The use of confessionary evidence under the counter-terrorism laws of Sri Lanka

For over three decades, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) fought a gruesome war for independent statehood against the majoritarian Sinhalese Government of Sri Lanka. While confronting the Tigers on the battleground, the government also pursued a legal war against the LTTE by enacting its counter-terrorism laws. These laws permitted indefinite detention and the use of confessions as sole evidence. Armed with these laws, the Sinhalese Government boasted the prosecution of thousands of Tamil Tigers on the basis of their confessions. The Tigers countered by protecting their secrets through the adoption of their suicide strategy - consuming cyanide capsules to prevent being captured alive. Examining the conflicting narratives from both sides of the war, this research explores the confessions of Tamil Tigers within the broader discourses of terrorism and counter-terrorism.