Burning of Jaffna Public Library

The Jaffna Public Library was torched on May 31 1981 after the shooting of three Sinhala policemen during a Tamil political rally. The building was further damaged as the war progressed. The abandoned, burnt out shell of the library was re-built during President Chandrika Kumaranatunga’s tenure and re-opened in 2003. Sri Lankans located in many parts of the country as well as foreign governments donated books to the library.