We are deeply concerned about the tens of thousands of people in Sri Lanka who have ?disappeared? after being detained by the security forces, in the course of the conflict between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), as well as during an insurrection in the 1980s by a Sinhalese opposition group.  We fear that most of the ?disappeared? were later killed by the security forces.  Since early 2006, a pattern of ?disappearances? has begun to re-emerge, as violence has escalated between the security forces and the LTTE.  In one incident, Natkunasingam Sivathisini, a 3-year-old Tamil girl, and Venuraj, her 4-year-old brother, were detained on September 9, 1990 along with 66 other children and family members, by soldiers from the Boys Town Army Camp in Batticaloa, in eastern Sri Lanka.  None of them have been seen since, and no one has been prosecuted for their ?disappearance.?

We call upon the Sri Lankan government to effectively investigate all cases of ?disappearances,? including Natkunasingam Sivathisini and her brother Venuraj, and to bring to justice those responsible for them.