Protests continued in Jaffna’s Thaiyiddy area on Monday as members of the Tamil National People’s Front (TNPF), local landowners, and residents staged a demonstration against preparations for a state-backed ceremony at the illegally built and controversial Tissa Vihara Buddhist temple.
The demonstrators gathered in opposition to the construction and ongoing activities at the temple, which has been carried out illegally on Tamil-owned land with the active involvement of the Sri Lankan police and military. Protesters also renewed their demand for the immediate release of all occupied lands in the Valikamam region.
The protest was led by TNPF General Secretary and former Jaffna District parliamentarian Selvarajah Kajendran, and joined by local residents and civil society representatives.
According to organisers, Sri Lankan security forces and Buddhist clergy were preparing to conduct a ceremony at the vihara on Monday, despite repeated objections from Tamils. The site, they said, continues to expand with the support of state institutions, including the Archaeology Department and the military.
For months, residents of Thaiyiddy and surrounding areas have staged regular demonstrations against the vihara, which was expanded without consent and in violation of legal and administrative procedures. Protests are typically held every poya (full moon) day, as monks and Sinhala visitors arrive to conduct religious rituals under heavy military guard.
The TNPF has repeatedly warned that the expansion of Buddhist shrines across the North-East — often accompanied by land seizures and archaeological claims — represents an ongoing effort by the Sri Lankan state to alter the demographics of the Tamil homeland.
During Monday’s protest, demonstrators carried placards and chanted slogans demanding the removal of the vihara and the return of land seized by the military.
Despite growing local resistance, Sinhala Buddhist constructions have continued across occupied Tamil areas such as Mullaitivu, Trincomalee, and Vavuniya, often backed by government departments and the security forces. Rights groups and Tamil politicians have criticised these actions as part of a wider strategy of colonisation and militarisation.
