTTE is defeated, its separatist propaganda continues

 

• LTTE leaders and ground cadres are no more – some who fled have changed identities. These are the supposed “missing”.
• Post-war LTTE networks abroad — often foreign passport holders — exploit propaganda for political gain while living in the safety of Western capitals.

 

Truth 7 – Sri Lanka’s Government had full legal right to act against terrorism

 

• Under Article 51 of the UN Charter, every sovereign state has the right to defend itself against armed aggression.
• LTTE was recognized as a terrorist organization in 32 countries, including the US, UK, India, EU, and Canada — legitimizing Sri Lanka’s actions to neutralize it.

 

Truth 8 – LTTE’s systematic violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL)

 

• LTTE was bound by Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions and Additional Protocol II, as a non-state armed actor.
• It violated these repeatedly by:
  • Recruiting and using child soldiers(war crime).
  • Giving cyanide capsules & ordering to commit suicide when caught (grave breach)
  • Targeting civilians with suicide bombings(grave breach).
  • Assassinating heads of state, ministers, and officials(terrorism).
  • Taking hostages and using human shields(prohibited under IHL).
  • Torturing and executing Tamil civilians in their custody (grave breach).

 

Truth 9 – Humanitarian agencies confirmed LTTE crimes

 

• The UN, UNICEF, and ICRC documented LTTE’s recruitment of children, abductions, and attacks on civilians.
• Despite this, LTTE supporters abroad continue to deny or whitewash these crimes.

 

Truth 10 – No genocide, but a rescue operation

 

• Over 295,000 Tamil civilianswere rescued by the Armed Forces in 2009.
• This was the largest civilian rescue missionin modern military history  carried out under fire, with enormous sacrifices by the Armed Forces— this does not constitute genocide.

 

Truth 11 – Post-war rebuilding disproves “ethnic persecution” claims

 

• Billions of taxpayers money were spent on reconstruction of Tamil-majority areas.
• Northern and Eastern provinces received higher per capita state investmentthan the South after 2009.

 

Truth 12 – Majority of LTTE victims were Tamils

 

• LTTE killed more Tamils than Sinhalese or Muslims, through forced conscription, executions, and killings of dissenting voices.
• Thus, LTTE was never a “liberation movement,” but an anti-LTTE Tamil-killing machine.

 

Truth 13 – International bans prove LTTE’s terrorist nature

 

• Beyond Sri Lanka’s definition, the LTTE remains banned in 32 countries.
• These bans are not temporary — they remain in force even 16 years after its defeat, proving the LTTE was never a “liberation struggle” but international terrorism.

 

Truth 14 – LTTE pioneered suicide terrorism

 

• LTTE introduced the use of suicide bombers (Black Tigers) before Al-Qaeda or ISIS.
• More than 270 suicide attacks targeted civilians, political leaders, and military personnel.

 

Truth 15 – LTTE carried out ethnic cleansing of Muslims and Sinhalese

 

• In 1990, LTTE forcibly expelled thousands of Sinhalese and Muslims from the Northern Province within 24 hours.
• Villages of Sinhalese and Muslims in the East were massacred to create mono-ethnic zones.

 

Truth 16 – LTTE assassinated moderates and peace advocates

 

• Tamil political leaders (e.g., Duraiappah, Amirthalingam, Kadirgamar, Mr & Mrs Sam Thambimuttu) were killed by LTTE.
• This shows LTTE had no interest in democracy.

 

Truth 17 – International humanitarian agencies operated freely in Sri Lanka

 

• ICRC, UN, faith-based NGOs, and INGOs were present during the conflict in areas where LTTE ran defacto rule.
• Their presence proves there was no state attempt to “hide atrocities.” If war crimes or genocide had occurred, they would have been reported contemporaneously.
• ICRC, UN, and INGOs were present in conflict zones throughout — if war crimes or genocide had occurred, they would have been reported contemporaneously, not fabricated years later.
• Embedded foreign journalists like Murali Reddy’s daily accounts of the war situation clearly proves no war crimes occurred.

 

Truth 18 – Missing persons narrative is manipulated

 

• Many LTTE cadres fled abroad with forged identities and are today living in Western countries under alias names.
• Families continue to receive remittances from them, while lobbying groups falsely label them as “missing.”

 

Truth 19 – Post-war Northern elections disprove genocide claims

 

• Within four years of the conflict’s end, Northern Tamils freely elected the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to govern their province.
• A genocidal state would not hold democratic elections, allow Tamil parties to campaign, or return lands to civilians.

