Government PSC Members Insulted CJ And She Walked Out

By Colombo Telegraph -December 6, 2012

Citing a lack of faith in the process and reiterating that a fair trial was not possible under these conditions, Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake and her six member legal team walked out of sittings of the legislative committee set up to probe the impeachment motion against her today.

Chief Justice

Consistently, the Committee probing the impeachment has refused to grant the Chief Justice and her lawyers time to file responses or laid out the procedure being followed during the trial by parliament.

Bandaranayake appeared before the Committee at 2:30 p.m. local time today and heated proceedings continued till nearly 6 p.m. before the Chief Justice informed her legal team that there was no point in continuing to engage in a process in which she had absolutely no faith she would receive a fair hearing.

The 11 member committee in which the Government is represented by seven MPs, continuously refused requests by the Chief Justice’s lawyers. During the previous sitting, lawyers for the Chief Justice had objected to the presence of Government Ministers Wimal Weerawansa and Rajitha Dissanayake on the committee since Bandaranayake had given rulings from the bench against both ministers and it constituted a conflict of interest. However at the beginning of proceedings Committee Chairman Anura Priyadarshana Yapa rejected this objection saying both Ministers could continue to sit on the committee. This ruling raised a ruckus with members of the opposition represented in the PSC objecting to the fact that the issue had not been deliberated on at all during Wednesday’s sittings of the committee, at which the Chief Justice was not present.  Ministers Dilan Perera and Wimal Weerawansa repeatedly heckled and disturbed submissions by Romesh De Silva PC, the head of Bandaranayake’s legal team. Both Government MPs also repeatedly insulted the Chief Justice, calling her ‘baby’ and ‘nona’ and generally demeaning her.

 Informed sources told Colombo Telegraph that Bandaranayake’s lawyers had requested a list of documents and a list of witnesses from the PSC to support the impeachment charges against her but the Committee had no major witness list to present. A big sheaf of documents were however handed over to the Chief Justice’s legal team although enough time was not permitted to peruse the documents which some lawyers said amounted to hundreds of pages. They said the PSC had also refused to allow Bandaranayake’s lawyers a chance to cross examine the witnesses cited in the documents. Instead the Committee Chairman requested the Chief Justice and her lawyers to appear before the PSC again at 1:30 p.m. tomorrow and respond to Charges 1 and 2 of the impeachment motion pertaining to alleged financial misconduct.
Senior lawyers said that refusal to allocate a defendant sufficient time to prepare a defence was a grotesque violation of the laws of natural justice.

The PSC will reconvene again at 1:30 p.m. tomorrow. If the Chief Justice does not appear before the committee, a decision on that issue will be made about what action to take, according to Deputy Speaker Chandimal Weerakoddy. Meanwhile, UNP representative on the PSC John Amaratunge told the media that the lack of procedure was hampering the process but said the UNP was not going to quit the committee since they should be there to fight till the end. However, there is no decision on whether to quit the Committee by DNA MP Vijitha Herath or TNA representative, R. Sampanthan. The opposition will make a decision on the matter tomorrow Colombo Telegraph learns.
There is speculation that the process to find the Chief Justice guilty of the first three charges is already in place. President Mahinda Rajapaksa last night called PSC Chairman Yapa and informed him that the judgment was ready and asked him to lead proceedings from today onwards. Yapa was informed that the verdict would hold the Chief Justice guilty on the first three charges on the impeachment motion which contains 14 charges against Bandaranayake. The PSC report – filed by the majority membership in the Committee, with or without the sanction of the opposition members is reportedly being readied for submission to the Speaker on Saturday (8).

False media propaganda on CJ's assets – Lawyers

False media propaganda on CJ's assets – Lawyers

(December 6, 2012, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The lawyers of Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake, in a statement yesterday, denied recent media reports about their client receiving Rs 252 million into her bank account between 2010 and 2011 as a false and malicious attempt to bring disrepute.

It further stated that the media reports have been published in a manner to create the impression that Bandaranayake had Rs 252 million during a specified time, to create a totally false and distorted impression.

The full statement issued by Neelakandan and Neelakandan, Attorneys-at-Law and Notaries Public, reads as follows:

We are instructed by our client Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake to address this communication.

Our client's attention has been drawn to articles regarding our client's bank accounts in certain newspapers designed purely to defame our client. These articles, falsely and maliciously distort the truth in relation to our client's bank accounts and declarations.

These articles seem to suggest that our client–

a.) has wrongfully withdrawn monies from certain accounts in order to show a zero balance as at the 31 of March of a particular year,

b.) was in receipt of sums of approximately Rupees 250 Million during the year 1st April 2010 to the 31 March 2011.

