6000 Days Without Prageeth Ekneligoda: Sandya’s Search for Truth Continues

More than sixteen years after the enforced disappearance of journalist and political cartoonist Prageeth Ekneligoda, his wife, Sandya Ekneligoda, marked the 6,000th day since his enforced disappearance, by lighting lamps in remembrance and renewing her demand for truth and justice.

The symbolic observance highlighted the prolonged struggle of a family that has continued to seek answers despite the passage of time. For over sixteen years, Sandya Ekneligoda’s unwavering campaign has become one of Sri Lanka’s most prominent symbols of resistance against impunity and the fight for accountability in cases of enforced disappearances.

Prageeth Ekneligoda disappeared on 24th January 2010, and his case has since become one of the country’s most well-known unresolved human rights cases. His family has consistently called on successive governments to reveal the truth about his fate and ensure justice is served.

The Nava Sama Samaja Party (NSSP), which has stood alongside Sandya Ekneligoda since the beginning of her campaign, reiterated its solidarity on the 6,000th day of Prageeth’s disappearance. The party reaffirmed its commitment to the continued struggle for justice, accountability, and the right of every family to know the fate and whereabouts of their loved ones.

The commemoration also served as a reminder of the many families across Sri Lanka who continue to search for relatives who disappeared during different periods of the country’s history.

As the number of days since Prageeth Ekneligoda’s disappearance reached 6,000, supporters renewed their calls for justice, emphasizing that the passage of time should not diminish the demand for truth, justice and accountability.

Justice for Prageeth Ekneligoda. Justice for all the disappeared.

This remained the central message of the commemoration as supporters pledged to continue the struggle until answers are found.