On Tuesday, the International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination (IMADR), and Britto Fernando jointly held an event in Colombo welcoming the Office of Missing Persons (OMP) Act and commemorating the International Day for Victims of Enforced Disappearances. 

Speaking at the event, TNA Spokesperson, M.A. Sumanthiran, called the passage of the OMP Act a first step on the right path though he noted that the harder steps are to follow regarding implementation. He acknowledged that there is distrust in the OMP and that it is valid that people are questioning how it will differ from previous mechanisms, but then called on people not to reject it.  

Also at the event, Nishantha Warnasinghe of the JHU, welcomed the OMP and spoke about the need for finding answers for families of disappeared across the island. 

The Secretary of the National Consultation Task Force (CTF), Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, addressed the CTF's interim report on the OMP in his speech at the event. He noted a number of concerns victims had raised in the consultations including that some people felt the OMP would not be useful if it did not have a mechanism for accountability such as a prosecutorial arm. Victims also told the CTF that the OMP needs to have the involvement of victims' groups, to have regional offices, and to ensure there is absolutely no involvement from security forces or government officials. Dr. Saravanamuttu noted that not all of those points were incorporated in the OMP Act, but that he nonetheless felt there had been progress made by its passage. 

The Minister of National Co-existence, Dialogue and Official Languages, Mano Ganesan, welcomed the passage of the OMP saying he saw no need to have separate mechanisms for different communities. 

A number of Tamil and Sinhalese women who were wives and mothers of disappeared victims also spoke at the event. Many raised the question of trust, and that they did not know whether to be happy or sad about the OMP Act. Some women spoke about the failure of the Paranagama Commission and the fact that they had not forgotten it. Ultimately, all of the victims said they just wanted to know what happened to their disappeared loved ones. 

The final text of the OMP Act with the amendments which were passed without debate has yet to be officially released by the government.