From Myanmar IIMM to Mullivaikkal:

Justice Is a Mechanism

Leveraging the IIMM Model to Build Tamil Case Files for International Prosecution

Advocacy Briefing for Eelam Tamil Human Rights Professionals: Lessons from Myanmar’s Pursuit of International Justice

Disclaimer for Readers

This advocacy briefing is intended for informational and educational purposes only. It is provided as a resource for Eelam Tamil human rights professionals, advocates, and allied stakeholders pursuing justice, accountability, and the truth for crimes committed against the Tamil people. The analysis herein draws on recent international precedents, including but not limited to events and mechanisms relevant to Myanmar, and proposes adaptive strategies for the Eelam Tamil context. This document does not constitute legal advice and should not be interpreted as such. Readers are encouraged to consult qualified counsel and specialized organizations when engaging in legal, forensic, or advocacy work based on strategies described herein. Recommendations and opinions expressed belong solely to the authors and do not represent the official position of any organization mentioned within. All reasonable efforts have been made to ensure accuracy and timeliness, but no responsibility is assumed for any errors or omissions. Use of this briefing is at the reader’s sole risk.

Editor’s Note

With every passing year, the unresolved legacy of mass atrocities committed against Eelam Tamils in Sri Lanka grows heavier-not only in memory but in the ongoing rights struggles of survivors and their descendants. This briefing emerges at a crucial juncture, drawing inspiration from the Seventh Annual Report of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM) and the compelling advocacy of Nicholas Koumjian, head of the IIMM, whose approach to international accountability has reshaped the contours of modern justice-seeking for atrocity crimes¹. Myanmar’s pursuit of accountability, while fraught with setbacks, has carved new pathways-technological, legal, and narrative-that can breathe new vigor into the Eelam Tamil quest for redress.

This document is crafted not simply as a summary of the Myanmar model. Rather, it aims to emotionally and strategically resonate with Tamil human rights professionals. It weaves together the lessons, challenges, and breakthroughs from Myanmar’s experience, contextualizes them within the lived trauma and resilience of the Tamil people, and proposes an actionable, rights-based roadmap for justice. In a world increasingly defined by real-time atrocity documentation, transnational survivor testimony, and legal innovation, our hope is to ignite renewed professionalism, solidarity, and hope in a fight that, while long, remains urgent and profoundly just.

Methodology

The construction of this advocacy briefing followed a multi-tiered research and synthesis approach, fusing best practices from international criminal law, transitional justice studies, forensic documentation, and active advocacy. Research was conducted through systematic review of official reports-including the IIMM’s Seventh Annual Report and related UN documentation-video briefings, in-depth expert interviews (notably with Nicholas Koumjian), and comparative investigations of digital legal advocacy methods². Academic articles, civil society publications, and primary source accounts from both Myanmar and Tamil contexts were cross-referenced, ensuring empirical accuracy and narrative relevance.

Community-driven Tamil justice proposals were analyzed alongside global legal responses to Myanmar, with particular attention to structural parallels in evidence-gathering, legal mobilization, and survivor engagement. Special effort was given to consulting the latest open-source data on legal proceedings, forensic technology, advocacy campaigns, and UN resolutions. All claims and recommendations in this briefing are substantiated by direct citations to recent web sources, human rights documentation projects, and thematic studies spanning 2023-2025. This dual focus on rigorous methodology and emotional resonance reflects the editorial intent to create a briefing that is at once intellectually authoritative and profoundly empathetic.

IIMM Seventh Annual Report: Structure and Key Findings

Structure of the IIMM Annual Report

The IIMM’s Seventh Annual Report is a model of modern human rights fact-finding and accountability documentation. Its organizational structure is meticulously designed to provide legal and advocacy stakeholders with a roadmap for ongoing and future prosecutions¹:

· Overview and Mandate: A concise summary of the IIMM’s establishment as a UN-mandated body, focusing solely on Myanmar atrocity crimes since 2011.

· Investigative Activities: Detailed descriptions of methods used to collect, preserve, and analyze evidence-including witness interviews, digital forensic techniques, and open-source intelligence gathering.

