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Human rights activists in Toronto marked the International Day of the Disappeared this week, with a seminar highlighting the parallels between the experiences of “disappearances” in Poland and Sri Lanka.
August 30th marks the International Day of the Disappeared – a day focusing on the egregious human rights violations faced by those who have “disappeared” in conflict, migration and other contexts of violence. Originally commemorated following the efforts of several local and regional groups in Latin America that collectively formed the Latin American Federation of Associations for Relatives of Detained-Disappeared (FEDEFAM) in 1981, the day is of particular resonance to Eelam Tamils. With the UN ranking Sri Lanka as having the second highest number of disappearances in the world, tens of thousands of men and women across the Tamil North-East remain unaccounted for.
In commemoration of this day, a partnership of organisations including: the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam, the Canadian Human Rights Voice, the Global Village Foundation, the International Association of Tamil Academics and the Centre for War Victims and Human Rights organised a seminar in Toronto examining the experiences of disappearances in these differing contexts.
Ms Agata Kolakowska and Professor Philip Klaus presented their work titled “Disappearing Countries, Disappearing People: Tamil Experience from the Polish Perspective.” Ms Kolakowska articulates how Polish resistance against Soviet occupation has led to many disappearances starting in the 1970s. She shared the poignant example of Father Jerzy Popieluszko, a priest who spoke out against the Communist government – later found murdered days after his disappearance. Similar acts of violence have also been present towards clergy members in Sri Lanka – as in the case of Father Francis Joseph in 2009.
The issue of disappearances continues to plague Sri Lanka, with a recent report by the ITJP stating that 20 reported cases of abduction and torture have taken place under the current government.
A representative from the Centre for War Victims and Human Rights stressed the state of impunity within the context of Sri Lanka. He further critiqued the “Office of Missing Persons” bill that was passed earlier this month, stating that it lacked inclusivity of local communities – a point brought to the forefront by Tamil civil society.
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Professor Klaus ended the talk by giving a deeper look into the current context in Poland. Currently, DNA technology is being used to see if recovered skeletal remains can be traced to DNA samples given by families who are in search of their loved ones. However, he emphasized that although these modern approaches may be useful, the issue of continued militarization and colonisation in Poland needs to be addressed in order to work towards true accountability and justice.
Tamils across the North-East marked the day with a series of demonstrations calling for international justice for the disappearances of their loved ones.
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