Sri Lanka’s Office on Missing Persons (OMP) is currently dealing with nearly 17,000 active cases involving people whose whereabouts remain unknown, highlighting the continuing challenge faced by the island nation in resolving disappearances linked to decades of political violence and armed conflict. According to OMP Chairman Mahesh Katulanda, the commission has 23,352 cases recorded in its database, of which 16,966 remain active after duplicate records and cases involving people officially classified as missing in action were removed.
Katulanda disclosed the figures while speaking at an event connected with the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances. The observance, held annually on August 30, seeks to draw attention to people who have disappeared and the continuing suffering of families who remain uncertain about the fate and whereabouts of their relatives.
The large number of unresolved cases reflects the complex legacy of Sri Lanka’s prolonged periods of political unrest and armed conflict. A significant portion of the cases before the OMP relates to the country’s civil war between government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which ended in 2009. However, the issue of disappearances extends beyond the final years of the conflict and includes cases arising from earlier periods of political turmoil and unrest.
The Office on Missing Persons was established through legislation in 2016 as a state institution mandated to investigate reports of missing people and help families determine what happened to their relatives. Its broader objective is to provide answers and closure to families who have spent years, and in many cases decades, searching for information.
The continuing caseload underlines the scale and persistence of the problem. For families of the missing, the absence of definitive information can leave them in prolonged uncertainty, particularly when there is no confirmation of whether a missing relative is alive or dead. The OMP’s mandate is therefore not limited to maintaining records but also involves efforts to establish the fate and whereabouts of those reported missing.
Sri Lanka has faced international scrutiny for decades over allegations of enforced disappearances. Human rights organisations and international bodies have documented thousands of cases dating back to periods of political unrest in the 1980s as well as the civil war. Estimates of the overall number of people who disappeared over the decades have varied considerably, partly because different investigations and institutions have used different definitions, time periods and sources of information.
The OMP’s current database figure is therefore an important indicator of the cases formally before the institution, but does not necessarily represent the total number of people who may have disappeared in Sri Lanka over the decades. Earlier commissions and international organisations have maintained separate records, adding to the complexity of creating a comprehensive national picture.
The issue has remained particularly sensitive because disappearances affected people from different communities and occurred during different periods of political violence. Reports have included civilians as well as members of the security forces, with families across the country continuing to seek information about relatives whose fate remains unknown.
The establishment of the OMP was intended to provide an institutional mechanism for addressing these cases and helping families obtain answers. Its work forms part of Sri Lanka’s wider efforts to address the consequences of conflict and political violence and to develop mechanisms for reconciliation.
With nearly 17,000 active files still requiring attention, the latest figures demonstrate that resolving the issue of missing persons remains a long-term task for Sri Lankan authorities. For thousands of families, the passage of years has not brought certainty, making the identification of missing people and clarification of their fate a continuing national concern.
The figures also illustrate the enormous administrative and investigative challenge facing the OMP as it works through records accumulated over several decades. Establishing what happened in individual cases can require examination of old records, witness accounts and other available evidence, particularly where disappearances occurred during periods of conflict and political instability.
As Sri Lanka continues its efforts to address the legacy of its violent past, the unresolved cases before the Office on Missing Persons remain one of the most difficult issues confronting the country’s reconciliation process.
 is currently dealing with nearly 17,000 active cases involving people whose whereabouts remain unknown){kind=link}