On 1 June 2001, an official of the High Commission of Sri Lanka in Ottawa provided the following information:

The procedure to obtain a Special Identity Card is as follows. All persons in JAFFNA peninsula above the age of 10 years need apply for the Special Identity Card

a) If the person is a student, he/she applies through the Principal of the school with whom the application forms are available. The Principal certifies the application and thereby assures the identity of the student. After certification, the application is directed to Special Identity Card Unit, which issues the identity card through the Principal of the school.

b) If the applicant is NOT a student but a member of the public he/she applies through the Grama Seva Officer of the area who forwards it to Divisional Secretary/Assistant Government Agent for counter signature. Thereafter the application is forwarded to the closest Brigade, of the Army where it is vetted and directed to the Special Identity Card Unit, which issues the identity card through the DS/AGA.

The procedure for obtaining a "Duplicate" card in lieu of "Lost" Special Identity Card is as follows: A person who has lost his/her Special Identity Card has to lodge an entry at the Police station. The Police report is annexed to the application for a "Duplicate" Special Identity Card as a supporting document. Therefore the same procedure is adopted to obtain the duplicate identity card. The letter "D" is written on the verse of the "Duplicate" card to indicate that the card is a duplicate one.The SIC is used by the holder for easy movement between checkpoints and also prove that holder's presence in Jaffna peninsula is legitimate.

The following information comes from CISNET, a database that contains reports produced by the Country Information Service of the Australian Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (DIMA):

Such a system is in operation. It came into effect around 29 December 1995, about two months after the military took control of the Jaffna Peninsula. This was when thousands of Tamils displaced by the riviresa' Military operation began to return to Jaffna. This special identity card, which the Tamils call the "Army Identity card", is in operation only in the military controlled areas in the Jaffna Peninsula. But in manner, mullaitivu and Trincomalee there is a different identification card issued by the military.

To obtain this card, every person over 10 years has to fill an application issued by the Grama Sevaka (village Headman). The application, which is printed by the registration of persons department in Colombo, asks for details such as: The full name of applicant, sex, other names, date of birth, national ID number, marital status, permanent address, occupation, the place of occupation, applicant's specimen signature and also for the applicant's left thumb impression. A photograph of the applicant, certified by the Grama Sevaka is fixed to the application. Then the Grama Sevaka certifies the whole application. Finally the divisional secretary counter signs it. Officials at the department claim that cards are issued within three to seven days.

The normal law in Sri Lanka requires every person over 16 years to possess a national identity card. All persons above 10 years and living in areas under the control of the military in Jaffna are required by emergency regulations to possess the special identity card.

Information on the card: The holder's full name, other names, date of birth and date of issue. Also the national identity card number, profession, the workplace address and permanent address. The divisional secretariat to which the person belongs and a red serial number which helps the military to locate the person's village and division. An indistinct drawing of the Jaffna Peninsula is found in the background of the laminated card. The information is given in Sinhala and Tamil.

A person may not possess an ID if he/she is below 10 years or sick and feeble or invalid and does not have the need to travel about. One may also not possess if the card is lost or there is a delay in issuing it.

According to a Sri Lanka Monitor report dated December 1995:

A government decision to issue identity cards for the people in Army-controlled areas in the north in addition to the national identity card has sparked anger. In the east, the Army has issued special identity cards.

According to the April 1997 edition of Sri Lanka Monitor:

Security in Trincomalee was intensified in April following several LTTE attacks. Special Army identity cards has been issued to people in Trincomalee town to prevent LTTE infiltrators. Currently identity cards are being issued to others in rural areas.

Without the special identity cards, observers believe, the large number of people awaiting military clearance in Trincomalee may have difficulties.

The following is an excerpt from a January 1999 report from Sri Lanka Monitor:

People wishing to leave Mannar District are required to have special identity cards, which are issued to residents in Army-controlled areas.

The following is an excerpt from the document titled Inform: Situation Report published the Sri Lanka organisation Inform in March 1999:

The UNHCR has run two Sub-Open Relief Centres in Palampiddy and Thachchinamaruthamadu and another Open Relief Centre at the Madhu Church. A total of over 30,000 people are housed there. These ORCs were also taken over by the military for re-registration of that entire resident there. This meant that all movement of these people was restricted, until such time as the army could issue new Identity Cards to them. Fr. Devasagayam, the priest in charge of Madhu appealed to the army to move out of the camp as soon as they had completed the re-registration.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. .

Country Information Service (CIS), Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, Australia. 31 August 1998. Country Information Report No. 335/98. "Sri Lanka: Issue of ID Cards in Jaffna, Trincomalee and Bratticaloa - RRT Information Request." (CISINFO database)

Inform [Colombo]. March 1999. Inform: Situation Report. http://www.gn.apc.org/www.srilankapeacenet.org/sitrep%5F5o.asp [Accessed 7 June 2001]

Sri Lanka High Commission, Ottawa. 1 June 2001. Correspondence from an official.

Sri Lanka Monitor. January 1999. "Special Identity Cards." http://www.gn.apc.org/brcslproject/slmonitor/January99/spec.html [Accessed 7 June 2001]

_______. April 1997. "The East's War of Shadows: Counter Attack." http://www.gn.apc.org/refugeecounciluk/slmonitor/april97/count.html [Accessed 7 June 2001]
_______. December 1995. "Cash Crisis." (CISINFO Report No. A95/18179)