· Legal Analysis: Findings regarding specific international crimes-such as genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes-supported by factual matrices.

· Case Support and Cooperation: The IIMM’s engagement with ongoing and potential criminal proceedings, tribunals (notably at the ICC and the International Court of Justice), and direct support to national authorities and victims’ representatives.

· Technological Innovations: Application of advanced technologies, including digital chain-of-custody procedures, geospatial analysis, and machine translation to ensure accessibility and admissibility of evidence.

· Outreach and Advocacy: Efforts to engage with survivors, diaspora communities, forensic experts, and technology partners to empower justice-seeking initiatives.

· Challenges and Recommendations: Honest reflections on legal and operational roadblocks-such as access to crime scenes and witness intimidation-accompanied by calls for international solidarity and sustained resource allocation.

The report’s architecture allows for both granular evidence assessment and strategic advocacy framing. Importantly, the IIMM’s transparency fosters public trust and legal preparedness: each annual update is clearly indexed, deeply referenced, and oriented toward actionable accountability pathways³.

Key Findings of the IIMM Seventh Annual Report

The 2025 Seventh Annual Report signals critical developments in international justice for Myanmar. Most notably, the IIMM underscores the following findings and outcomes⁴:

· Substantial Evidence Collection: More than 20 terabytes of digital and documentary evidence have been preserved for future prosecutions, encompassing video footage, satellite imagery, electronic communications, and testimonial records.

· Genocidal Intent and Systematic Persecution: Compelling evidence demonstrates state-sponsored crimes, especially against the Rohingya and other minority groups, with ongoing patterns of sexual violence, forced displacement, arbitrary detention, and extrajudicial killings.

· Forensic and Open-Source Innovations: The IIMM’s use of cutting-edge digital forensics directly supports legal admissibility, enhancing the prospects for successful prosecutions in venues such as the ICC.

· Case-Building for International Jurisdiction: Evidence is tailored to the legal thresholds of international criminal tribunals, focusing on linkage and context elements necessary for prosecution of state and military leaders.

· Survivor-Centered Engagement: The IIMM places significant emphasis on empowering survivors through testimony, safety protocols, and ongoing psychosocial support.

· International Collaboration: The Mechanism works closely with the ICC, the United States, national prosecutors using universal jurisdiction, and civil society partners to ensure multi-level pursuit of accountability.

The report further recognizes the urgent need for survivor protection, sustained funding, and diplomatic pressure to counter ongoing obstruction by the Myanmar military and government officials. These findings collectively frame the IIMM as a pioneering engine of transitional justice in contemporary international law.

Nicholas Koumjian Video Briefing Analysis

Koumjian’s Approach to Justice and Advocacy

Nicholas Koumjian, as the head of the IIMM, has emerged as a beacon of principled, strategic engagement in the complex arena of international justice². In his widely-discussed video briefing and related public interviews, Koumjian articulates a three-pronged philosophy:

1. Holistic Documentation: Emphasizing the importance of capturing the “totality of the crime,” Koumjian advocates for multi-source, multi-format evidence-combining survivor testimony, visual documentation, and electronic records to close evidentiary gaps and withstand courtroom scrutiny.

2. Technological Adaptation: Koumjian encourages legal professionals to embrace new forensic technologies-such as open-source digital verification, chain-of-custody blockchain systems, and automated translation-to democratize access to justice and defeat deliberate obfuscation by perpetrators.

3. Empathetic Advocacy: At the heart of his approach is a deep respect for survivor experience. Koumjian’s briefings repeatedly stress that justice mechanisms must “do no further harm,” prioritize consent, and foster long-term healing-recognizing the lasting trauma inflicted on entire communities.

Strategic Messaging and Emotional Resonance

Koumjian’s impact is not only technical but emotional. By framing justice-seeking as both a legal and moral imperative, he galvanizes survivor participation, diaspora investment, and international solidarity. His briefings often recount individual stories of courage and survival, transforming abstract legal work into a movement grounded in human dignity⁵.

