1977 anti-Tamil pogrom
The 1977 anti-Tamil pogrom in Sri Lanka followed the 1977 general elections in Sri Lanka where the Sri Lankan Tamil nationalistic Tamil United Liberation Front won a plurality of minority Sri Lankan Tamil votes. In the elections, the party stood for secession. An official government estimate put the death toll at 125, whereas other sources estimate that around 300 Tamils were killed by Sinhalese mobs. Human rights groups, such as the UTHR-J, accused the newly elected UNP-led government of orchestrating the violence.
| 1977 anti-Tamil pogrom in Sri Lanka | |
|---|---|
Location of Sri Lanka | |
| Location | Sri Lanka |
| Date | August 12 to 20, 1977 (+05.30 GMT) |
| Target | Primarily Tamils, also Sinhalese |
Attack type | Decapitation, Burning, Stabbing, Shooting, Raping |
| Weapons | Knives, Sticks, Fire, Guns |
| Deaths | 125 (official) - 300+ |
| Injured | 1000+ |
| Perpetrators | Mostly Sinhalese mobs, UNP led Sri Lankan government, also Tamil mobs; Sinhalese police officers and military personnel to a lesser degree |
The pogrom began with policemen threatening and assaulting Tamils at a carnival in Jaffna, which led to a clash between the two groups. This led to further police violence against Tamils in Jaffna, followed by Tamil violence against Sinhalese in the city. Following the Jaffna incidents, violence between Sinhalese and Tamils flared throughout the country. While the large majority of victims were Tamils, Sinhalese were also attacked in Tamil majority areas.