Relatives of the war-missing have rejected a truth and reconciliation commission proposed by the government.
People from all eight districts in the northern and eastern provinces gathered in Mannar and Batticaloa to mark the international day for victims of enforced disappearances.
They said a firm ‘no’ to a proposed TRC and the already existent Office for Missing Persons.
They demanded a mechanism for interim justice with international intervention.
In a statement released in Batticaloa, relatives said 187 parents have died so far while struggling for justice for their missing loved ones.
Evidence should not be let to ruin in this manner by forcing on them with yet another internal mechanism, it said.
Justice should be given speedily through the international criminal court or a special court.
They also called for a lasting political solution in order for Tamils to live in peace.
Such a solution should be decided through a referendum in the two provinces to be held under international supervision.
In Mannar, protestors released a statement which alleged that threats and harassment of Tamil women have intensified under successive Sinhala governments.
Relatives had rejected government offers of ‘certificates for the missing’ and compensation.