The Relevance for Tamil Advocacy

For Eelam Tamil human rights professionals, the Koumjian model offers a powerful template: one in which meticulous, technology-enabled investigation is always steered by ethical engagement and narrative resonance. Koumjian’s openness about challenges-such as Myanmar’s refusal to allow investigators in-country and attempts to threaten witnesses-parallels Tamil experiences of impunity, intimidation, and exile. His clarion call for universal jurisdiction and survivor-led advocacy is directly adaptable for Tamil justice campaigns, as further explored in this briefing.

IIMM Investigative Model Components

Core Elements of the IIMM’s Investigative Model

The investigative model pioneered by the IIMM incorporates a suite of best practices that have raised global standards in atrocity documentation and prosecution support³⁶. Key components are outlined as follows:

Component	Description	Relevance for Tamil Context
Evidence Collection	Gathering testimony, audio-visual data, documents, and digital records using trauma-informed protocols	Vital for historical/ongoing abuses in Sri Lanka
Chain-of-Custody Integrity	Use of digital registries, encryption, and rigorous documentation to ensure admissibility	Addresses mistrust in legal systems
Data Management	High-security storage, categorization, and timely sharing with tribunals and victim representatives	Essential for long-term case-building
Analytical Rigor	Use of legal, forensic, and technological experts to analyze linkage and context evidence	Central to mounting universal jurisdiction cases
Open-Source Investigation	Verification of satellite images, geo-located videos, and social media open to the public	Expands evidence pool for hard-to-access regions
Survivor Engagement	Holistic approach to testimony, including psychosocial safety and community consultation	Prevents retraumatization; encourages survivor empowerment
International Cooperation	Collaboration with UN, ICC, national authorities, and civil society	Needed to break Sri Lankan state impunity

Each building block contributes to a process that not only preserves the integrity of evidence but also withstands legal and political attempts at suppression or denial.

Application to the Tamil Advocacy Context

The investigative tenets of the IIMM offer a scalable model for Tamil advocates, especially those operating in exile or under threat. Trauma-informed witness protocols, chain-of-custody technology, and open-source verification can circumvent many of the traditional barriers posed by Sri Lankan state obstruction. Adoption of these elements will help ensure that allegations of genocide, enforced disappearance, and sexual violence against Tamils are documented effectively, preserved, and rendered actionable in future tribunals or universal jurisdiction cases⁷.

International Justice Mechanisms in Myanmar

The Layers of International Accountability

Myanmar’s succession of coups, anti-minority violence, and egregious human rights violations has birthed an array of international justice efforts, each with distinct mandates and strategic limitations. They offer a multi-pronged model that can help guide Eelam Tamil advocacy:

· UN Human Rights Mechanisms: The IIMM was established by the UN Human Rights Council to bridge the investigative gap between initial fact-finding and potential prosecution, responding directly to Rohingya genocide allegations and systematic violence against minorities post-2011⁸.

· International Criminal Court (ICC): Though Myanmar is not a State Party to the Rome Statute, the ICC asserts jurisdiction over cross-border crimes including forced deportation to Bangladesh, resulting in limited but ground-breaking investigations and arrest warrants⁹.

· International Court of Justice (ICJ): The Gambia brought a state-level genocide case against Myanmar at the ICJ, resulting in provisional measures to protect Rohingya survivors-setting new precedents for accountability outside criminal prosecutions⁴.

· Universal Jurisdiction Cases: National courts in Argentina, Germany, and elsewhere have initiated cases targeting Myanmar’s military leadership-affirming the “no safe haven” principle for atrocity perpetrators¹⁰.

· Civil Society Documentation: Groups like Fortify Rights and Amnesty International have deployed field teams and digital platforms to supplement and catalyze formal accountability processes⁴.

Effectiveness and Limitations

While international mechanisms have faced severe resistance-from Myanmar’s military regime and state allies-they have generated important diplomatic leverage, mobilized transnational research networks, and established robust platforms for survivor testimony. Most crucially, the cumulative mountain of collected evidence and precedent for legal intervention has eroded the myth of total impunity and opened space for future justice efforts, even if immediate prosecutions remain elusive⁴.

