Reverend Father Mariampillai Xavier Karunaratnam was a minority Sri Lankan Tamil, Roman Catholic parish priest and a human rights activist.

He was killed by a claymore mine blast carried out allegedly by a Deep Penetration Unit (DPU) of the Sri Lanka Army.

[3][15][16] LTTE military spokesman Rasiah Ilanthiraiyan stated that "He was targeted by the (government's Deep Penetration Unit) DPU while he was returning to his residence after attending to mass at Mankulam parish,".

Damian Fernando, National Director of Caritas Sri Lanka, said: "He was an example of courage, strength and humanity and will be missed by all.He also showed endless empathy towards refugees and displaced people while working tirelessly to improve their living standards.

[18] National Peace Council of Sri Lanka has called his death "A Lamentable Loss to Civil Society and to the Country[19] Tamil National Alliance in a press statement said " "We deeply mourn the loss of Rev Father Karunaratnam who indefatigably served the legitimate interests of the Tamil Civilian population in the Vanni.