Expulsion of Northern Muslims
In October 1990, the LTTE expelled approximately 75,000 Muslims from their homes across the Northern Province with the stated objective of consolidating the North as a mono-ethnic Tamil region. The mass eviction of the Northern Muslims was carried out within an exceptionally short period of time, district by district, leaving families with no opportunity to secure their belongings, livelihoods, or documentation. As a result, the expelled Northern Muslims were abruptly severed from the economic resources that had sustained them for generations and denied access to their schools, mosques, and communal spaces that formed the foundation of their cultural, religious, and social life.73 They were compelled to restart their lives in unfamiliar and often inhospitable surroundings, predominantly in parts of the Puttalam District, one of the poorest regions in the country, where they faced prolonged displacement, social exclusion, and precarious living conditions.74 By this time, Sinhalese communities that used to live in parts of the Northern Province had already been compelled to leave due to threats, intimidation, and heightened tensions.
Although the end of the armed conflict in 2009 marked the first real possibility for return without the threat of a repeated expulsion, state resettlement efforts in the immediate post-war years prioritised those displaced after 2008. A persistent perception that Northern Muslims were less affected by the conflict was reinforced by this policy decision. This hierarchy of victimhood has endured and continues to impede recognition, accountability, and access to justice for the multiple and intersecting injustices suffered by the Northern Muslim community75.
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73 See M Thiruvarangan, ‘Remembering eviction of northern Muslims and making commitment to coexistence’, DailyFT, 29th October 2025), https://www.ft.lk/columns/Remembering-eviction-of-northern-Muslims-andmaking-commitment-to-coexistence/4-783567.
74 See F Haniffa, ‘Competing for Victim Status: In and the Ironies of Sri Lanka’s Post-War Transition’, (2015) 4(1) Stability: International Journal of Security and Development, https://doi.org/10.5334/sta.fj.
75 Ibid.
These challenges did not end with displacement or the formal cessation of hostilities. Instead, the expulsion has given rise to a range of interrelated and enduring injustices that continue to shape the lives of Northern Muslims decades later. Drawing from experiences of displaced and returning communities as recounted to the Commission at meetings at the Head Office, in Mullaitivu, in Vavuniya and Puttalam, the following key issues have been identified as illustrating how the initial act of forcible eviction has been compounded by a lack of acknowledgement of the enormity of the event, exclusionary state practices, and unresolved inter-communal tensions.
A fundamental challenge has been the limited awareness and recognition of the expulsion of Muslims from the North, both within public discourse and institutional responses.76 First, there has been no state mandated inquiry process to document the event. Secondly, narratives regarding the history of the conflict have foregrounded state minoritization initiatives against Tamils and violence perpetrated against Tamil communities by Sinhalese mobs, the Police and Military. Discussion of violations committed by the LTTE against Muslim civilians undermined the power of the narrative regarding how Tamil communities were victimized. Further in light of the grave and widespread atrocities experienced by Tamil communities in the North for decades after the 1990 expulsion, the eviction has been spoken of and continues to be referenced as having worked to the advantage of Muslims by removing them from direct exposure to the years of violence endured by those who stayed. This framing narrowed the space available to articulate Muslim grievances and failed to acknowledge the profound injustice inherent in the abrupt severing of identity, culture, religious life, and centuries-old economic and social ties to the land and the stripping of all community members’ assets. It must be noted that among the tragedies recounted by expelled Northern Muslims was the loss of community with their Tamil neighbours.77
At the meeting with the Commission on 5th May 2026, activists from the Northern Muslim community stated that it was one of the few times that a state institution was recognizing the expulsion of Northern Muslims at a meeting devoted to discussing their issues alone. It must be acknowledged that no state efforts to inquire into or document the expulsion of the Northern Muslims and establish the particularity of their expulsion experience have been initiated so far. The lack of such a process impedes ready recognition of the injustice suffered by the expelled population.
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76 Discussion held in Vavuniya on 3rd November 2025 to commemorate 35 years since the eviction of the Northern Muslims.
77 Ibid.
The possibility of return following the end of the war in 2009 was also marked by exclusion and refusal. Returning Muslims were frequently denied the opportunity to resettle in their original lands on the basis that they already had homes elsewhere, particularly in Puttalam and were therefore ineligible for assistance.78 State practice reflected a pattern in which the collective return of Northern Muslims was deprioritized in comparison to the resettlement of more recently affected populations, driven by assumptions that Muslims displaced to Puttalam for many years, were comparatively better placed.79 Additionally, Tamil officials administering the Northern Province often viewed the return of evicted Muslims with suspicion or hostility rather than as a legitimately exercising their right to return.80 Such a sentiment was present in the immediate aftermath of the war and continues to affect returned Northern Muslim communities today. There must be a recognition that while some displaced Northern Muslim communities have managed to rebuild lives, there are many that have not been able to recover and continue to suffer the consequences of the expulsion.
Unresolved grievances among Tamil communities and returning norther Muslims have contributed to heightened ethnic tensions in the post-war period. Given the scarcity of land, livelihoods, and public resources in areas where Tamil communities themselves resettled after prolonged displacement, returning Muslims are often perceived as competitors for already limited resources.81 Tensions have been particularly pronounced in relation to land ownership and access to livelihoods.82 As a result, Northern Muslims report feeling unwelcome both in their places of origin and in the areas to which they are resettled. For many years during their displacement in Puttalam, Northern Muslims were considered residents and voters of their places of origin and not of the Puttalam District. They were perceived by Puttalam residents for years as a strain on the areas’ already meagre resources.
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78 Ibid.
