Chronology

1930-40 | 1950 | 1960 | 1970 | 1980 | 1990

Independence and the rise of communalism

1931-47 Ceylon’s independence constitution is considered under British colonial auspices. Tamil political leaders demand disproportionate parliamentary quotas and are accused of communalism.

1947 The constitution for an independent Ceylon maintains the unitary state established under colonialism. There will be no minority quotas.

1948 Ceylon is granted independence. State power is transferred to the elected United National Party (UNP) government led by members of the cross-communal, English-educated Colombo elite. The Ceylon Citizenship Act denies citizenship to around one million Up-country Tamils.

1949 S.J.V. Chelvanayakam and other prominent Tamil politicians form the Federal Party to press claims for Tamil self-determination within the Ceylonese state.

1951 Led by S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) is formed. Centre-left in orientation, the SLFP aligns itself with marginalized Sinhala-educated rural elites.

1952-55 The debate on official language policy moves to the centre of the political agenda. The SLFP pledges to establish Sinhala as the sole language of state.

1956 Elections are won by an SLFP-led alliance and Bandaranaike becomes prime minister. The Official Language Act makes Sinhala the sole medium of state affairs. Communal violence kills an estimated 150 people, mostly Tamils. The Federal Party (FP) launches an intense campaign of non-violent civil resistance. In Colombo, the police look on as mobs attack peaceful protesters, including FP leaders.

1957 Bandaranaike signs a pact with Chelvanayakam, pledging to devolve state power through regional councils, to recognize Tamil as a national minority language and to slow Sinhalese resettlement in the north and east. An anti-pact protest march to the symbolic Sinhala Buddhist stronghold of Kandy spurs mob attacks on Tamils throughout the southern provinces.

1958 As communal violence intensifies, the government abrogates the 'Bandaranaike- Chelvanayakam Pact' but passes the Tamil Language (Special Provisions) Act. This act allows for the use of Tamil in education, public service entrance exams and administration in north and eastern provinces.

1960 Bandaranaike is assassinated by a Buddhist monk. The SLFP appoints his widow, Srimavo, to fight the general election. To win the electoral backing of the Federal Party, the SLFP agrees to revive the Bandaranaike-Chelvanayakam Pact but reneges on this after winning an outright majority.

1961 The 1956 'Sinhala Only' Act is implemented, but the 1958 Tamil Language (Special Provisions) Act is not. The Federal Party re-launches its civil disobedience campaign, paralysing government administration in the north and east. The government declares a state of emergency and deploys troops to regain control of Jaffna. As FP members of Parliament are detained for six months, disillusioned activists express secessionist aspirations.

1965 A general election returns the UNP to power, under Dudley Senanayake. The Senanayake-Chelvanayakam Pact is signed to secure the support of the Federal Party in a new 'national government'. It is agreed that a Tamil Language (Special Provisions) Regulation will be implemented, that district councils will be established and that preference will be given in north and east resettlement schemes to landless persons and Tamil speakers.

1968 Due to opposition pressure, the District Councils Bill emanating from the Senanayake-Chelvanayakam Pact is abandoned, and the 1966 Tamil Language (Special Provisions) Regulation is not implemented.

1969 The Federal Party quits the government.

1970-73 Small groups of militant Tamil youths launch unsuccessful assassination attempts against government representatives in the Jaffna peninsula.

1970 An SLFP-led alliance wins a general election landslide. Mrs. Bandaranaike returns as prime minister, establishing a Constituent Assembly to frame a new, republican constitution. The Tamil Students League (TSL) is formed to protest against government plans to introduce communal quotas for higher education.

1971 Educational 'standardization' leads to higher university entrance requirements for Tamil speakers. Many Tamil students are instantly radicalised. Most Tamil members withdraw from the Constituent Assembly after parity of status for the Tamil and Sinhala languages is rejected. In protest largely at a lack of economic opportunities for educated Sinhala youth, an armed insurrection breaks out in the south of the island, led by the Janatha Vimukti Peramuna (People's Liberation Front — JVP). The government adopts emergency powers and crushes the rebellion, killing thousands.

1972 The 'district quota' system is introduced for university entrance, improving the prospects for rural and provincial populations at the expense of students in Colombo, Jaffna and other traditional education centres. The new constitution is adopted and the Republic of Sri Lanka is born. Under new provisions, the state will 'protect and foster' the Buddhist religion, giving it 'the foremost' place in the life of the nation. Sinhala is also affirmed as the single official language of the courts and the state administration. The Federal Party and other groups representing Sri Lankan and Up-country Tamils come together to form the Tamil United Front (TUF).

The rise of militant politics

1973 The Tamil Youth League (TYL) is formed, strongly influenced by militant ideas and individuals. The government immediately arrests several Tamil activists, including TYL leaders. Many are held without charge for the next two years; some for longer.