Implications for Eelam Tamil Justice

Eelam Tamil advocates can derive crucial lessons from the Myanmar scenario. Even when a state refuses entry or participation, international institutions can and do build compelling evidence dossiers, leverage the ICC/ICJ, and collaborate with national courts and survivor leadership. Strategic use of external mechanisms does not rely on the complicity or cooperation of the perpetrator state-a reality painfully familiar to Tamils¹¹.

ABOUT IIMM

The Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM) is committed to ensuring justice for victims of serious international crimes in Myanmar and holding perpetrators accountable. Established by the UN Human Rights Council in 2018, the IIMM investigates serious international crimes committed in Myanmar since 2011. It collects and preserves relevant evidence and prepares analysis to facilitate criminal prosecutions of those most responsible for these crimes. For more information, visit:  iimm.un.org

Lessons Learned from Myanmar’s Accountability Efforts

Core Learning Points and Eelam Tamil International Justice Roadmap Inspired by Myanmar Developments

The Myanmar experience distills several critical lessons, directly transferable to the Tamil context:

4. Begin with Survivors, Not Bureaucracy: Justice initiatives grounded in survivor experience and needs-rather than abstract institutional mandates-garner deeper legitimacy and more persuasive evidence ².

5. Technology as a Force Multiplier: Modern atrocity documentation leans heavily on digital evidence, rapid verification, and secure archiving. These tools lower barriers to entry and democratize the justice process ¹².

6. Narrative is Power: Legal evidence must be supported by compelling, survivor-centred storytelling to galvanize public sympathy and international attention¹³.

7. Civil Society-Institutional Partnership: Collaboration between grassroots groups and international bodies leads to richer case files, greater diplomatic influence, and long-term sustainability ⁴.

8. Universal Jurisdiction is Viable: National legal systems are an increasingly important venue for serious crimes when international avenues stall¹⁴.

9. Justice is Incremental, Not Instantaneous: The road to accountability is always long, often measured in decades. Documenting evidence to a professional standard now prepares the ground for breakthroughs later⁴.

Emotional and Structural Resonance

Myanmar’s survivors, much like those of the Tamil communities, have been forced to relive trauma in exile, to rebuild shattered families, and to struggle for basic recognition. Yet their relentless advocacy, digital innovation, and refusal to accept silence from the international community underscore that justice-though delayed-remains possible. It is this model of patient professionalization and determined advocacy that Tamil human rights actors are called to emulate, with their own rich history of survivor courage and community solidarity.

Historical Parallels between Tamil Eelam and Myanmar Persecution

Ethnic Persecution: Shared Patterns

At the heart of both the Myanmar and Eelam Tamil narratives are deeply entrenched histories of persecution, marginalization, and cycles of mass atrocity. Key points of parallel include:

· State-Sanctioned Genocidal Policies: Both contexts saw the deliberate targeting of ethnic minorities-through forced displacement, mass killings, sexual violence, and the erasure of cultural identity-with the clear imprimatur of state actors¹⁵¹⁶.

· Impunity and Denial: Each state has invested heavily in denialism, propaganda, and the deliberate suppression or manipulation of atrocity evidence. Both have failed to undertake meaningful domestic accountability, necessitating external intervention¹⁷.

· Displacement and Diaspora Activism: Waves of forced migration have created large, mobilized diaspora populations, able to sustain transnational advocacy and legal work beyond the reach of the perpetrator governments¹³.

· Cultural and Religious Drivers: In both Sri Lanka and Myanmar, ethnonationalist and religious ideologies have been weaponized to justify violence-be it Sinhala-Buddhist supremacism or Burman-Buddhist chauvinism¹⁸.

· International Inaction and Frustration: Repeated delays, diplomatic equivocation, and the limits of UN action have been persistent features, frustrating both Rohingya and Tamil justice movements¹⁹.

Resonant Testimonies

First-person accounts from both settings-children recounting their last days fleeing the Mullivaikkal killing fields, or Rohingya refugees crossing to Bangladesh-highlight the searing emotional reality often absent from legal analyses¹³. The collective memory of atrocity, constantly invoked in advocacy and legal circles, has kept communities united, even as formal justice remains deferred. This emotional through-line reinforces the need for professional advocacy that is both deeply empathetic and strategically innovative.

