1977 anti-Tamil pogrom

The 1977 anti-Tamil pogrom in Sri Lanka followed the 1977 general elections in Sri Lanka where the Sri Lankan Tamil nationalisticTamil United Liberation Front won a plurality of minority Sri Lankan Tamil votes. In the elections, the party stood for secession. An official government estimate put the death toll at 125, whereas other sources estimate that around 300 Tamils were killed by Sinhalese mobs. Human rights groups, such as the UTHR-J, accused the newly elected UNP-led government of orchestrating the violence.

The pogrom began with policemen threatening and assaulting Tamils at a carnival in Jaffna, which led to a clash between the two groups. This led to further police violence against Tamils in Jaffna, followed by Tamil violence against Sinhalese in the city. Following the Jaffna incidents, violence erupted throughout the country.

Edmund Samarakkody in Workers Vanguard reported:

"As on previous occasions, what took place recently was not Sinhalese-Tamil riots, but an anti-Tamil pogrom. Although Sinhalese were among the casualties, the large majority of those killed, maimed and seriously wounded are Tamils. The victims of the widespread looting are largely Tamils. And among those whose shops and houses were destroyed, the Tamils are the worst sufferers. Of the nearly 75,000 refugees, the very large majority were Tamils."