1974 In the context of sporadic militant activity, police attack the fourth conference of the International Association of Tamil Research in Jaffna, leading to nine deaths.

1975-76 Militant Tamil youths begin to organize in Sri Lanka and London within embryonic structures that will become the key armed groups of the 1980s. Some establish links with Palestinian liberation movements and receive military training from them.

1975 Alfred Duraiyappa, the Tamil mayor of Jaffna and SLFP organizer, is killed. Four youths, including Veluppillai Pirabhakaran, claim responsibility for this, the first successful assassination by the militants.

1976 The militants commence a series of successful bank robberies in the north, provoking a further crackdown from security forces. The mainstream Tamil parties form the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF). The TULF passes the Vaddukoddai Resolution, calling for the formation of a separate state of Tamil Eelam.

1977 The UNP, under J.R. Jayewardene, wins a landslide victory in general elections. The TULF, running on a secessionist platform, wins an overwhelming majority in the north, a simple majority in the east and is installed as the official parliamentary opposition. After shooting incidents in Jaffna involving police and armed militants, anti-Tamil violence breaks out in the south. Hundreds are killed and tens of thousands displaced.

1978 After the killing of a Jaffna police inspector, the government proscribes the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and 'other similar organizations'. A second republican constitution is passed, creating a powerful executive presidency and granting partial concessions to some Tamil demands. Most Tamils are wary, indifferent or hostile to the changes.

1979 A presidential commission is appointed to report on decentralizing the state administration through District Development Councils (DDCs). The TULF participates fully in the commission. As militant action continues around Jaffna, the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) is passed, temporarily suspending important safeguards against human rights violations. Mass arrests of Tamil youth ensue, along with a spate of extra-judicial killings and 'disappearances'.

1980-82 In addition to the LTTE, other militant groups consolidating their structures include the Tamil Eelam Liberation organization (TELO), the People's Liberation organization of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), the Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF) and the Eelam Revolutionary organization of Students (EROS). The groups have rival sponsors in Tamil Nadu, south India and in Delhi and the resultant confusion heightens internecine feuds.

1980 The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) is established to represent the interests of predominantly rural, eastern Muslims traditionally marginalized from the political process. The TULF gives full support to the passage of the District Development Councils Act. The militants become increasingly restive at TULF paramountcy in Tamil politics.

1981 During campaigning for the DDC elections in Jaffna, Tamil militants kill a UNP candidate and two police officers. The police go on the rampage, killing several people and destroying many buildings including the Jaffna public library, a key depository of Tamil history and culture. The TULF does well in the DDC elections but the militants emphasise their confidence and independence, executing multi-million rupee bank robberies and launching attacks on police stations and the army.

1982 Jayewardene is victorious in presidential elections. With significant evidence of electoral fraud, the government also wins a referendum to extend the life of Parliament, without elections, for a further six years. Powers are delegated to the DDCs but complaints persist of inadequate financing and excessive central government interference. Student and leftist organizations lead strikes in the north to protest the TULF ‘betrayal’ of the separatist cause. As the security forces are pushed onto the defensive by the militants, the life of the Prevention of Terrorism Act is extended indefinitely

1983 The LTTE call for a boycott of local elections, disrupt TULF meetings and kill three UNP candidates. Ninety per cent of northern residents stay away from the polls. Anti-Tamil violence, building nationwide for some months, plumbs unprecedented depths after 13 soldiers are killed in Jaffna in a LTTE ambush. Concentrated in Colombo, with the collusion and sometimes blatant involvement of the security forces (and some government ministers), the violence destroys thousands of Tamil homes and businesses, hundreds of Tamils are massacred, and around 200,000 displaced. The government fails to condemn the riots and pushes through a constitutional amendment outlawing secessionism. All TULF MPs forfeit their seats and recruitment to armed groups proliferates wildly.

Indian intervention and the LTTE ascendancy

1983-89 To satisfy internal and regional security interests, the Indian government seeks the devolution of political power within a unitary Sri Lanka through diplomatic pressure. To attain leverage over the Sri Lankan government, it provides arms and training to hundreds of Tamil militants.

1984  Emergency regulations facilitate a dramatic increase in extra-judicial killings and 'disappearances' of Tamils. Non-violent protests organized in Jaffna by the TULF fail to attract popular participation. After discussions with Indian mediators, the Sri Lankan government convenes an all-party conference in Colombo to address Tamil grievances. The conference, which involves a wide range of political parties and religious organizations but not the militants, fails to reach consensus on appropriate units of devolution.

