NEW DELHI: Sri Lanka will simplify immigration procedures to facilitate the voluntary return of Tamil refugees from India who left the island without valid documents during the country’s decades-long civil war, the government told Parliament on Wednesday, seeking to remove legal hurdles that have complicated their repatriation.
Public Security Minister Ananda Wijepala said the Cabinet had approved special arrangements allowing eligible returnees to enter Sri Lanka after security clearance. “The Cabinet decided to allow them back in with a security clearance,” Wijepala said and added that those wishing to return should contact the Sri Lankan mission in Chennai.
The move addresses a longstanding issue affecting thousands of Sri Lankan Tamils who fled to India following ethnic violence that began in 1983 and the subsequent war between government forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which lasted nearly three decades.
Around 18,000 refugees returned to Sri Lanka between 2002 and 2022, but approximately 90,000 remain in Tamil Nadu alone as per various estimates. Many have spent decades in India, making documentation, livelihoods and long-term legal status key concerns in any eventual return.
The Sri Lankan Cabinet earlier this month approved special immigration arrangements for refugees returning under the auspices of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Under the plan, Sri Lankan nationals who left before August 1, 2006, without passports will undergo screening by the State Intelligence Service to establish that they have not been accused of murder, treason or other specified offences.
Those cleared will be permitted to enter through an authorised airport or port using temporary passports and will not face proceedings under Sri Lanka’s immigration law for their unauthorised departure. The decision follows concerns raised after a 75-year-old Sri Lankan Tamil refugee was arrested by immigration authorities at Jaffna airport in May last year after returning from India. The incident highlighted the legal uncertainties facing returnees and prompted calls for a more predictable repatriation mechanism.
Opposition leader Shanakiyan Rasamanickam said opposition parties could assist by ensuring refugees receive the required documentation before travelling. Wijepala agreed, signalling that the government would support sending necessary documents to prospective returnees in advance.
