Sanctions: A Step in the Right Direction to Combat Impunity
Photo courtesy of Open Global Rights
The UK government has announced sanctions on three top former war time military commanders and a former LTTE commander accused of serious human rights violations and abuses such as extra judicial killings, torture and sexual violence.
The sanctions aim to seek accountability for war crimes and to prevent a culture of impunity. Financial sanctions involve the freezing of monetary and non-monetary assets (e.g. property or vehicles) and ensuring that no assets are made available to them. Individuals are unable to enter or remain in the UK and any visa application to travel to the UK, including for transit purposes, will be refused.
The people sanctioned are former Head of the Armed Forces, Shavendra Silva; former Navy Commander, Wasantha Karannagoda; former Commander of the Army, Jagath Jayasuriya; and former military commander of the LTTE, Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan, known as Karuna.
The International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP), an independent NGO working since 2013 to protect and promote justice and accountability in Sri Lanka, has submitted more than 60 sanctions and visa ban requests against public and security officials. These have been sent to the governments of the US, UK, Australia, Canada and the EU as well as the UN. The submissions cover gross violations of human rights and significant corruption in respect of the army, navy, air force, police and intelligence officials, Tamil paramilitaries as well as civil servants including judges and former ministers.
Visa ban requests have been made for a number of identified former Indian Peacekeeping Force officers alleged to have been complicit in gross human rights violations and mass atrocity crimes in the period when deployed in Sri Lanka in the late eighties.
The ITJP has submitted lengthy sanctions dossiers on General Shavendra Silva in 2021 and General Jagath Jayasuriya in 2022 to the UK government as well as sending dossiers to the governments of Canada, Australia and the EU. In 2020, Shavendra Silva was publicly designated in the US under 7031c of the Appropriations Act for his role in gross human rights violations.
Countries have taken action to apply the Global Magnitsky Act to military officers accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Army Commander Shavendra Silva and his family cannot travel to the US while Major General Udaya Perera was not allowed to board a flight there. The US also added Chandana Hettiarachchi, a naval intelligence officer, and Sunil Ratnayake, a former Army Sergeant, to the prohibited list.
In the US, the Leahy Laws may also be applied to Sri Lanka that prohibit the Department of State and Department of Defense from providing military assistance to foreign security force units that violate human rights with impunity.
The Sri Lanka Campaign for Peace and Justice (SLC) is another organization that has been consistently advocating for genuine accountability for systemic human rights violations. Its work has succeeded in placing and keeping Sri Lanka on the formal agenda of the UN Human Rights Council.
In a press release, SLC said the sanctions were the result of years of determined advocacy by civil society, survivors, and human rights groups in the UK and around the world. “Since the launch of the #TimeToSanction campaign in 2022, SLC – in partnership with British Tamils, International Truth and Justice Project (ITJP), People for Equality and Relief in Lanka (PEARL), and backed by British parliamentarians – has worked to ensure that perpetrators of war crimes and other violations are held accountable through targeted Magnitsky-style measures.”
“This is a moment of long-overdue recognition that accountability matters — and that impunity must have consequences,” said Ingrid Massagé, Chair of SLC. “It is a powerful message to survivors who have waited far too long for justice.”
Earlier this year, SLC joined other organisations in submitting a joint letter to the UK Foreign Secretary, urging the government to sanction specific individuals known to have overseen or enabled atrocities.
“However, while this marks a significant step, it is only a beginning. SLC urges the UK to expand the sanctions list to include other officials implicated in war crimes, including those named in credible international reports and investigations. Justice cannot be selective, and accountability must extend to all those responsible — not just a few.,” the press release said.
“SLC’s renewed push for sanctions included direct engagement with UK parliamentarians and the FCDO, as well as public campaigns during Magnitsky Month that brought international attention to impunity in Sri Lanka. Our call was simple: isolate those responsible, support victims, and prevent future abuses,” it said.
Campaign Director Yvonne Schofield answered questions from Groundviews on the effectiveness of sanctions, fighting the culture of impunity and the role of the international community.
Do you think sanctions such as these can be effective?
Yes, targeted sanctions are an important tool in the pursuit of accountability. While they may not deliver justice on their own, they send a clear message that impunity has consequences. They also provide survivors and victims’ families with much-needed recognition from the international community – a public affirmation that their suffering has not been forgotten. Sanctions help isolate perpetrators diplomatically and financially, restrict their movements and place pressure on domestic institutions that continue to shield them.
Besides not being able to travel, how can these sanctions affect perpetrators?
Sanctions go beyond travel restrictions. They freeze assets held in the UK, prohibit financial dealings, and deter institutions and individuals from engaging with sanctioned persons. Many senior Sri Lankan officials maintain international financial links and value their global reputations – sanctions directly impact those interests. They also have symbolic weight, undermining the legitimacy that such figures enjoy at home and sending a strong message to others in positions of power that accountability remains a global priority.
Successive governments have put people accused of war crimes in positions of power. Can sanctions work against people who have the backing of their governments?
Yes, they can and that’s exactly why sanctions are needed. When domestic systems fail to uphold justice and perpetrators are rewarded with promotions or political office, international mechanisms become even more essential. Sanctions disrupt that impunity by showing that government endorsement does not equate to global acceptance. They remind both perpetrators and governments that accountability cannot be indefinitely deferred, even if domestic politics protect those implicated.
What other measures can the international community take to pressure the Sri Lankan government into bringing about justice for victims?
There are several. Countries can support and expand universal jurisdiction cases, where perpetrators can be prosecuted abroad. They can strengthen support for UN mechanisms such as the Sri Lanka Accountability Project (OSLAP) to preserve evidence and monitor abuses. International financial institutions and donors can condition aid on human rights progress. Crucially, states can centre victim-survivor voices in their foreign policy – listening to families of the disappeared and amplifying their calls for justice at every opportunity.
Atrocities were committed in the south during the JVP times, which are now coming out again. Should sanctions be applied to those perpetrators too?
Yes. Accountability must be consistent and impartial. Whether atrocities were committed in the North or South, whether under one government or another, victims deserve equal recognition and justice. Sanctions should be applied based on credible evidence of violations, not political convenience. If perpetrators of atrocities during the JVP insurrections are identified and there is credible evidence, they too should face the consequences under international frameworks.
What are some of the successes achieved by sanctions?
Sanctions have played a vital role in many global contexts. In Sri Lanka, we’ve seen how even the threat of sanctions can shift conversations, raise the cost of impunity and embolden local activists. Globally, Magnitsky sanctions have disrupted corrupt networks, frozen illicit assets and raised pressure for prosecutions whether in Russia, Myanmar or Zimbabwe. They are not a silver bullet but when used strategically and alongside other measures, they are one of the few tools that can hold powerful abusers accountable without harming ordinary citizens.
