Burning of Jaffna Public Library
The burning of the Jaffna Public Library (Tamil: யாழ் பொது நூலகம் எரிப்பு, Yāḻ potu nūlakam erippu; Sinhala: යාපනය මහජන පුස්තකාලය ගිනිබත් කිරීම, Yāpanaya mahajana pustakālaya ginibat kirīma) took place on the night of June 1, 1981, when an organized mob of Sinhalese individuals went on a rampage, burning the library. It was one of the most violent examples of ethnic biblioclasm of the 20th century.[Term] At the time of its destruction, the library was one of the biggest in Asia, containing over 97,000 books and manuscripts.
| Burning of Jaffna library | |
|---|---|
| Part of 1981 anti-Tamil pogrom | |
Burnt shell of the library | |
| Location | Jaffna, Sri Lanka |
| Date | June 1, 1981 (+6 GMT) |
| Target | Primarily Sri Lankan Tamil |
Attack type | Rioting, burning, shooting, arson |
| Weapon | T56 Petrol bomb Sword Grenade |
| Deaths | 4+ |
| Injured | Unknown |
| Perpetrators | UNP Sri Lankan government (Jayewardene cabinet) Sri Lanka Police Pro Sinhalese mob gang Government employees |
No. of participants | 1,000+ |
| Motive | Ethnic cleansing |
| Part of a series on |
| Sri Lankan Tamils |
|---|
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