The 17th annual Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day was commemorated in Auckland, New Zealand, on 18 May 2026, with hundreds of participants gathering to remember the victims of the Mullivaikkal genocide and renew calls for justice.
The event, held at the Fickling Centre in Three Kings, Auckland, drew members of the Eelam Tamil and Tamil Nadu communities, alongside representatives of various organisations. Organisers described the gathering as another collective call for accountability for the atrocities committed by the Sri Lankan military against Tamil civilians during the armed conflict.
The commemoration commenced with the ceremonial lighting of a common flame, followed by the hoisting of the New Zealand national flag and the Tamil Eelam national flag. An Eegai Sudar (sacrificial flame) was then lit before attendees paid floral tribute to those who lost their lives during the armed conflict.
A series of cultural and commemorative performances took place throughout the evening, to reflect on the suffering endured by Tamils and honouring those killed during the genocide.
As part of the programme, a remembrance song titled “Thaayaga Viduthalaikkaaga Viraindhu Ezhundhom” (“We Rose Swiftly for the Liberation of the Homeland”), written, composed and performed by Trincomalee-born Auckland-based writer Poobalasingam Piratheepan, was played before the conclusion of the event.
The ceremony concluded with the lowering of the New Zealand and Tamil Eelam flags. Participants were also served the Mullivaikkal Kanji recalling the food that sustained many civilians trapped during the 2009 Mullivaikkal atrocities.
The remembrance event ended with renewed expressions of solidarity and calls for justice for the victims of the Tamil genocide.
