For the first time, Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa acknowledged that roughly 20,000 people who disappeared during the country’s civil war are dead. The remark was made during a meeting with the UN in the capital, Colombo. Rajapaksa ‘s office stated that steps to issue death certificates for those formally labeled missing will be taken.
Hundreds of families of the formerly missing have been attending rallies and protests that demand information on where their loved ones are. Many have remained positive up until this point that their relatives remained alive and in the possession of security forces.
Read More: Sri Lanka civil war: Rajapaksa says thousands missing are dead
