A representative from the United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances attended an exhibition in Jaffna showcasing belongings of missing persons, as families continue their decades-long search for answers.
A United Nations official has attended a memorial exhibition in Jaffna dedicated to families searching for relatives who disappeared during Sri Lanka's armed conflict. Ana Lorena Delgadillo Pérez, representing the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID), opened the "Long Road for Justice" exhibition on Sunday alongside Yogarasa Kanagaranjini, head of the Association of Relatives of Enforced Disappearances (ARED). The event coincided with the International Day for Victims of Enforced Disappearances.
The exhibition, held at Thanthai Selva Auditorium, displayed personal items and memorabilia belonging to individuals missing for over 17 years. Hundreds of family members attended, with some becoming visibly emotional while viewing objects once belonging to their disappeared relatives. Delgadillo Pérez emphasized the ongoing trauma facing these families, stating that no parent should pass away without learning the fate of their missing children.
The UN representative stressed that the search for disappeared persons represents an unresolved crime with continuing obligations for both Sri Lankan authorities and the international community. She noted that families' pursuit of answers will persist as long as the fate and whereabouts of victims remain unknown. During her visit to Sri Lanka, Delgadillo Pérez is scheduled to travel to multiple locations across the northern and eastern regions, including sites of discovered mass graves and former military installations, to gather information for the WGEID's forthcoming annual report on enforced disappearances and militarization.