Black July 1983 remembered

23 July 2014
Today Eelam Tamils around the world mark thirty-one years rom the horrors o the
anti-Tamil !o"rom o 1983# when Tamils were killed by $inhala mobs backed by the
then %&' "o(ernment and state orces)
*rmed with electoral rolls# $inhala mobs tar"eted Tamil homes and businesses lootin"
and ransackin" !ro!erty) +ri(en rom their homes# !articularly in ,olombo# o(er 3000
Tamils were massacred# whilst thousands more were eecti(ely de!orted by the state
to the &orth-East)
Eye witness re!orts described mobs chasin" Tamils down the street with kni(es and
settin" them ali"ht ali(e) -any hundreds o women were ra!ed) Tamil !olitical
!risoners locked u! in .elikada /ail# dee! within the island0s south# were also tar"eted
as !rison "uards allowed $inhala inmates to slau"hter them)
.e look back at e(ents throu"h international !ress co(era"e at the time1
21 Jul 1983 - The Times1
2The 3o(ernment yesterday im!osed local and orei"n !ress
censorshi! on all news about national security# law and order#
essential su!!lies# and incitement to mutiny# riot or ci(il
commotion)4

23 Jul 1983 - The -ontreal 3a5ette
2The oicials said 16 !risoners died in a /ailbreak at the .elikada
/ail in the ca!ital o ,olombo# where 37 8indu Tamil !risoners
were massacred -onday by ellow inmates belon"in" to the
nation0s Buddhist $inhalese ma/ority) 3uards also o!ened ire
yesterday on riotin" Tamil !risoners in the /ail o Jana# 389
kilometres north o ,olombo killin" three o them2
29 Jul 1983 - The +aily Tele"ra!h1
-otorists were dra""ed rom their cars to be stoned and beaten
with sticks) :thers were cut down with kni(es and a;es) -obs o
$inhala youth ram!a"ed throu"h the streets# ransackin" homes#
sho!s and oices# lootin" them and settin" them abla5e# as they
sou"ht out members o the Tamil ethnic minority) * mob attacked
a Tamil cyclist ridin" near ,olombo0s eye hos!ital) The cyclist was
hauled rom his bike# drenched with !etrol and set ali"ht) *s he
ran screamin" down the street# the mob set on him a"ain and
hacked him down with /un"le kni(es)4
26 Jul 1983 - The Times1
8ere in Britain some o the 27#000 $ri <anka Tamils blamed the
start o the i"htin" on an incident last week in which three teena"e
"irls at a bus-sto! near Jana in the north o $ri <anka were
alle"edly abducted and ra!ed by soldiers) :n "irl was later said to
ha(e committed suicide)
They also claim another atrocity in which si; schoolboys were shot
and killed by troo!s and !olice in the same area) They blame these
incidents or !rom!tin" the attack by Tamil "uerrillas on a $ri
<ankan *rmy (ehicle on $aturday# in which 13 soldiers were
killed)4
26 Jul 1983 - The Times 1
2These mostly in(ol(ed in the !resent troubles are the ,eylon
Tamils# a hi"hly educated# su!erior minority# who eel (ictimi5ed
by the $inhalese) &ot only are there ewer industrial o!!ortunities
or them in the north but Tamil boys ha(e been discriminated
a"ainst in winnin" !laces at uni(ersity4
2+es!ite their minority status the Tamils or years held to! /obs in
business and administration under the British# /obs they ha(e
mostly since lost under $inhalese rule) The cause o the !resent
(iolence must thereore be seen in !art economic terms4
28 Jul 1983 - The Times 1
2$moke rom hundreds o sho!s# oices# warehouses and homes
blew idly o(er ,olombo yesterday) *ny business# any house
belon"in" to# or occu!ied by a Tamil has been attacked by "an"s o
"oondas =hooli"ans> and the resultin" destruction looks like
<ondon ater a hea(y ni"ht0s attention rom the <utwae)4
23o(ernment oicials yesterday estimated that 20#000 business
had been attacked in the city and declared that there was a !attern
o or"anisation and !lannin" in the riotin" and lootin")4
2:ne o the !rinci!al reasons or Britain0s delay in "rantin"
inde!endence to its ormer colony was because o ears that the
ma/ority would tyranni5e the minority Tamils) But the ma/ority
$inhala s!eakers eel that they are threatened by 40 million Tamil
s!eakers in ?ndia)4
29 Jul 1983 - The -ontreal 3a5ette 1
2*ddressin" the island nation on radio and tele(ision or the irst
time since (iolent clashes between ma/ority $inhalese and minority
Tamil eru!ted si; days a"o# Jayewardene said the Tamil mo(ement
2should ha(e been banned lon"# lon" a"o) The $inhalese will ne(er
a"ree to the se!aration o a country that has been a united nation
