The 40th anniversary of the Verugal massacre was commemorated at the Poongar Thaan Thoontreeswarar Temple in Eechchilampattu, Trincomalee District, on Friday, with relatives, civil society activists and residents gathering to remember the 21 people killed while transporting food supplies to displaced Tamil families in 1986.
The remembrance included collective prayers, floral tributes, the lighting of lamps and candles, and a minute’s silence for the victims.
The memorial event was organised jointly by relatives of the victims, civil society activists and members of the public. Special religious observances were also held at the temple as participants called for truth, justice and accountability four decades after the killings.
The massacre took place on 12 June 1986, during a period of intense violence across the North-East.
At the time, displaced residents from the Verugal divisional area had taken refuge in camps in Eechchilampattu, Poomarathadichenai and Maavadichenai. Relief supplies for the camps were being distributed through the Seruvila Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society.
According to accounts preserved by relatives and local organisers, civilians were instructed to transport dry food supplies by bullock cart following directions reportedly issued by the then District Government Agent Warnasuriya.
Three government officials and a group of civilians travelled from Seruvila after collecting supplies for displaced families. While returning to Eechchilampattu, they were intercepted at Mahindapura by armed individuals.
The victims were reportedly taken about 50 metres off the main road, forced to kneel, and then hacked and shot dead.
Twenty-one people, including three government officials, were killed. Three others survived with serious injuries. Among the dead were two Muslim men.
Those killed included government officials, village officers and residents from Eechchilampattu, Poomarathadichenai, Vinayagapuram, Poonagar and surrounding areas.
The victims’ names have continued to be preserved by relatives and organisers as part of annual remembrance efforts.
The massacre has been commemorated by families and residents for decades. Forty years later, no one has been held accountable for the killings.
The Verugal massacre remains part of the wider history of violence inflicted on the Tamil homeland during the armed conflict, when civilians, displaced families and those attempting to deliver humanitarian assistance were repeatedly targeted. For relatives of the victims, the annual commemoration remains both an act of mourning and a demand that the truth of what happened in Verugal is not erased.
