• Exposes a harrowing pattern of systemic exploitation, debt bondage, physical violence 

Malaiyaha Tamil workers on private tea estates and smallholdings in Southern Province are facing severe labour abuses that mirror International Labour Organisation (ILO) indicators of forced labour, Amnesty International revealed in a scathing new report. 

The findings, based on research conducted between January 2024 and January 2026 across 45 estates in the Galle and Matara districts, expose a harrowing pattern of systemic exploitation, debt bondage, physical violence, and restricted movement targeting this deeply marginalised community. 

According to the report, workers who are descendants of those brought from India by British colonisers in the 19th century remain heavily dependent on estate employers for livelihoods, welfare, and housing, leaving them trapped in a cycle of fear and vulnerability. 

"Across the sites we visited, workers reported a consistent pattern of discrimination and abuse," said Smriti Singh, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for South Asia. Singh noted that estate managers systematically violate labour laws with total impunity, frequently withholding wages based on unrealistic daily plucking targets. 

On 27 of the visited estates, workers were forced to pick over 25 kgs of tea per day. Failing to meet these quotas resulted in daily wages being docked to as little as LKR 1,000, forcing families to rely on predatory wage advances that plunge them into intergenerational debt bondage. Furthermore, workers on 15 estates reported suffering verbal or physical assaults by management, with one worker recounting being beaten with sticks for missing targets. 

Compounding the crisis is a severe failure of state enforcement. Employers routinely misclassify these individuals as "casual workers" to deny them legal entitlements like pension, sick leave, and maternity benefits. Due to a language gap with state officials, lack of employment documents, and an outright absence or prohibition of trade unions, these workers are entirely denied access to justice. 

Amnesty International has urged the Sri Lankan Government to uphold its domestic and international legal obligations by immediately inspecting these southern estates, prosecuting perpetrators, and delivering meaningful remedies to the exploited workforce.