Existing Eelam Tamil Justice Roadmap Proposals

Overview of Existing Initiatives

While the Eelam Tamil international justice movement is not as institutionalized as that of Myanmar’s Rohingya, several notable efforts inform the current landscape:

· Diaspora Engagement Platforms: Organizations like the Global Tamil Forum, Tamil Rights Group, and transnational governments-in-exile have issued strategic calls for international investigations, ICC referrals, and truth commissions²⁰.

· Petitions and Global Advocacy: Youth petitions-such as the campaign amassing over 28,000 signatures for ICC referral-demonstrate broad-based support for universal jurisdiction accountability¹¹.

· Legal Submissions and Amicus Briefs: Harvard Law School and other international bodies have published robust legal opinions, supporting international justice mechanisms for Tamils and flagging the inadequacies of domestic Sri Lankan efforts¹⁴.

· Memorialization and Truth Telling: Survivor-led documentation projects, digital archiving, and annual commemorations (e.g., Mullivaikkal Remembrance Day) preserve the truth for future litigation and advocacy¹⁹.

· Universal Jurisdiction Advocacy: Legal scholars and activists have begun to explore civil and criminal proceedings in European, Canadian, and Indian jurisdictions as routes to accountability²¹.

· Digital Evidence Initiatives: Collaborations with forensic investigators and open-source intelligence platforms have been limited but are growing, especially involving diaspora youth and sympathetic NGOs¹².

Limitations of Current Approaches

Despite this activity, Tamil justice efforts have struggled with fragmentation, resource scarcity, and a lack of standardized digital evidence management, resulting in underutilized or inaccessible case files. The absence of a unified, survivor-centered and technology-forward advocacy strategy remains a core disadvantage when compared to the model set by Myanmar’s IIMM.

Designing an Eelam Tamil International Justice Roadmap

Principles and Priorities

Drawing on Myanmar’s advances, an Eelam Tamil justice roadmap must be visionary yet rooted in the practicalities of global advocacy and survivor care:

· Survivor-Led, Expert-Guided: Place survivors at the center, but buttress their narratives with expert legal, forensic, and advocacy partners.

· Digitally Professionalized: Build a secure, cloud-based evidence archive, incorporating metadata integrity, encryption, and cross-referencing to international legal standards.

· Coalition-Driven: Grow a formal alliance of survivor groups, legal associations, forensic specialists, and technology partners, modeled on the IIMM’s stakeholder engagement strategy.

· Multijurisdictional: Simultaneously pursue ICC, ICJ, and universal jurisdiction pathways, matching evidence to venue-specific requirements.

· Adaptive Advocacy: Use narrative, art, media, and community mobilization to keep the cause visible and foster international solidarity.

Proposed Stepwise Roadmap

10. Evidence Collection and Digital Archiving

a. Establish a secure, digital archive for audiovisual, testimonial, and documentary evidence, following open-source and chain-of-custody best practices²².

11. Survivor Engagement and Protection

a. Develop bilateral safety protocols, psychosocial support services, and consent procedures to foster testimony while minimizing retraumatization¹³.

12. Legal Strategy Development

a. Convene a working group of international and Tamil legal experts to map potential ICC, ICJ, and national jurisdiction filings, including amicus submissions and direct complaints¹⁴.

13. Forensic Collaboration

a. Partner with leading forensic architecture labs and digital rights organizations to employ satellite imagery, geolocation, and audio-visual verification for complex crime scene reconstruction¹².

14. Narrative Advocacy and Storytelling

a. Launch a season of survivor-centered storytelling-via art, media, and memorial events-to galvanize international and diaspora support¹⁹.

15. International Alliance Building

a. Formalize coalitions with Rohingya, Uyghur, and other diaspora justice groups for joint advocacy on international platforms, multiplying pressure and increasing diplomatic leverage²³.

16. Evaluation and Adaptive Feedback

a. Institute quarterly progress reviews to benchmark evidence quality, advocacy reach, and legal efficacy, adapting tactics as needed.

