The Long Road to Justice: The Unfinished Struggle of the Mothers of the Disappeared

The world observes the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances every year on 30 August. Disappearance is not an event confined to the past for thousands of families in Sri Lanka. It is an unanswered question that has continued for years and in many cases, for decades.

In the North and East of Sri Lanka, mothers and relatives of the disappeared have transformed this uncertainty into a sustained campaign for truth and justice. On this year's International Day, the families gathered Jaffna for an international conference. That was not only to remember those who disappeared, but also to demand answers from the Sri Lankan state and the international community.

International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances?

The International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances is observed annually on 30 August. The United Nations General Assembly established the day through Resolution 65/209 in December 2010, in response to continuing concerns about enforced and involuntary disappearances around the world, as well as the intimidation and suffering experienced by victims' families and witnesses.

An enforced disappearance occurs when a person is arrested, detained or abducted by state authorities, or by persons acting with the authorization, support or acquiescence of the state, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of liberty or to reveal the person's fate or whereabouts. The result is that the victim is placed outside the protection of the law.

But disappearance does not end with the person being taken away. It creates an ongoing violation for the family. Relatives are left without knowing whether their loved one is alive or dead, where they are being held, or what happened to them. The United Nations describes this prolonged uncertainty as a form of profound mental anguish. The significance of the day is therefore not simply remembrance. It is a reminder of the rights of victims and their families to truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence.

The year 2026 is particularly significant internationally as it marks the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. The United Nations has placed victims at the centre of this year's observance under the theme “Victims first. Actions now.”

For families in Sri Lanka, however, the call for action is hardly new.

Sri Lanka: one of the world's unresolved disappearance crises

Sri Lanka has one of the world's longest and most extensive histories of enforced disappearances. Disappearances were carried out during different periods of political violence and armed conflict, including the two youth uprisings in the South and the war in the North and East.

The United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances estimated that Sri Lanka has the second highest number of enforced disappearances in the world. During its 2025 review of Sri Lanka, the UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances noted that the Office on Missing Persons had received 16,966 complaints as of the end of 2024. The Committee also raised concerns about the absence of a comprehensive national register, limited progress in processing records from earlier commissions, and inadequate information about the fate and whereabouts of disappeared persons.

Sri Lanka also ratified the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance in 2016 and enacted domestic legislation criminalising enforced disappearance in 2018. Accordingly, the Office on Missing Persons and the Office for Reparation were established.

The UN Committee has highlighted concerns about allegations of interference and obstruction in investigations, the independence of judicial and prosecutorial processes, and reports of surveillance, threats and intimidation against relatives of disappeared persons, particularly women. It has also called for those suspected of involvement in disappearances not to be placed in positions where they can influence investigations.

   

“The Long Road to Justice”

This year's commemoration in the North and East took a significant form. Families of the disappeared organised an international conference in Jaffna on 30 August under the theme “The Long Road to Justice.” Held at the Thanthai Selva Auditorium, the conference brought together relatives of the disappeared from across the North and East, international human rights representatives, civil society activists, political representatives and other supporters. The conference was more than a one-day commemoration. It was also an attempt to preserve the history of a struggle that has lasted for nearly two decades.

The event began with hundreds of mothers and relatives marching together from Weerasingham hall to the Thanthai Selva auditorium. A white van covered with the faces of the Tamils who were subjected to enforced disappearance led the march. The relatives and the mothers chanted slogans demanding international investigation and international justice for the disappearances. They also strongly condemned the OMP and domestic mechanisms, while continuously asking about the fate of those who surrendered to the Sri Lanka army at the end of the war in 2009.

                   

A publication “Erasure of Evidence” was launched at the event. It documented the lives of mothers and fathers who spent years searching for their children before dying without receiving answers, in all three languages. Another publication on the children who were forcibly disappeared, and another about the families' 17-year struggle was launched. It contains of their petitions, meetings with authorities, protests, places where demonstrations were held and the hardships they endured.

The mothers explained that the objectives of the conference are as follows:

1.To Examine the Failure of Domestic Mechanisms

To examine the continued failure of domestic accountability mechanisms in Sri Lanka in addressing enforced disappearances, the deeply entrenched culture of impunity, and the prolonged and ineffective judicial processes.

To highlight the resulting erosion of trust among affected families—particularly mothers—in Sri Lanka’s justice system and in its ability to deliver truth, justice, accountability, and effective remedies.

2.To Bring the Issue to the International Level

To bring the issue of enforced disappearances in Sri Lanka to greater international attention by engaging governments, the United Nations, diplomatic missions, civil society organisations, and global human rights stakeholders.

3.     Call for Meaningful International Action

To urge the United Nations and the international community to take meaningful and effective action to ensure truth, justice, accountability, and effective remedies for victims and their families.