 

Truth 20 – Sri Lanka’s victory ended terrorism for all communities

 

• Sinhalese, Tamils, and Muslims today live without LTTE bombs, assassinations, or forced child recruitment.
• The end of terrorism restored peace, stability, and economic development — benefits enjoyed by all citizens, regardless of ethnicity or religion.

 

 

Lies they want to turn into “Truth”

 

Lie 1: The Sri Lankan Armed Forces committed War Crimes

 

Definition: War crimes (Article 8, Rome Statute of the ICC) require intentional targeting of civilians, disproportionate force, torture, or killing of prisoners.

Negation:

• The Sri Lankan military never targeted civilians — they rescued nearly 300,000 from LTTE captivity.
• Humanitarian assistance was consistently provided despite LTTE obstruction. LTTE confiscated food & medicines sent for people.
• If intent to kill civilians existed, civilians would not have survived nor run toward the Armed Forces.

Conclusion: No deliberate or systematic war crimes have ever been proven — only propaganda using well-funded NGOs & their reports.

 

Lie 2: Genocide was committed against Tamils

Definition: Genocide (1948 UN Convention, Article II) requires intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group.

Negation:

• Sri Lanka never targeted Tamils as an ethnic group — only LTTE terrorists. LTTE killed more Tamils than any other group.
• Tamil population numbers increased before, during, and after the war.
• Over 12,000 surrendered LTTE cadres were rehabilitated and released — impossible if genocide had been intended.
• Even after 16 years, no list of the alleged 40,000 dead exists, nor verifiable bodies or mass graves.

 

Conclusion: The genocide claim is a political fabrication, not a fact.

 

Lie 3: There has been no accountability

 

Reality:

• Sri Lanka established the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC).
• Post-war efforts included demining, homegrown resettlement, rehabilitation, and reintegration — unparalleled in post-conflict contexts.
• Office of Missing Persons exists, but no names for 40,000 alleged dead have been submitted. However, 5000 missing soldiers have been documented by their families with IDs.
• Selective justice that erases LTTE crimes while demonizing the State is biased accountability, not genuine justice.

 

Lie 4: The LTTE represented Tamil people

 

Negation:

• LTTE assassinated or eliminated all moderate Tamil leaders who stood for democracy.
• LTTE’s reign of terror killed more Tamils than Sinhalese or Muslims.
• Tamil civilians fled from LTTE areas toward the Armed Forces, proving LTTE did not represent them.
• The Tamil National Alliance and other parties gained ground only after LTTE’s defeat — showing people’s rejection of LTTE’s armed struggle.

 

Conclusion: LTTE represented terrorism and separatism, not the Tamil community.

 

Lie 5: The conflict was an “ethnic war”

 

Negation:

• The Armed Forces comprised Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, and Burghers — a national army, not an ethnic militia.
• Tamils, Muslims, and Sinhalese were all victims of LTTE terrorism.
• The state’s military action was against terrorism, not an ethnic group.
• Post-war reconstruction, elections in the North, and Tamil representation in government disprove the “ethnic war” label.

 

Conclusion: It was a war against terrorism, not Tamils.

 

A Truth Commission 16 years after the defeat of LTTE is unnecessary, redundant, and revisionist. The truth is already well-documented:

• LTTE initiated and waged terrorism. There are scores of documents by international & local individuals/organizations that provide the truths
• The government lawfully and necessarily acted to restore peace.
• The Armed Forces demonstrated humanitarian conduct, saving civilians at enormous cost — acknowledged even by the ICRC Head of Operations in Sri Lanka.

 

Those who refuse to accept the truth or wish to change it demand a Truth Commission — not for reconciliation, but to rewrite history in favor of the terrorists. Sri Lanka must safeguard the integrity of its historical record, honor all victims of terrorism, and ensure that the sacrifices of the Armed Forces are not erased under false narratives.

 

A Truth Commission demanded by those who stood silent during LTTE terror, but vocal only after its defeat, is not reconciliation — it is revisionism.

 

Sri Lanka should not allow truth to be rewritten or sacrifices to be erased.

Sri Lankans don’t want any Truth Commission – pro-LTTE/separatists do.

The facts speak for itself.

Sri Lanka’s Foreign Ministry – kindly note all above.

 

 

 

Shenali D Waduge