What began as a minor police-civilian clash in Jaffna escalated into a nationwide anti-Tamil communal violence. Some elements within the defeated SLFP were accused of fomenting the violence through planned and organized spreading of false rumours against Tamils to destabilize the government. Anti-UNP political motivation was revealed by the Sinhalese rioters who reportedly told their Tamil victims that they were being punished for helping the UNP win the elections. Reports indicated that some sections of the SLFP also participated in the violence. Walter Schwarz in the
Minority Rights Group reported: According to an official estimate, 125 people were killed during the riots. By ethnicity, the breakdown was 97 Tamils, 24 Sinhalese, 1 Muslim, and 3 of unknown ethnicity. His wife Mangayarkarasi Amirthalingam emotionally recounted some incidents of rape that occurred during the 1977 pogrom and said "Tamil women could not walk the streets during nights in safety." The following is a breakdown of the rioting by district as given in the "
Report of the Presidential Commission" (1980) and other eyewitness accounts:
Jaffna District On 12 August, four policemen visited a carnival at
St. Patrick's College, where they assaulted Mr. Kulanayagam, who asked them for an entry free. There were several attacks on Sinhalese and their properties in Kilinochchi starting on 19 August. A Buddhist temple was burnt by a crowd of 200, and several boutiques and bakeries were burnt. Sinhalese goods whose owners had fled had also been looted. About 20 Sinhalese were burnt in Thallady were burned. A few Sinhalese were assaulted by Tamil rioters. Many Sinhalese took refuge in the police station. A Sinhalese baker from Paranthan noted that there were no Sinhalese remaining in that town.
Kurunegala District At Ibbankatuwa, recently settled Sinhalese colonists attacked Tamils, setting houses on fire and killed three Tamils, Three Tamils were raped. Buses were stopped and their Tamil passengers were attacked. A few Tamils had gone missing and were assumed to be dead. At Nilaveli, a truck with Sinhalese soldiers and civilians fired at a Tamil cultivator and damaged his property. In the same town, a Buddhist temple had been fired at. A Trincomalee town itself, there was two-sided violence, though most victims were Tamils. On 21 August, a Buddhist monk was attacked by a Tamil mob. A Sinhalese family had been asked to leave the town by a Tamil-speaking man. While fleeing, they were shot at by a Tamil mob, killing three men and injuring a woman. Several other Sinhalese had their homes and shops burnt. A Sinhalese man was assaulted. Not long after the attacks on Sinhalese began, Sinhalese mobs attacked Tamils. Tamil shops and houses were looted and burned. Several Tamils were assaulted. At Palaiyuthu, several Tamils had been attacked and one was killed. At least 12 Tamil houses had been burnt.
Kegalle District In Kegalle town, a Hindu temple was attacked and its Tamil watcher was attacked with a razor blade. He was not allowed to go to the hospital since he was Tamil and was tended to by a Sinhalese ayurvedic doctor. Several Tamils and their houses in the estates were attacked by Sinhalese mobs. Two Tamils were cut. At Ambanpiuya Estate, a Tamil woman was gang raped by 3 youths. An 80-year-old man was killed at Karandupona Estate. At the same estate, a worker was killed and two Tamil estate labourers were raped. At Niyandurupola, a mob had attacked a Tamil man and he later died from his injuries.
Moneragala District Kataragama saw the looting and burning of two Tamil religious institutions: the Ponnampalam Madam and the spiritual center. In Wellawaya and Moneragala, sugar cane estates owned by Tamils were burned and their houses were looted. In Tanamalwila, a Tamil man's house was burned. When the man and his wife were transported to Wellawaya by police, they were assaulted by a crowd while the police looked on and laughed.
Hambantota District A Tamil couple, long-time residents of Walasmulla, had their house and shop attacked by a gang. The shop was looted.
Badulla District 13 Tamil shops were burnt at Koslanda while armed police nearby did nothing. At Halmadulla, several Tamil families were attacked by a Sinhalese gang. Their assets were stolen and their houses set ablaze. In Haputale, a Tamil-owned estate was attacked by villagers. The store and sugar plantation were burned. A Tamil family was attacked in Kolatenna by a crowd of 20. One son was assaulted and cut with a knife, but he fought back against the mob, injuring a few mobsters, and the mob fled. The son was assaulted by army personnel after the latter found out that the son had fought the mobsters. The father of the family went to the police station and was chased away initially. Several Tamil shops were looted and burned in Diyatalawa following news of violence in Kandy and false rumors thereafter. One shopkeeper accused plainclothes soldiers of participating in the violence. A few Sinhalese shops had been damaged too. A Tamil man was cut in the head and killed. Three Tamil houses were burnt by Sinhalese rioters. Sinhalese villagers had burnt lined rooms at Bandarawela. In Badulla town, a Tamil man was assaulted and his father was cut with an axe by masked assailants when the latter attempted to intervene. Several Tamil houses were burnt by Sinhalese at Welimada.
Kalutara District On 21 August, the estate lines at Neboda Estate were attacked and chickens were stolen. A Tamil woman living with her uncle were attacked on 22 August at the same estate. She was dragged away and raped by two men on 22 August when she went to the aid of her uncle who was being stabbed during an attack on the estate lines. At the Neuchatel Estate, Neboda, a mob of youths looted the lines and set 3 rooms on fire. One Tamil man was cut and killed, another was stabbed. In Matugama, Tamil shops and houses were attacked. A Sinhalese crowd attacked line rooms at Matugama Division. A Tamil man was killed during the attack. When the man's son-in-law reported the incident to police, they retorted that the Tamil man's murder was fair as Sinhalese police officers were being killed in Jaffna. Another Tamil was shot and injured.
Batticaloa District A Sinhalese woman married to a Tamil man was attacked by a crowd of men in Kalkudah. She had been assaulted, robbed, and stripped of her outer garments. ==Militant activity==