Residents of Kepapilavu in Mullaitivu District launched a hunger strike on Wednesday, demanding the release of 171 acres of ancestral land that remain under the occupation of the Sri Lankan military more than 17 years after the end of the armed conflict.
The protest was held outside the Sri Lanka Army's 59 Division headquarters, where demonstrators reiterated their longstanding demand for the return of their lands and rejected claims that they had agreed to accept alternative land allocations in place of their ancestral property.
Residents insisted they had never consented to such proposals and stressed that the only acceptable solution was the unconditional release of their occupied lands. They also called on the Northern Province Governor to visit Kepapilavu, witness the situation firsthand, and take immediate action to address the community's long-standing land and housing grievances.
Announcing an indefinite symbolic hunger strike, protesters said they would remain outside the military camp until the government provides a permanent resolution.
Residents said the continued military occupation has devastated their traditional livelihoods, preventing them from accessing farmland, fishing grounds and coastal resources on which their families have depended for generations. Despite the armed conflict ending in 2009, many displaced landowners remain unable to return to their homes.
"Our lands continue to be occupied in the name of security. We have been unable to return to our homes for 17 years. The military is using the resources of our ancestral lands while we are left standing outside and struggling for our rights," residents said.
During the protest, soldiers stationed at the 59 Division headquarters were seen photographing and filming demonstrators. Rights groups have repeatedly raised concerns over the military's monitoring of land rights activists and families campaigning for the return of occupied land.
Protesters carried placards demanding the closure of military camps, the release of occupied lands, an end to land appropriation and the restoration of their right to live and work on their ancestral lands.
Residents reiterated that their struggle would continue until their lands are returned, insisting that the immediate release of the 171 acres occupied by the military remains their central demand.
