1956 anti-Tamil pogrom
| 1956 anti-Tamil pogrom | |
|---|---|
Location of Sri Lanka | |
| Location | Dominion of Ceylon |
| Date | June 5–16, 1956 (+6 GMT) |
| Target | Majority Tamil civilians in Colombo and Gal Oya, also Sinhalese civilians in Batticaloa and Gal Oya |
Attack type | Decapitation, burning, stabbing, arson, assault, looting |
| Weapons | Knives, sticks, fire |
| Deaths | 20-200 |
| Injured | 100+ |
| Perpetrators | Vast majority Sinhalese mobs, also Tamil mobs |
The 1956 anti-Tamil pogrom, also known as the Gal Oya riots, was the first organised pogrom against Sri Lankan Tamils in the Dominion of Ceylon. It began with anti-Tamil rioting in Colombo, followed by anti-Sinhalese rioting in the Batticaloa District. The worst of the violence took place in the Gal Oya valley after the Batticaloa attacks, where local majority Sinhalese colonists and employees of the Gal Oya Development Board commandeered government vehicles, dynamite and weapons and massacred minority Tamils. It is estimated that over 150 people, mostly Tamils, had died during the violence. The police and army were eventually able to bring the situation under control.