The co-ordinator of the Mullaitivu Disappeared Relatives' Association was admitted to hospital with injuries after the Sri Lankan police pushed back the disappearances campaigner during a protest in Jaffna this week.

Mariyasuresh Eswari was one of several Tamil women that were set to protest against Sri Lankan prime minister Mahinda Rajapaksa’s visit to Jaffna this week. However, Sri Lankan police officers and armed troops were heavily deployed in the area, blocking the protesters from surrounding the venue.

Eswari was part of a travelling convoy of relatives of the forcibly disappeared who were blocked from travelling to the site of their protest by armed Sri Lankan officers. She reports being dragged away by Sri Lankan police and trampled on. After being forced to return back to Mullaitivu, she lost consciousness and began vomiting.

She has since been admitted to hospital for further investigations and treatment.

The Sri Lankan police brutality this week was just one in a series of incidents that have taken place this year, where the security forces have blocked Tamils for protesting.

The families of the disappeared have been staging a continuous roadside protest for over 5 years now, demanding information on the whereabouts of their loved ones and an international justice mechanism.