1985 The LTTE massacre 150 Sinhalese civilians at Anuradhapura. After talks between the Indian and Sri Lankan governments, militant leaders are summoned to Delhi and a ceasefire is announced. Under intense pressure from Indian mediators, the Sri Lankan government and a joint delegation of the TULF and the five main militant groups sit down together at Thimpu, Bhutan. The Tamil parties put forward 'five cardinal principles' which must provide the basis for any meaningful solution. The government rejects these principles, the ceasefire breaks down and the talks collapse. Indian officials continue discussions with all parties and agree devolution proposals with the Sri Lankan government. Simmering tensions between Tamil militants and eastern Muslims ignite into violence after Muslim villagers are killed following accusations of collusion with the security forces. The PLOTE is severely weakened after sustained infighting and LTTE attacks.

1986 While the war rages in the north and east, the LTTE attack TELO and kill 150 -300 cadres, including its leader, Sri Sabaratnam. As the government imposes an economic blockade on Jaffna, a South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) meeting in Bangalore develops new devolution proposals. In an unsuccessful attempt to force LTTE compliance, communications equipment in Tamil Nadu is seized by the Indian government and Pirabhakaran is temporarily held under house arrest in Madras.

1987 The Sri Lanka Army (SLA) launches a massive campaign in the north and extends its blockade to include food, fuels and medicine. After a shipload of supplies sent to Jaffna is turned back, the Indian government parachutes food and medicines into the city. Intense diplomatic activity ensues and the two governments sign the Indo-Lanka Accord, agreeing detailed proposals for provincial councils and expediting the immediate deployment of an Indian peacekeeping Force (IPKF) to enforce a ceasefire. Under pressure from the Indian government, all Tamil militant groups accede to the accord but the LTTE soon renounce the agreement and attack the peacekeepers. As all other militant groups align with the IPKF, the Tigers launch devastating attacks on the PLOTE and the EPRLF. Meanwhile, in protest at government ‘capitulation’ to Indian ‘expansionism’, a resurrected JVP ignites a second armed insurgency in the south.

1988 While the government furiously combats the JVP insurgency, thousands of youths are gruesomely killed or 'disappeared', causing widespread international protest. In the north and east, tens of thousands of IPKF troops fight the LTTE. As they are forced onto the defensive, some IPKF units begin to target Tamil civilians, stirring widespread popular resentment. A 13th constitutional amendment is passed, detailing the devolution of powers agreed under the Indo-Lanka Accord. The EPRLF emerge as the favoured militant group of the Indian government. Under their guns, and those of the IPKF, provincial elections provoke a spectacularly high turn-out. The EPRLF is returned as the largest party and its leader, Varadarajah Perumal, is sworn in as chief minister of the North East Provincial Council (NEPC). In the south, the UNP's Ranasinghe Premadasa is elected president. He is sharply critical of the Indo-Lanka Accord and promises to send the IPKF home.

1989 With IPKF support, the NEPC begins forcible recruitment to a new Tamil National Army (TNA). NEPC powers remain unclear and, starved of resources, Perumal accuses the central government of obstructing devolution. In parliamentary elections, the LTTE gain a symbolic victory as an EPRLF-TULF alliance is trounced in the north and east by anti-accord independents. As the JVP is ruthlessly crushed by government forces, the LTTE is held responsible for the killings of Jaffna University lecturer Rajini Thiranagama, TULF leaders A. Amirthalingam and V. Yogeswaran and EPRLF MP Sam Thambimuttu. Having armed the Tigers to fight the IPKF, President Premadasa implements a range of confidence-building measures, begins peace talks with the LTTE in the Colombo Hilton Hotel, agrees a ceasefire and promises the Tigers de facto control of the north and east until provincial elections can be held. As the IPKF begins its departure, the LTTE attacks the TNA and other armed Tamil groups, seizing control of vacated areas.

The government-LTTE war and peace process

1990 The last of the IPKF leave Sri Lanka. Perumal and his colleagues unilaterally declare Eelam but, as the LTTE take control of Jaffna, the EPRLF leadership and many of its followers flee to India. Despite LTTE pressure, the government does not revoke the constitutional prohibition on secessionism, and continues dialogue with other Tamil groups. The LTTE break off negotiations and the ceasefire, killing hundreds of police officers throughout the east, including a large number of Muslims. One hundred and forty Muslims are also massacred in Kattankudy mosque. The government creates an armed civil defence force, the Muslim Home Guard, which is soon implicated in reprisal killings of Tamil villagers. In alliance with anti-LTTE Tamil groups, the government launches a ruthless counter-insurgency drive in the east and bombs Jaffna. Damage to property is extensive and population displacement massive, while thousands of civilians perish. In Madras, the LTTE kill 14 members of the EPRLF leadership. They also order all Muslims to leave northern districts or face death, causing 120,000 to flee.

