Remembrance Day
Official nameජාතික රණවිරු සැමරුම් උළෙල
National War heroes Commemoration Day
Also calledVictory Day (2010–2014)
Observed bySri Lankans
TypeNational
SignificanceEnd of the Sri Lankan Civil War and to commemorate the war dead
ObservancesParades, silences, cultural show
Date18 May
Next time18 May 2024 (2024-05-18)
FrequencyAnnual
Related toMullivaikkal Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day (Sinhala: ජාතික රණවිරු සැමරුම් උළෙල Jāthika Raṇaviru Sæmarum Uḷela), also known as National War Heroes Commemoration Day, is a memorial day observed in Sri Lanka since the end of the Sri Lankan Civil War, which is observed to commemorate the war heroes which fought in the war and the civilians who were killed in the war from both sides. Remembrance Day is observed on 18 May, which marks the decisive victory of the Sri Lankan Army against the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the end of the Sri Lankan Civil War, on 18 May 2009.

Celebrations are marked by speeches and a moment of silence. Initially, under President Mahinda Rajapaksa, the day was known as Victory Day and included a military parade, but in 2015 was renamed Remembrance Day by President Maithripala Sirisena.[1][2][3]

The memorial day occurs on the same day as Mullivaikkal Remembrance Day, a similar memorial day celebrated by Sri Lankan Tamils to commemorate the Tamils who were killed during the final stages of the war.

History

The Sri Lankan Civil War was an armed conflict fought between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE, aka Tamil Tigers) and the Government of Sri Lanka. With the end to the war, 18 May 2009 marked a day of celebration around the island. The celebrations of 1st anniversary were presided over by President Mahinda Rajapaksa, whose government won the war. The celebrations were commemorated as Victory Day, a celebration of the triumph of the armed forces against terrorism in the country, and continued under the same name until 2015. The newly elected President Maithripala Sirisena renamed the day to Remembrance Day to "mark the sacrifices made by all those, who irrespective of their ethnicity, safeguarded the unity and territorial integrity of the country". The day also recognises all civilians who died in the war. The day is a step towards the reconciliation between all communities in the country.[1][2][3]

Commemorations for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam are not permitted.[2][3]

Anniversaries

Date heldLocationPresided by
1st18 June 2010Galle Face Green, ColomboMahinda Rajapaksa
2nd27 May 2011
3rd19 May 2012
4th18 May 2013
5th18 May 2014Matara
6th19 May 2015Maithripala Sirisena
7th18 May 2016National War Memorial Battaramulla, Colombo
8th19 May 2017
9th19 May 2018
10th19 May 2019
11th19 May 2020Gotabaya Rajapaksa
12th19 May 2021
13th19 May 2022
14th19 May 2023Ranil Wickremesinghe

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Sri Lanka shift on civil war anniversary". BBC News. 19 May 2015. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 "May 19th – No more Victory Day, Only 'Remembrance Day'". Asian Tribune. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 Jayasekera, Sandun. "May 19 is Remembrance Day: Rajitha". dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
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