79 See S Saroor, ‘Northern Muslims’ Right to Return’, Groundviews (30th October 2023), https://groundviews.org/2023/10/30/northern-muslims-right-to-return-whose-responsibility/.
80 See Thiruvarangan, op. cit.
81 Ibid.
82 See Haniffa, op. cit.
Some Northern Muslim communities have managed to establish thriving villages in Puttalam. Some, however, continue to experience difficulties. The Commission observed that certain communities in Puttalam resettled decades ago still do not receive services provided by the local government authorities or the divisional secretariat. For instance, in the village, certain communities had no garbage collection, and no post- office. Many villagers also had no valid documentation for the land they had been living on for decades and require regularization. Some families who have moved to the North continue to maintain ties in Puttalam due to better employment opportunities (particularly for women), greater access to education, and infrastructure.83 Families settled in Puttalam also maintain some rudimentary connection with their places of origin in the hope of resettling when conditions are better suited. Maintaining this dual connection has been difficult;84 yet, it has often been pursued as a strategy for survival amid uncertainty.
The lack of sufficient state acknowledgement of the long-term displacement of the Northern Muslims, the difficulties of settling in Puttalam while maintaining their status as voters of the districts in the Northern Province for decades after the displacement, have rendered the northern Muslim’s experience unique. It is necessary that the specifics of this experience are recognized and their ongoing problems addressed. For instance, there is a request from certain sections of the Northern Muslim population for an accommodation of their status as voters of the Northern Province—while residing outside the Province -- for a specific period of time. They ask for this accommodation to give them the opportunity to return when infrastructure and other provisions improve in their villages in the North. Enabling such a possibility for return must be considered when discussing reconciliation options for the Northern Muslims.
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83 HRCSL meeting with community members in Mullaitivu (December 2024).
84 See Haniffa, op. cit.
The commission encountered several instances where the absence of legal documentation has entrenched vulnerability and exclusion. Many Northern Muslims lost proof of ownership or residence in the North due to the destruction of documents during the war and the sudden nature of their expulsion, which afforded no opportunity to retrieve personal records. In newly resettled areas in the North, land tenure has similarly remained insecure due to the state’s failure to issue formal documentation. For instance, residents of the Kakkaitivu settlement, home to approximately 23 families, largely descendants of those evicted in 1990, have yet to receive official confirmation letters for the land allocated to them.85 This lack of documentation has directly obstructed access to essential services required for a dignified life. Returning Muslims in Mullaitivu have reported difficulties in obtaining electricity connections and permission to dig agricultural wells, as they are unable to demonstrate ownership of the land they occupy.86
Conditions in newly resettled areas have further compounded these hardships, with many settlements lacking even basic necessities. For example, in Kakkaitivu, located within Jaffna District and near a municipal garbage recycling centre, residents report that the air is permeated with the odor of untreated sewage, adversely affecting health and well-being. Access to clean water, electricity, and adequate sanitation facilities remains severely limited, undermining the ability of families to live with dignity and reinforcing patterns of neglect in resettlement planning and implementation.87
Following the Easter Sunday Attacks of April 2019, increased surveillance of Muslim communities by law enforcement and security agencies has further deepened mistrust, reinforcing perceptions of Muslims as a security threat. For example, a women’s organization established to address domestic violence was reportedly subjected to repeated visits by the Army for document checks, contributing to fear, stigma, and heightened suspicion among neighbouring Tamil communities.88 Such dynamics erode prospects for coexistence and reconciliation, while entrenching the marginal status of Northern Muslims.
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85 See ‘Thirty-five years on, remembering the 1990 Muslim eviction from the North’, Sunday Observer (2nd November 2025), https://www.sundayobserver.lk/2025/11/02/news-features/65832/remembering-the-1990muslim-eviction-from-the-north/.
86 See Thiruvarangan, op. cit.
87 See ‘Thirty-five years on, remembering the 1990 Muslim eviction from the North’, op. cit.
88 HRCSL meeting with community members in Mullaitivu (December 2024).
The Commission has initiated several interventions with the Northern Muslim community in Puttalam. During disaster monitoring visits (following Cyclone Ditwah) to Puttalam in December 2025, the Commission identified issues affecting the displaced Northern Muslim community residing in Karambe, Puttalam. Following these observations, a meeting was held on 12th February 2026 to discuss the 1990 expulsion of Northern Muslims and issues relating to reparations. The meeting was attended by the Deputy Director of the Land Reform Commission (‘LRC’), the Divisional Secretary of Kalpitiya, and representatives of civil society organizations. During the meeting, the Deputy Director of the LRC assured participants that all outstanding land-related matters would be resolved within three months.
A further meeting was held on 5th May 2026 to continue discussions on the 1990 expulsion of Northern Muslims with civil society activists. Issues of concern to returning Northern Muslim communities in the districts of Jaffna, Mullaitivu, Vavuniya, Kilinochchi, and Mannar were discussed and a government program to assist returning Northern Muslims was highlighted as being necessary to streamline their return. A meeting was also held with representatives of the Office for Reparations on 25th June 2026 to discuss matters relating to reparations for the displaced Northern Muslim community. The Commission has already shared information of its ongoing work on the Northern Muslims with the Office for Reparations and plans to work together with the Office on this issue.
A follow up fact-finding mission was conducted on 22nd May 2026 to assess the situation of the displaced Northern Muslim community in Karambe, Puttalam. The mission identified several challenges relating to education, healthcare, livelihoods, and land rights. It was also found that many members of the displaced community were in possession of fraudulent land certificates. The lack of resolution with regards to resettlement of certain northern Muslim populations in Puttalam after several decades speaks to the deprioritization of issues faced by this population and the need for urgent redress and attention from the authorities.
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