1991 The army fails to dislodge the LTTE from Jaffna and an embargo is re-imposed, banning the passage of medicines, fuel and fertilisers to the province. As the war persists with characteristic brutality, at least 67 villagers are massacred by security forces in Kokkadicholai district. The LTTE assassinate Defence Minister Ranjan Wijeratna and ex-Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. President Premadasa convenes an all-party parliamentary select committee, under the SLFP’s Mangala Moonesinghe, to seek a constitutional model which might help end hostilities.

1992 As the select committee continues its deliberations, the war persists in the north and east. Atrocities include the killing by government forces of 23 Hindu worshippers in Mullaittivu district and the LTTE massacre of around 180, mostly Muslim, villagers near Pollonaruwa. As the LTTE assassinate the popular Brigadier Denzil Kobbekaduwa, 19 soldiers implicated in the 1991 Kokkadicholai massacre are acquitted, reportedly for lack of evidence.

1993 The parliamentary select committee approves proposals for separate provincial councils in the north and east, which would break up the traditional 'Tamil homeland' implicitly recognized under the Indo-Lanka Accord. All Tamil groups withdraw from the committee. Prominent LTTE leader Kittu dies after his ship blows up under attack from the Indian navy. Former interior minister Lalith Athulathmudali is assassinated in Colombo. President Premadasa is also killed by a suicide bomber.

1994 Parliamentary elections are won narrowly by the People's Alliance (PA) under the SLFP leadership of Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge. Due to exceptionally low turnout in the north and east, many Tamil MPs are returned with just a handful of votes. The new government immediately relaxes the embargo on the north, releases several Tamil prisoners and opens preliminary discussions with the LTTE. In the run-up to presidential elections, UNP candidate Gamini Dissanayake and over 50 others are killed at an election rally by a suicide bomber. Kumaratunge subsequently wins the elections, taking a massive 62 per cent of the vote and garnering support from all ethnic communities. As another parliamentary select committee is established to consider constitutional reform, the LTTE declares a ceasefire and peace talks begin in Jaffna between Tigers and government.

1995 A cessation of hostilities is formally agreed. Talks soon stall, however, due to disagreements on the agenda and timetable. As the government will not meet their demands, the Tigers withdraw from negotiations and launch military attacks which include their first use of anti-aircraft missiles. The government announces proposals for a new system of substantive devolution. It also launches a sustained military offensive, involving a renewed economic embargo, a news blackout, intensive shelling and hundreds of civilian casualties. After five months, the army enters Jaffna but the population has been evacuated by the LTTE. While undoubtedly saving lives, the evacuation vastly increases displaced populations in the north, exacerbating an already acute humanitarian crisis.

1996 As tens of thousands of troops are stationed in Jaffna to protect military gains and re-establish government structures, hundreds of Tamil civilians 'disappear' in detention. Nevertheless, a large majority of displaced residents returns to the peninsula, removing itself from the direct authority of the LTTE for the first time since 1990. Maintaining its control of large areas of the north and east, the LTTE fights back, killing over 1,200 soldiers at the Mullaitivu army camp, and exploding bombs in Colombo that destroy the Central Bank, kill over 150 civilians and wound over 1,500. The government places its devolution proposals before the parliamentary select committee, suitably amended to satisfy southern opposition.

1997 The armed forces launch a major offensive to recapture the main supply route linking Jaffna to the rest of the island. Estimated military casualties on both sides reach an all-time high. Local elections in the south are marred by violence, including the killing by a UNP MP of Nalanda Ellawala, a rising star in the PA administration. Although government initiatives to promote its proposed settlement meet with some sympathy among southern populations, they have yet to make a significant impact in the north and east. As the parliamentary select committee on constitutional reform fails to reach consensus, the government presents a draft constitution that dilutes some of its earlier proposals. The impasse persists, however, while the LTTE hardens its position against negotiations. The United States bans the LTTE and pressure grows for the UK to close the Tigers' international headquarters in London.

1998 At a convention organized in Colombo by the National Peace Council (NPC), 1,700 participants from all districts and ethnicities renounce the war and call for a 'just and honourable peace'. The convention receives goodwill messages from President Kumaratunge, UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and Pirabhakaran. The war continues in the north, however, while the LTTE steps up its bombing campaign in the south. A blast outside Maradana train station in Colombo kills over 30 people, but the biggest impact comes when Sri Lanka's holiest Buddhist shrine, the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, is attacked. This outrages Sinhalese sensibilities and forces the relocation of festivities marking the 50th anniversary of independence. It also brings about a formal ban on the LTTE within Sri Lanka and ends public advocacy for negotiations. Local elections are held in Jaffna for the first time in 15 years. Turnout is surprisingly high, but police and home guards massacre villagers near Trincomalee the very same week. In subsequent months, in Jaffna, the LTTE assassinate the popular Brigadier Larry Wijeratne and the newly-elected TULF mayor, Sarojini Yogeswaran.

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