UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Visited Jaffna and Other War-Affected Sri Lankan Areas

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay on 27 August 2013 visited those parts of Sri Lanka's northern region which were badly worn out because of 30 years of civil war between the military and the Tamil Tigers.

She visited the areas which included Mullivaika as well as Jaffna, two places where maximum numbers of civilians were killed during the war.

Navi Pillay explained that she would report to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on the human rights situation in Sri Lanka. Looking at the human rights situation in Sri Lanka was the primary aim of her visit to Sri Lanka. Also, the aim of her visit was to look into the role of the Government of Sri Lanka in complying with the human rights standards which are set for the whole world.

The Sri Lankan Civil War: A Background

Sri Lankan Civil War was a civil war fought on the island of Sri Lanka. It started on 23 July 1983. The war was actually the movement of insurgency against the Government by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (the LTTE, also known as the Tamil Tigers). LTTE was a separatist militant organisation which fought for the creation of Tamil Eelam, the independent Tamil state.

The civil war continued for almost 30 years and after years-long military campaign, the Tamil Tigers were defeated by the military of Sri Lanka in May 2009. The civil war in Sri Lanka caused hardships not just for the population, but also for the economy and environment of Sri Lanka. Around 80000 to 100000 people were killed during the war.