or 2700 years#4 Jayewardene said)
'eo!le who ad(ocate se!aratism the !resident said# would lose all
their @ci(ic ri"hts4# be banned rom holdin" any oice and
!re(entin" rom !ractisin" a !roession)4
* "o(ernment oicial also conirmed that 130 $inhalese sailors o
the $ri <ankan na(y broke rom their barracks in the !ort city
o Trincomalee -onday and burned 167 houses in a Tamil
nei"hbourhood# killin" one Tamil and woundin" 10 others)
* &orwe"ian tourist re!orted seein" a $inhalese mob !our
"asoline on a minibus ull o about 20 Tamils in ,olombo and set it
on ire) Arom :slo# Eli $karstein was Buoted as sayin"# @,olombo
was burnin" when we let).omen# children and old !eo!le were
slau"htered) 'olice and soldiers did nothin" to sto! this "enocide)4
+ou"las <iyana"e# secretary o the ministry o state# acknowled"ed
that$inhalese !assen"ers on a ,olombo-bound train rom the
central $ri <anka town o Candy had attacked Tamil
!assen"ers they sus!ected o carryin" wea!ons) 'assen"ers
said one o the Tamils was chased naked and bleedin" throu"h the
railway cars until he ell dead and was thrown o)
The wa(e o killin"s was touched o by the ambush and slayin" o
13 $inhalese soldiers by Tamil insur"ent "uerillas o(er the
weekend) But the (iolence "rows out o a century o dee!ly-rooted
hatred# alon" with dierences o lan"ua"e and reli"ion between the
Buddhist $inhalese and the 8indu Tamils)4
29 Jul 1983 - The Times 1
'olitical !arties ad(ocatin" the !artition o $ri <anka will be
banned# 'resident J D Jayawardene announced yesterday as news
emer"ed o a second massacre in ,olombo0s main /ail)
?n an attem!t to a!!ease the mobs which ha(e attacked Tamil
homes and businesses# the 'resident declared that those seekin"
!artition will 2lose their ci(il ri"hts and cannot hold oice# cannot
!ractise !roessions# /oin mo(ements o or"ani5ations2)
-r Jayewardene said in a nationwide broadcast1 @The "o(ernment
has not decided that the time has come to accede to the clamour
and the reBuest# the natural reBuest# o the $inhala !eo!le that we
do not allow the mo(ement or di(ision to "row any more)4
29 Jul 1983 - The *"e 1
Arustrated e;!ectations o increased sel-rule or the Tamil
community# cou!led with 3o(ernment ears that its su!!ort rom
the ma/ority $inhalese was sli!!in"# a!!ear to ha(e been
the !rimary combustibles that i"nited the worst (iolence in this
scenic island nation since 1948)4
01 *u" 1983 - The $ydney -ornin" 8erald 1
2The $ri <ankan 3o(ernment has cracked down on !olitical
o!!onents anda!!ealed or !ublic su!!ort# sayin" ethnic
bloodshed on the island is !art o a orei"n-ins!ired !lot to
o(erthrow it)4
04 *u" 1983 - The Times1
$ri <anka *rmy !ersonnel acti(ely encoura"ed arson and the
lootin" o Tamil business establishments and homes in ,olombo)
E *bsolutely no action was taken to a!!rehend or !re(ent the
criminal elements in(ol(ed in these acti(ities) ?n many instances
army !ersonnel !artici!ated in the lootin" o sho!s)4
Tamil man stri!!ed naked by
$inhala rioters) 'hoto"ra!h ,handra"u!ta *marasin"he
Aind out more about this iconic !hoto"ra!h here)
Black July was not the irst time Tamils had been tar"eted and killed by ram!a"in"
$inhala mobs) ?n 1979# o(er 170 Tamils were killed in the Eastern 'ro(ince) Two years
later# in 1978# wides!read riots let o(er 300 dead) ?n 1966# less than a month ater the
%&' came to !ower# anti-Tamil riots let another 300 dead) ?n 1981# anti-Tamil riots
took !lace# with rulin" !arty -'s su!er(isin" the (iolence in Jana)
Aor more on the e(ents that led u! to Black July# see our !re(ious eature# F*natomy o
a !o"rom0) E;tract !roduced below1
2,ontrary to !o!ular belie# the July 1983 anti-Tamil !o"rom# sometimes reerred to as
their 8olocaust# was not a s!ontaneous reaction to the ambush o a $ri <ankan army
!atrol by Tamil "uerrillas) ?n a re!ort on the attacks# the ?nternational ,ommission o
Jurists said @the sus!icion is stron" that this or"anised attack on the Tamil !o!ulation
was !lanned and controlled by e;tremist elements in the "o(ernment %&' !arty# and
that the killin" o the 13 soldiers by GTamil "uerrillasH ser(ed as the occasion or
!uttin" the !lan into o!eration) The re!orts "o so ar as to alle"e that a member o the
,abinet was acti(ely in(ol(ed in !lannin" these attacks)2
GmoreH
$inhala
rioters celebrate as they !ause in the destruction o homes and businesses in Tamil
sectors o ,olombo