Chemmani Accountability · Mass-grave casework

Evidence anchors

Each anchor carries a stable E-id for citation in correspondence, PQs, and parliamentary submissions.

1. E.chemmani-accountability.001

   OHCHR Sri Lanka Accountability Project (standing; HRC res. 46/1, 51/1, 57/1, renewed 60/1)

   Open source
2. E.chemmani-accountability.002

   Jaffna Magistrate's Court record — Chemmani exhumations 1999 → present; renewed 2024–25

   Open source
3. E.chemmani-accountability.003

   Bishop of Mannar (Rt Rev Rayappu Joseph) LLRC testimony 2013 — standing call for independent international forensic oversight

   Open source
4. E.chemmani-accountability.004

   ITJP — mass-grave casework

   Open source
5. E.chemmani-accountability.005

   PEARL Action — disappearances casework

   Open source
6. E.chemmani-accountability.006

   Adayaalam Centre for Policy Research — Northern transitional-justice monitoring

   Open source
7. E.chemmani-accountability.007

   Office on Missing Persons (Sri Lanka) — statutory body

   Open source

Policy asks

1. UK Government (FCDO)
   Set out HM Government's public position on UNHRC resolution 60/1 implementation, with specific reference to mass-grave protocol compliance at the Chemmani exhumations (480 sets identified across phases 1–3 and 479 fully exhumed at day 96, 28 Jul 2026).
2. UK Government (FCDO)
   Support the standing 2013 call by the Bishop of Mannar (Rt Rev Rayappu Joseph) for independent international forensic oversight of mass-grave sites in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka.
3. UK Government (FCDO)
   Support a victim-safe DNA identification pathway for remains recovered at Chemmani, consistent with international forensic standards and the OHCHR Sri Lanka Accountability Project mandate.
4. UK Government (FCDO)
   Issue a public démarche to the Government of Sri Lanka requesting a substantive response on the public record to UN Joint Allegation Letter AL LKA 1/2025 (21 Jul 2025), including the eight sets of 1999 remains still not returned to families.
5. UK Government (FCDO)
   Table an oral update on Chemmani at the HRC 60 cycle, referencing the ITJP 13 Jul 2026 report and the HRCSL Sep 2025 findings on intimidation of Chemmani site workers.
6. UK Government (FCDO / OFSI)
   Confirm whether the individuals publicly named for command-responsibility scrutiny by ITJP in its 13 Jul 2026 Chemmani report have been screened against the UK Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations 2020 designation criteria.
7. APPG Sri Lanka
   Maintain a standing watch on Chemmani court phases, victim-safe DNA pathway progress, chain-of-custody compliance, site-protection status, and the State-Silence Ledger tracking institutional response cadence.

Sample Parliamentary Questions

1. written→ FCDO

   To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment has been made of mass-grave protocol compliance at the court-supervised Chemmani / Kokkuthoduvai exhumations, and what representations HM Government has made to the Government of Sri Lanka on independent international forensic oversight of the site, consistent with the OHCHR Sri Lanka Accountability Project mandate renewed under HRC Resolution 60/1.

2. written→ FCDO

   To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps HM Government is taking to support a victim-safe DNA identification pathway for remains recovered at Chemmani, consistent with international forensic standards.

3. written→ FCDO

   To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether HM Government will publicly support the standing 2013 call by the Bishop of Mannar for independent international forensic oversight of mass-grave sites in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka.

4. written→ FCDO

   To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what evaluation has been made of the chain-of-custody regime at the Chemmani site, and what international forensic standards HM Government applies as a reference.

5. written→ FCDO

   To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what UK funding or technical-assistance routes have been considered to support credentialed independent forensic capacity at mass-grave sites in the Northern and Eastern Provinces of Sri Lanka, including at Chemmani.