The Girlfriends: Spotlight, E14: Visaka Sparks a Ceasefire

The Girlfriends: Trust Me Babe

iHeartPodcasts and Novel

True Crime, Society & Culture, Relationships, Documentary

4.4 • 6.3K Ratings

🗓️ 16 February 2026

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

When Visaka Dharmadasa’s soldier son was kidnapped by the fearsome Tamil Tigers in the midst of Sri Lanka’s bitter civil war, she couldn’t find anyone who could help find him - or the 608 other soldiers who had been taken the same night. So Visaka transformed herself, first into a fighter against the bureaucracy of the Sri Lankan government and the Red Cross, and then into a fearsome peace activist. Defying warnings, she crosses into Tamil Tiger territory and sits down with some of the terrorist group’s most notorious leaders, appealing to their humanity as a mother. And eventually, they listen. The Girlfriends: Spotlight is produced by Novel for iHeartPodcasts. For more from Novel visit Novel.Audio

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is an I-Heart podcast.
0:02.5	Guaranteed Human.
0:06.4	Novel.
0:11.0	It's just before dawn on the front lines of Sri Lanka's brutal civil war.
0:16.7	Vesaka huddles in a military bunker with six other mothers.
0:23.4	We're sitting on what you call a makeshift bed of a military officer.
0:29.6	It was all sticks tied together.
0:32.9	They're waiting for first light.
0:35.7	The military toll don't go now because any mistaken they are going to shoot.
0:42.4	Wait till you can see.
0:44.9	Vesaka is about to do something most people think is absolutely insane.
0:50.1	Walk across enemy lines to meet the Tamil Tigers.
0:59.0	They're the designated terrorist organization behind suicide bombings, kidnappings and assassinations across the country.
1:03.0	At that time, it was one of the most brutal wars in the world.
1:08.0	They bombed Colombo, they bombed the Central Bank,
1:11.0	they bombed, you know, several places in Colombo.
1:14.6	Early the next morning,
1:16.0	Vesaka and the six other women climb into their car
1:19.1	and drive deep into the jungle of northeastern Sri Lanka,
1:23.4	right into enemy territory.
1:25.9	When we cross to the other side,
1:28.3	the vehicle was welcomed by
	...

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