4.     To Document and Honour the Struggle of the Mothers

To document, preserve, and recognise the longstanding peaceful struggle of the mothers and families of the enforced disappeared.

To encourage international cooperation in the pursuit of truth, the strengthening of accountability, and access to justice.

5.     To Advocate for Victim-Centred Mechanism

To put forward recommendations for independent and victim-centred truth-seeking and accountability mechanisms in accordance with international human rights standards.

Through this, to strengthen international solidarity with affected families.

6. To Honour the Courage and Resilience of the Mothers

To recognise and honour the continuing struggle of the mothers of the enforced disappeared, their courage, resilience, and unwavering pursuit of justice.

To remind the international community that their struggle for truth and justice continues to inspire the global human rights movement.

7.     To Emphasise the Need for Investigations into Mass Graves and Alleged Atrocity Sites

To highlight the importance of independent, impartial, and internationally supported investigations into mass graves and alleged atrocity sites.

Such investigations must ensure the preservation of evidence, forensic integrity, the right of families to know the truth and accountability.

8.     A Call for International Accountability

To call upon the international community to appropriately address and respond to serious allegations of genocide committed against the Tamil people through independent international accountability processes.

We call upon the international community to stand in solidarity with victims and affected communities, to prevent the recurrence of atrocity crimes, and to ensure that those responsible for violations of international law are held accountable in accordance with applicable international legal standards.

Voices from the conference: truth, accountability and international action

One of the most significant guests at the conference was Ana Lorena Delgadillo Pérez, a member of the United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. She noted that the Working Group had transmitted information concerning more than 66,000 cases globally and that Sri Lanka alone had generated more than 12,000 complaints over the years. Ana Lorena also noted that the disappearances of the Sinhala youth during 1987-89 has also been recorded. She drew attention to the threats, intimidation and financial barriers mothers are enduring. Ana Lorena emphasized that no mother should die without knowing the truth. She also appreciated the unity of the mothers and relatives which is the biggest challenge to the state. The UN working group member underlined that the high level of impunity gives the message that enforced disappearances are permitted. She also urged that they are willing to provide any technical support to the government with regard to reveal truth about the enforced disappearances.

Another prominent guest was Smriti Singh, Amnesty International's South Asia regional director. Singh pointed to the gap between government rhetoric on reconciliation and actual progress on accountability. She argued that determining what happened to the disappeared cannot be separated from identifying those responsible. The UN's own message on 30 August 2026 acknowledged that tens of thousands of families across Sri Lanka continue to wait to learn the fate of their loved ones.

Mothers who began searching for their children many years ago have grown old. Some have died. Others continue to attend protests, carrying the same photographs and asking the same question. One mother whose son disappeared in 2006 described the experience as a life suspended between hope and grief. After nearly two decades, she continues to look towards the door whenever she hears someone approaching, wondering whether her son might finally return. She emphasized that even the international organizations that abandoned Tamil people at the last war should be made accountable.

The families reiterated their rejection of approaches that reduce disappearance to an administrative issue. They have repeatedly argued that compensation, certificates of absence or institutional acknowledgements cannot replace the right to know what happened to their loved ones. Their demands remain centred on truth and accountability. 

Memories We Can Hold Exhibition

After the conference, an exhibition titled “Memories We Can Hold” was organised to preserve and showcase the memories of those who were forcibly disappeared. The exhibition displayed personal belongings that once belonged to the disappeared, including clothes, watches, mobile phones, simple ornaments, books, slippers and other everyday items. These objects were more than ordinary possessions. They carried the memories, identities and stories of people whose fate and whereabouts remain unknown. By bringing together these belongings, the exhibition gave families an opportunity to share their stories to the visitors. It served as a powerful reminder that every disappeared person had a life, a family, personal memories and a place in their community.

 

Beyond remembrance: what does justice mean?

For decades, governments have changed. Commissions have been established. Reports have been produced. New institutions have been created. Laws have been enacted. Yet mothers continue to stand in the same places holding photographs of sons and daughters whose fate remains unknown. The mothers' struggle also challenges the idea that time itself can resolve the wounds of disappearance. Time does not answer the fundamental question of what happened.

Taking action against disappearances means moving beyond declarations and mechanisms towards results. There should be credible investigations, access to evidence, identification of victims, accountability for perpetrators, protection of families and witnesses, and meaningful reparations. Most importantly, it means listening to the people who have carried this struggle for years.

The mothers of the disappeared have already made their position clear. They are not asking for financial support while the truth remains buried. They are asking to know what happened to their children. Their question has survived governments, commissions and decades of silence.

Where are they?

Until that question is answered, the road to justice remains unfinished.

Act Now

September 2, 2026