The following table provides a synthesized comparison:

Roadmap Phase	Action Items	Lead Stakeholders	Key Adapted Myanmar Lessons
Evidence Archiving	Secure chain, digital standards	Tech, legal, survivor orgs	Forensic rigor, data security
Survivor Protection	Trauma protocols, safe testimony	Psychosocial, legal, grassroots	Empathy, testimony empowerment
Legal Coordination	Venue mapping, filings	Lawyers, academics, NGOs	Multijurisdictional approach
Forensic Partnerships	Imagery, data verification	Forensic labs, OSINT	Tech-forward investigation
Advocacy and Narrative	Survivor stories, media compaigns	Artists, diaspora, media, survivors	Emotional resonance
Transnational Coalition	Diaspora, allied group alliances	Global forums, advocacy networks	Cross-case collaboration
Monitoring and Feedback	Progress review, adaptation	All above	Agile response, learning

Emotional and Historical Anchoring

Every step of the roadmap must keep alive the memory of shattered families, lost futures, and the enduring hope for justice that sustains the Tamil diaspora. Advocacy is not simply process-but a tribute to the dignity, resistance, and love that has survived atrocity. In this sense, the roadmap is as much a living memorial as a legal strategy.

Legal Strategies for Accountability

Venue-Specific Legal Pathways

17. International Criminal Court (ICC)

a. While Sri Lanka is not a State Party, creative legal arguments-citing cross-boundary crimes and foreign victimization-may open limited avenues, as seen in the Myanmar-Bangladesh case⁹.

b. Ongoing petition drives and legal scholarship should be refined and harmonized with ICC evidence requirements.

18. International Court of Justice (ICJ)

a. State-to-state litigation (e.g., a friendly country bringing a genocide case) can complement individual-focused prosecutions, as demonstrated by The Gambia vs. Myanmar⁴.

b. Advocacy should focus on persuading friendly states and international organizations to bring such cases-combining diplomatic outreach with legal argumentation.

19. Universal Jurisdiction

a. National courts in Germany, Switzerland, Canada, and elsewhere have shown increasing willingness to adjudicate international crimes without regard to territoriality¹⁴.

b. Tamil human rights organizations should embark on systematic identification of potential venues, and document cases according to local legal standards, with a focus on chain-of-custody and corroborative witness testimony.

20. Hybrid and Ad Hoc International Tribunals

a. While the creation of a Sri Lanka-specific tribunal remains politically distant, such avenues should be continually promoted-keeping alive the possibility of future multilateral justice initiatives.

21. Magnitsky and Targeted Sanctions

a. Legal teams can prepare dossiers supporting targeted sanctions against known perpetrators under global human rights accountability laws in the US, UK, and EU.

Thematic Case Focus

Given the scale and scope of crimes committed, Tamil legal submissions should prioritize thematic case-building-involving mass killings (Mullivaikkal), enforced disappearance, torture, sexual violence, and attacks on hospitals and protected objects¹⁶. These cases are not only the most egregious but are also likely to attract international judicial attention and reinforce emerging global norms of atrocity prevention.

Forensic Strategies for Investigations

Integrating Technology and Local Knowledge

As demonstrated by both the IIMM and fieldwork in other post-conflict zones, high-quality justice work today is inseparable from sophisticated forensic documentation:

· Satellite Imagery and Geospatial Analysis: Used to independently corroborate claims of mass grave locations, hospital bombings, and population movement, these tools are especially powerful in cross-referencing oral testimony⁷.

· Audio/Visual Verification: Open-source investigators like Forensic Architecture have pioneered multimedia analysis-verifying date, location, and authenticity, even when primary documents are withheld by perpetrator states²⁴.

· Chain-of-Custody Software: Digital tools log every access, transfer, and analysis of evidence, ensuring that future courts have confidence in its provenance and integrity.

· Witness-Centered Forensic Protocols: Trauma-informed collection, ensuring that technical investigation does not inflict further harm, is indispensable-combining legal precision with empathy⁵.

· Collaborative Forensic Networks: Building trusted alliances between local Tamil investigators, diaspora technologists, and international forensic experts can multiply resources and ensure cross-contextual learning.

Forensic Best Practices

The Eelam Tamil justice campaign should immediately invest in training, partnerships, and infrastructure for digital forensics, mirroring the gold standards set by the IIMM and global forensic rights organizations. Workshops, certification programs, and regular skills exchanges are essential for keeping up with rapidly evolving technology and evidentiary standards²⁵.

