Clarifying the Past and Commemorating Sri Lanka's Disappeared

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in the areas of historical clarification, justice and accountability, reparations and socioeconomic support. The disappearances which have been reported to Families of the Disappeared are a portion of the total number of disappearances in Sri Lanka. FoD intends to build on this preliminary documentation of disappearances and extend this analysis with other groups which work on disappearances. In particular, the FoD intends to build a massive, scientifically-defensible record of total magnitude, pattern of past disappearances in Sri Lanka, along with the proportional responsibility for these crimes. The project will integrate FoD’s own documentation with data collected by the presidential commissions of inquiry, United Nations Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances, and other Sri Lankan human rights groups. Such a body of evidence will help to clarify Sri Lanka’s turbulent history of forced disappearances and identify those most responsible and guard against continued impunity for these crimes. Furthermore, it will help to shift the debate about past disappearances to a foundation which is based on empirical data and well-established statistical methods. This will facilitate a more evidence-based approach to answering critical truth and accountability questions such as ”Were disappearances widespread?”, ”Was the pattern of disappearances over time and space consistent with a pat- 33
tern of abuses which would arise out of specific planning and policies by those responsible?”, ”Which institutions and senior officials were most responsible for mass disappearances in Sri Lanka?.” These questions are not only important to ensure that Sri Lankan history is accurately written but also because the longer that these questions are ignored and unresolved. the longer that impunity for these past disappearances will continue and perpetuate an environment where disappearances at will. 34
Page 2 and 3: By the Way Side This wreath With no
Page 5 and 6: Clarifying the Past & Commemorating
Page 7 and 8: Copyright c○2007 by The Benetech
Page 9 and 10: of the Families of the Disappeared
Page 11 and 12: ochure was jointly developed by Fam
Page 13 and 14: Over the last year, disappearances
Page 15 and 16: war or a threat of war, internal po
Page 17 and 18: have been blocked and impunity has
Page 19 and 20: for quelling dissent and suppressin
Page 21 and 22: where, and by which perpetrator it
Page 23 and 24: Figure 1: Count of Reported Disappe
Page 25 and 26: In Gampaha, Kandy, Kalatura and Put
Page 27 and 28: Figure 2: Count of Reported Disappe
Page 29 and 30: Institutional Responsibility for Re
Page 31 and 32: These findings are consistent with
Page 33: Figure 3: Count of Reported Disappe
Page 37 and 38: About the Institutional Authors Fam
Page 39 and 40: Benetech’s Human Rights Data Anal
Page 41: Front Cover: Gayan Kumara, 8 years

Clarifying the Past and Commemorating Sri Lanka's Disappeared

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