Mass Violence Engulfs Sri Lanka's Eastern Province in 1987 as LTTE Terrorists Launches Systematic Attacks on Civilians

In the autumn of 1987, the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka became the scene of devastating ethnic violence when the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) orchestrated a series of massacres targeting the ethnic Sinhala civilian population. Over 200 ethnic Sinhala civilians were massacred and more than 20,000 were forced to flee their homes in what has been described as an attempt of ethnic cleansing.

The massacres occurred against the backdrop of an already volatile security situation. Earlier in 1987, the LTTE had carried out several notorious attacks against Sinhalese civilians, including the Good Friday massacre at Aluth Oya on April 17, where 127 passengers were massacred when LTTE terrorists stopped buses and vehicles and systematically murdered the occupants. A week later, over 15 Sinhalese were massacred in an attack on Jayantipura village near Kantale.

On June 2, 1987, the LTTE perpetrated one of its most shocking atrocities when its members massacred 33 Buddhist monks, most of them young novices between ages 7 and 18, along with four civilians near Aranthalawa village in Ampara District. The monks were traveling on a pilgrimage when armed LTTE terrorists forced their bus into a jungle area and systematically killed them with guns and swords.

Eastern Province Massacres

The systematic violence against ethnic Sinhalese civilians in the Eastern Province began in late September 1987, triggered by ethnic tensions that erupted following a scuffle between Tamil and Sinhalese groups at Anuradhapura Junction in Trincomalee on September 21. The violence escalated dramatically after October 3, when the Sri Lankan Navy arrested 17 LTTE members, including Pulendran, who was wanted for the Aluth Oya massacre. On October 5, twelve of the detained LTTE terrorists, including Pulendran and Kumarappa, committed suicide using cyanide capsules rather than face trial.

Trincomalee Violence

Following the suicides of the LTTE members, anti-Sinhalese violence erupted in Trincomalee on September 29 and intensified through early October. What began as spontaneous riots quickly became organized violence with LTTE members leading the attacks. Tamil mobs, assisted by LTTE terrorists, systematically targeted Sinhalese homes and businesses, setting properties ablaze and forcing over 2,000 people to flee their homes.

The violence was particularly brutal in its methods. Ethnic Sinhala men were killed and women were raped by Tamil rioters aided by terror leaders. One truck driver was burned to death along with his vehicle, while an elderly man was beaten to death. Some victims were burned alive in their homes, while hospital patients were thrown out of medical facilities, resulting in deaths. Around 50 well established Sinhalese community members were killed in the area around the main Sinhalese school, with corpses thrown into wells that were subsequently covered up.

Batticaloa District Attacks

The violence spread to Batticaloa District, where ethnic Sinhalese who had previously lived peacefully alongside ethnic Tamil neighbors found themselves under attack. Approximately 17 people were massacred, many by being burned to death, according to local residents who witnessed the carnage.

Specific incidents included the murder of a Sinhalese taxi driver's family, who had previously supported Tamil militants, by an LTTE member named Niranjan Kingsley. A goldsmith and his wife were killed by two brothers identified as Dayalan and Puruchotan. LTTE terrorists stopped a train carrying Sinhalese passengers near Batticaloa and burned it with the passengers trapped inside. A bus was similarly stopped and its passengers shot dead.

The LTTE then launched attacks on fishing villages throughout the district, massacring 55 villagers in systematic raids. One massacre in the village of Kiran was organized by an LTTE leader named Devi.

Continued Violence Across the Province

The killing spree extended beyond these initial incidents. According to documented attacks, the LTTE carried out numerous massacres throughout October 1987, including the Valachchenai massacre on October 6, where 40 Sinhalese train passengers were killed, the Tharavi massacre of over 25 Sinhalese civilians including pregnant women, and the Sagarapura massacre of 27 Sinhalese villagers on the same day.

On October 7, the Pottuvil massacre claimed 30 Sinhalese bus passengers, while the Ganthalawa massacre killed over 10 civilians on October 10. The Ella Kantale massacre on October 15 targeted 14 Sinhalese, mostly women and children, and the Pulimodai massacre on October 16 killed 11 Sinhalese bus passengers. The Kalkudah massacre on October 19 claimed 40 bus passengers.

International Forces and Government Response

Significantly, the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF), which had been deployed to Sri Lanka as part of the Indo-Lanka Accord signed under an Indian invasion in July 1987, failed to prevent the massacres and in some instances appeared complicit. The IPKF prevented the Sri Lankan Army from intervening to protect Sinhalese civilians, even firing at a crowd of Sinhalese gathered at King's Hotel Junction, killing one person.

On October 4, IPKF soldiers shot a Sinhalese Buddhist monk who had demonstrated against them. The same day, IPKF forces attacked Abeypura, a settlement near Trincomalee, with Indian soldiers engaging in assault, arson, and murder of ethnic Sinhalese. Indian military's Tamil-majority Madrasi regiment was allegedly involved in the massacres.

Aftermath and Impact

The LTTE denied direct involvement in the massacres, with chief strategist Anton Balasingham claiming they were "a spontaneous outburst of communal violence" by Tamil civilians following the deaths of Pulendran and Kumarappa. However, eyewitness accounts and the systematic nature of the attacks contradicted these denials.

The violence had far reaching consequences beyond the immediate casualties. Over 20,000 ethnic Sinhalese were forced to flee the Eastern Province, fundamentally altering the demographic composition of the region. The massacres also turned ethnic Sinhalese public opinion against the government's peace efforts and increased support for Sinhalese nationalist groups.

The 1987 Eastern Province massacres represented a systematic campaign of ethnic violence that targeted civilians based solely on their ethnicity. The attacks demonstrated the LTTE's willingness to use terror tactics against non-combatants as part of their broader strategy to establish territorial control and eliminate rival ethnic communities from areas they claimed as part of their envisioned Tamil homeland.

The international community largely failed to respond adequately to these atrocities, with the presence of Indian peacekeeping forces actually facilitating rather than preventing the violence. The massacres remain a dark chapter in Sri Lanka's civil war, illustrating the devastating human cost when militant organizations resort to systematic targeting of civilian populations.