Advocacy Engagement Strategies

Community Mobilization and Global Outreach

Advocacy for international justice hinges on strong, emotionally resonant engagement-within both the Tamil community and the wider world:

22. Survivor-Led Campaigns: Empowering survivors to lead and frame their own stories ensures authenticity and maximizes impact; youth initiatives, in particular, have demonstrated global reach with viral campaigns and petitions¹³.

23. Strategic Storytelling: Through digital exhibitions, documentary films, art installations, and international days of remembrance, the horrors of the Sri Lankan state campaign are kept visible and immediate.

24. Transnational Alliances: Partnership with Rohingya, Uyghur, and other atrocity-affected groups (as well as sympathetic NGOs) fosters webs of solidarity and reduces the sense of Tamil isolation in international fora²³.

25. Multi-Channel Media Advocacy: Active presence on social media, news outlets, and international human rights platforms is vital for maintaining pressure on policymakers and UN bodies.

26. Policy Advocacy and Diplomatic Pressure: Persistent lobbying of states, parliaments, and UN missions is needed to spur ICC referrals, ICJ litigation, and targeted sanctions.

Building Local and Diaspora Capacity

Diaspora engagement is crucial but must be equipped with the training and resources needed to conduct credible advocacy, manage digital evidence, and sustain survivor care. Professionalization, rather than ad hoc activism, is the key to breaking cycles of disappointment and furthering the internationalization of the Tamil justice cause²⁰.

Parallel Structures: UN Mechanisms and Eelam Tamil Equivalent

Global Institutional Analogues

The IIMM and similar mechanisms offer more than a template: they suggest the need for an independent, Tamil-led investigative body, structured specifically for international legal engagement:

· Mandate: Focused on investigation, evidence preservation, and support for universal jurisdiction/ICC/ICJ pathways (not simply fact-finding for awareness).

· Independence: Operates outside Sri Lankan state interference, with guaranteed confidentiality, security, and survivor protection.

· Interdisciplinary Orientation: Employs legal, forensic, psychosocial, and technology professionals working in tandem.

· International Partnerships: Institutionalized cooperation with global documentation and justice organizations, modeled on IIMM-ICC-civil society partnerships¹.

Proposed Body for Tamils

A Tamil International Investigative Mechanism (TIIM) could be established either virtually (leveraging diaspora tech infrastructure) or physically (e.g., in Canada, Switzerland, or the UK) and be governed by an independent board of survivor representatives, international law experts, and grassroots organizations. TIIM would:

· Act as the official repository for atrocity evidence

· Provide case support to national and international prosecutors

· Coordinate survivor protection, psychosocial support, and community engagement

· Liaise with technical and legal advisors for best-practice adaptation

Such a mechanism would greatly enhance the credibility, reach, and impact of Tamil justice efforts-mirroring the breakthrough role of the IIMM in Myanmar’s journey.

Role of Technology in Modern Investigations

Harnessing Digital Tools

The evolving digital landscape offers unprecedented opportunities and challenges for atrocity investigations:

· Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: Automating the sorting, categorization, and analysis of vast volumes of digital evidence (e.g., social media content related to crimes)⁶.

· Blockchain for Evidence Authentication: Creating immutable, time-stamped records of evidence collection, ensuring integrity over time.

· Crowdsourced Investigation Platforms: Enabling diaspora and international supporters to upload evidence and witness accounts in secure environments.

· Real-Time Geolocation and Open-Source Verification: Immediate validation of incident location, time, and contextual metadata, accelerating response and action.

· Digital Witness Protection: End-to-end encrypted platforms safeguard anonymity and security for vulnerable witnesses.

Best Practices and Safeguards

Technological advances, while exciting, also introduce new risks-especially regarding digital security, data privacy, and misinformation. Strong protocols, expert training, and third-party verification are non-negotiable prerequisites in any potent advocacy strategy. Previous cases of evidence tampering and counter-surveillance in both the Myanmar and Tamil contexts warn of the dangers of underestimating adversary capabilities⁷.

