As for our Northern Province, ‘missing persons affairs’ are not just a matter that sleeps in the form of a file at the government departments. They are the high emotional and humanitarian issues that are interrelated with unhealable tears, so many expectations, and the unexplainable pains of thousand families for many decades.
An awareness program implemented country-wise by the Office of Missing persons was held on Thursday (07th of May 2026) at the skill development center of Kilinochchi District under the chairmanship of the Northern Province governor. The Hon. Governor addressed the above speech when he participated as chief guest at this meeting.
Mr. Mahesh Katulanda, Chairman of the Office of Missing Persons, delivered the welcome speech via a zoom meeting and emphasized the importance of the awareness program. Following this, a special news item from Mr. Harshana Nanayakara, Minister of Justice and National Integration, was officially presented at the meeting. The Honorable Governor also provided following additional remarks after the speech:
“Transitional Justice Mechanism” is a trending topic in the Northern and Eastern Provinces, which have faced significant challenges for a long time due to war. The pain caused by a person’s absence, wandering where he/she is, what has happened to him/her, and feeling that ‘someone else hide him/her’ can be more devastating than the pain resulting from his/her death. No one can understand the pain other than his/her family, which still believes one day their missing person will knock on their doorstep.
In the transitional mechanism, other offices provide compensations and handle structural matters to ensure the same incidents don’t happen again. But the Office of Missing persons only functions in the field related to human souls and their emotions. If the authorities deeply understand this depth only, you can absorb this actual depth of awarness session.
A mechanism to identify what happened to missing persons and to provide justice for their families is being solely set aside. But parallel to that, we should introspect for a moment whether administrative structures correctly do their duties to family.
Have we treated the public in an honorable way who reached our government office with so many sorrows? Have we completed their needs obediently? Or, “Like the story of a man who fell from a palm tree and was then trampled by a cow climbing over him,” had we too harassed and neglected those families, who were already suffering in great sorrow, with the arrogance and indifference of authority?
I did not fully accuse all on authorities. However, I believe that even when it comes to helping them, a united and humane approach has still not been fully developed among our officials. While the mechanism seeking justice continues on one side, our officials must take the lead in ensuring that the families receive, without any delay, the pensions, Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF), Employees’ Trust Fund (ETF), and other payments due to those who were missed, so as to support the families’ day-to-day economic survival.
Based on having several decades of experience in the administrative service, I find myself questioning to what extent our officials have made use of the opportunities available through the office on missing persons to register a certificate recognizing a person as missing or presumed dead.” Officials can use this easily on the basis of ivestigations and recommendations of the Office of Missing persons. Additionally, I present an information here that certificate of missing person can also be get.
We should clearly understand one thing. Some have confused the public through the wrong rumors for their political concern that ‘If the certificate of death or certificate of missing persons are received, the procedure to find the missing persons or the process of uncovering the truth would also come to a standstill with that’.This is completely wrong. You must make it clear to the people that obtaining this certificate for administrative purposes and to receive benefits will never halt the investigations or searches aimed at justice. Those efforts will continue to be carried forward.”
Next, excavation of human mass graves has been made in many locations of Northern and Eastern Provinces, specifically Chemmani in the Northern Province. Beyond the Office of Missing persons handling the relationships between missing persons and mass graves, there is a huge responsibility for our administrative authorities. Huge responsibility to formally document the past situations through the witness who lived for a long period and submit for court procedures, which is for Grama Niladharis and Divisional Secretaries. But, I think unfortunately up to now it has not been reported in a satisfactory way. I firmly believe that the definitely missing persons office will provide more clarification.
Governance under his excellency president Anura Kumara Dissanayaka do not cause any barriers to the Office of Missing Persons Activities and Mass Excavation Activities. Contray, it Completely providing a fund to these activities uninteruptely. In the past, no one who held in power had ever provided such open and transparent support.”
The main reason is that those who are in part of this government were wandering about the missing relations like this in the past. They are well aware of that pain deeply. For that reason only they are very strong that full justice must be given as well as economic benefits for them should confirm. As officials, we must properly utilize this positive stance of the government for the benefit of the people. I firmly believe that by conducting such coordination discussions once every six months, we can review our progress and also discuss and resolve the challenges we face. I firmly believe that this awareness session will create a new belief and significant changes in affected people’s lives.
Following to the governor’s speech, a clear explanation was given by J. Thatparan, Director of the Office of Missing persons, regarding the Act of missing persons and its orders (including human mass graves and responsibilities of district and divisional secretaries). Statistical information regarding missing persons was submitted by T. Yogaraja, Office Board Member of the Office of Missing Persons.
Thereafter, a question and answer section was held with the officers under the guidance of executive director J. Thatperan.
This meeting was arranged with the aim of providing awareness to the authorities regarding updating the progress of files and the new policy structure of the Office of Missing persons.
C. Sathiyaseelan, the Secretary to the Governor of the Northern Province, the Executive Director and Board Members of the Office of Missing Persons, Authorities, District Secretaries of the four districts of Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu, and Mannar, Divisional Secretaries, Assistant Divisional Secretaries, Deputy Registrars General of the districts, the Commissioner of the Department of Probation and Child Care Services of the Northern Province, the Assistant Director of the Department of Social Services, and several other senior senior participated in this meeting.
