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List of riots in Sri Lanka

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Location of Sri Lanka

Following is a list of riots and protests in Sri Lanka, an island nation situated in South Asia. Throughout its history, Sri Lanka has experienced a number of riots. Since 1915, many of them have stemmed from ethnic tensions between the Sinhalese majority and minority Tamil and Moor populations.[1]

19th century

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20th century

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1915

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1950s

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  • 1953 Ceylonese Hartal − a nationwide demonstration, a hartal which eventually led to civil unrest. It was one of the riots which did not involve ethnicity and was conducted by several leftist groups.
  • 1956 anti-Tamil pogrom (Eastern Province) − The first major Sinhalese-Tamil riots in Ceylon. The majority of victims were Sri Lankan Tamils in Gal Oya, a new settlement in the Eastern Province. The total number of deaths was reportedly 150.[4]
  • 1958 anti-Tamil pogrom − Also known as the '58 riots. They were a watershed event for the race relationships between various ethnic communities of Sri Lanka. The total number of deaths was estimated to be 300, mostly Sri Lankan Tamils.[4]

1960s

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  • 1966 − Demonstrations in Colombo organized by the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, left-wing parties, and trade unions in protest of the Tamil Regulations Act escalate into riots, forcing the government to declare a state of emergency.[5]
  • 1969 − The Ceylon Communist Party (Maoist) conduct a mass rally which ended in bloodshed, the major cause for the riot being the banning of the May Day rally.[6]

1970s

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1980s

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1990s

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  • 1997 − Kalutara prison riots (Kalutara, Western Province) − Three Tamil detainees are killed at the Kalutara high security detention center on 12 December 1997.[10][11][12][13]
  • 8 September 1998 − In Ratnapura, a riot against Hill-country Tamils erupts, where 200 organised Sinhalese mobs with the support of local Sinhala politicians burn down 800 houses. The rape of several Tamil women by Sinhalese men is also reported. The riot was sparked by the murder of two Sinhalese youths, one of them in Bandusena, who had a reputation for raping women and being involved in illegal liquor sales. The Sinhalese attackers were given full impunity by the local police and no one was held accountable for their crimes.[14]

21st century

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2000s

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2010s

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2020s

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ Chattopadhyaya, H. Ethnic Unrest in Modern Sri Lanka: An Account of Tamil-Sinhalese Race Relations, pp. 51-82
  2. ^ K.M., De Silva (2009). History of Ceylon: Volume III. University of Peradeniya: Ministry of Higher Education. p. 202.
  3. ^ T., Bartholomeusz (1995). Catholics, Buddhists, and the Church of England: The 1883 Sri Lankan Riots. Buddhist-Christian Studies, 15. pp. 89–103.
  4. ^ a b "An evolving army and its role through time". Sunday Times. 16 October 2005. Retrieved 29 October 2008. The outbreak of island wide ethnic violence from May 24–27, 1958, saw for the first time the deployment of military personnel under emergency proclamations throughout the entire island, where Colombo and the North and East of the country witnessed the worst violence leading to over 300 deaths.
  5. ^ Kearney, Robert (1971). Trade Unions and Politics in Ceylon. London, England: University of California Press. p. 151. ISBN 9780520017139.
  6. ^ Banned May Day Rally (PDF).
  7. ^ Kearney, R.N. (1985). "Ethnic Conflict and the Tamil Separatist Movement in Sri Lanka". Asian Survey. 25 (9): 898–917. doi:10.2307/2644418. JSTOR 2644418.
  8. ^ Over two decades after the burning down of the Jaffna library in Sri Lanka Archived 2007-09-27 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ Harrison, Frances (23 July 2003). "Twenty years on – riots that led to war". BBC News. Retrieved 10 October 2009.
  10. ^ "ASA 37/30/97 Sri Lanka: Appeal for a full inquiry into prison killings". Amnesty International. 15 December 1997.
  11. ^ "Sri Lanka: Killing of Political Prisoners in Kalutara Prison". Asian Human Rights Commission. 23 December 1997.
  12. ^ "Chronology for Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka". United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees/Minorities at Risk Project. 2004. Archived from the original on 16 April 2013.
  13. ^ "Three Tamil prisoners killed by Sinhala inmates". TamilNet. 12 December 1997.
  14. ^ Asian Human Rights Commission publication, Human Rights Solidarity, Volume 8, No.11, November 1998.
  15. ^ "Times Online - Daily Online Edition of The Sunday Times Sri Lanka". www.sundaytimes.lk. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  16. ^ "news09". www.island.lk. Retrieved 3 June 2019.
  17. ^ "Jaffna tense: Civilian shot dead by SLA, angry mob kills police officer". TamilNet. 4 August 2005. Archived from the original on 30 November 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  18. ^ Jayakody, Pradeep (21 November 2012). "Welikada Prison Riot". The Daily Mirror (Sri Lanka).
  19. ^ "Sri Lanka troops accused of prison 'massacre'". Al Jazeera. 11 November 2012.
  20. ^ "Probe sought in Sri Lankan prison 'massacre'". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation/Associated Press. 11 November 2012.

Further reading

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  • Vittachi, Tarzie (1958). Emergency '58: The Story of the Ceylon Race Riots. Andre Deutsch. OCLC 2054641.
  • Seneratne, Jagath P (1998). Political Violence in Sri Lanka, 1977-1990: Riots, Insurrections, Counter-Insurgencies, Foreign Intervention. VU University Press. ISBN 90-5383-524-5.
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