Narrative Framing and Emotional Resonance

The Heart of Advocacy

Professional advocacy without emotional connection is prone to failure; conversely, emotional appeals unanchored in verifiable evidence rarely win lasting change. The most effective justice campaigns-Myanmar’s included-are those that integrate:

· Survivor Testimony: Vivid, personal accounts of pain, survival, and resilience, honored as core content, not appendices to legal briefs.

· Intergenerational Storytelling: Stories of children born in exile, families with missing loved ones, and communities rebuilding speak volumes to policymakers and the public¹⁹.

· Memorialization: Ritual, ceremony, and remembrance keep the experience of atrocity alive and create the moral urgency for action.

· Shared Humanity: Constant insistence on the universal value of Tamil lives and sufferings-refusing both victimhood and vengeance-grounds advocacy in respect, not retribution.

Integrating Evidence with Emotion

Every legal submission, forensic investigation, and policy demand should be informed by these narratives-not as embellishment, but as the living heart of international justice. This bridge between fact and feeling lays the ground for durable, global solidarity.

Conclusion: A Call to Professional Engagement and Hope

The struggle for justice in Tamil Eelam is not new, nor is it unique. Yet, in learning from the tireless, strategic work of Myanmar’s advocates-and the transformative lessons of the IIMM-there exists a real opportunity to professionalize, unify, and ultimately accelerate the Tamil quest for truth and accountability. This moment demands more than passionate protest: it calls for forensic rigor, legal innovation, survivor-centered engagement, technological mastery, and narrative bravery.

Justice may be slow. Its path may be marred by obstruction and the failures of international diplomacy. Yet evidence, memory, and solidarity built now will persist for generations. Tamils-survivors, advocates, and allies alike-must seize this moment to lay the foundations for eventual justice, drawing on the best of global models while always centering the voices and needs of their own communities.

In the words of a survivor of Mullivaikkal: “Justice is not only a verdict in a distant court. It is the right to tell the truth-and the hope that the world will one day listen.”

Let us listen, document, organize, and persevere-until justice, with all its challenges, is finally realized.

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15. War crimes during the final stages of the Sri Lankan civil war. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_crimes_during_the_final_stages_of_the_Sri_Lankan_Civil_War

16. State-sponsored torture of Tamils 'routine and endemic' in Sri Lanka .... https://www.firstpost.com/world/state-sponsored-torture-of-tamils-routine-and-endemic-in-sri-lanka-reveals-un-fact-finding-mission-3827705.html

17. Observations on the Report of a Home Office fact-finding mission ... - ARC. https://asylumresearchcentre.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/ARC-Foundation-observations-on-HO-Sri-Lanka-FFM_July2020.pdf

18. Sri Lanka’s War on Eelam Tamils - Ilankai Tamil Sangam. https://sangam.org/sri-lankas-war-eelam-tamils/

19. Reconciling with Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day as a Descendent of .... https://www.downsviewadvocate.ca/news/reconciling-tamil-genocide

20. MAP - Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam. https://tgte-us.org/?page_id=19

21. Sri Lanka statement -- Universal Jurisdiction -- Sixth Committee (Legal .... https://www.un.org/en/ga/sixth/79/pdfs/statements/universal_jurisdiction/15mtg_srilanka.pdf

22. Chapter 10 - Evidence Retention and Disposition. https://evidencemanagement.com/resources/emi-standards-and-best-practices/chapter-10-evidence-retention-and-disposition/

23. Rohingya Symposium: Why Accountability Should Be at the ... - Opinio Juris. https://opiniojuris.org/2020/08/24/rohingya-symposium-why-accountability-should-be-at-the-heart-of-policy-on-myanmar-applying-the-principles-against-impunity/

24. Torture And Detention In Myanmar ← Forensic Architecture. https://forensic-architecture.org/investigation/torture-and-detention-in-myanmar

25. Assessments and Documentation in Myanmar - PHR. https://phr.org/issues/investigating-deaths-and-mass-atrocities/assessments-and-documentation-of-mass-crimes/through-evidence-change-is-possible/

From Myanmar IIMM to Mullivaikkal: Lessons from Myanmar’s Pursuit of International Justice