Our client at the very outset firmly states that both these statements are totally false.

The truth is as follows:

i.) Our client had investments in Government Treasury Bills which were invested for short periods of time because our client felt that she may have to access these monies at short notice.

ii.) These sums were credited to a special account opened by the bank to route investments from the realization of one Treasury Bill to the purchase of another Treasury Bill. This is the normal and regular procedure followed for several constituents of the Bank

iii.) These monies did not at any stage lie in the account for a period of more than a day or two.

iv.) All investments in Treasury Bills were duly and properly declared in our client's

assets and liabilities declaration.

v.) A simple illustration may be useful.

If Mr. A had Rupees 10,000 in a 7 day Treasury Bill, at the end of the seven days that Rupees 10,000 together with the interest accrued is credited to the special account. 

On the 7th day or the 8th day, the total money is re-invested in a new Treasury Bill for another period of seven days. This process continuously goes on for a period of one year. If all credit entries are added it would show Rupees 10,000 plus interest multiplied by 52 which is approximately 520,000 plus interest. However all that Mr. A in fact had was the original Rupees 10, 000 pIus interest.

vi.) This is what in fact happened in the case of our client. However certain newspapers have falsely and maliciously added up all the entries in a way that would create the impression that our client had Rupees 252 million which gives a totally false and distorted impression. In actual fact, our client never had Rs 252 Million or a sum anywhere close to the said sum.

vii.) Our client re-iterates that every single cent had by our client has been declared in the relevant declarations of assets and liabilities.

viii.) It is also clear that our client did not withdraw amounts from the account prior to 31 March of each year in order to create a distorted view. The monies were always in government securities at all times except for a day or two, between the date of maturity and the date of re-investment during which such monies were in the aforementioned special current account.

ix.) All Treasury Bills purchased on behalf of our client have been duly and properly declared.

x.) Our client is also surprised as to how certain newspapers have details of her bank accounts.

xi.) Our client is deeply disturbed that this information is now in the public domain when in fact such information should be private and confidential information in terms of the law.

xii.) We may add that the Chief Justice of the country, as a citizen is also entitled to

the protection of the law of the land.

xiii.) We may also note that these allegations have not even been raised as allegations in the impeachment process.

xiv.) Since wide publicity has been already given to the aforesaid allegations, we

would be most grateful if you could publish this letter in order to correct and clarify the matter.

It Is Just A Hop, Skip And Jump From Enforced Disappearances To The Impeachment Of The CJ

By Basil Fernando -December 6, 2012

Basil Fernando

It is clear by now that the attempted impeachment is being done in a completely lawless manner. The present approach adopted for the inquiry is no different to a committee consisting of a man’s enemies being assigned to conduct a murder trial against him. Regardless of the man’s guilt or innocence, the enemies will ensure that he will be found guilty and be hung.

There are many clips on YouTube about the mobs that gathered before the Supreme Court and the Parliamentary Complex shouting slogans against theChief Justice and demanding her resignation. In no other country can you find examples of mobs gathering to shout slogans demanding that judges resign. Some of the people in the mobs who were interviewed directly named certain Members of Parliament from the ruling party as those who organised the mobs. It was thus clear that the mobs were organised by the government to shout slogans against the CJ. Thus, the responsible party for mobilising the mobs to bring down the prestige of the courts is the government itself. This is a government that is openly encouraging lawlessness. A government that mobilises mobs in this manner demonstrates no political will to keep law and order or to ensure respect for the institutions of the state. The result will be the government causing chaos in the country.

However, the history of the government resorting to lawlessness is not new in Sri Lanka nor is it confined to this government only. The most glaring example of absolute lawlessness is the manner in which various governments since 1971 have resorted to the causing of large scale disappearances.

In 1971, according to the statistics which came up at the Criminal Justice Commission (CJC) the JVP was responsible for 41 civilian deaths, the killings of 63 and the wounding of 305 members of the armed forces. In retaliation, the United National Party government killed 5,000 to 10,000 young people and placed another 15,000 to 25,000 in arbitrary detention. As it is well known, a very small number of these would have been hardcore JVPers but there was little concrete evidence of engagement in any serious attacks against the majority. The procedure that was followed was arrest, torture during interrogation, killings and, for the most part, secret disposal of the bodies.

It is a universally recognised principle in law that, once a person is arrested, the state is under obligation to protect that person and produce them in court. It was this principle that, on government orders, the armed forces and the police openly flouted. The government neither expressed any regret for giving such orders nor did it ever conduct inquiries into such killings. Thus, this heinous criminal activity began to be accepted as a legitimate activity by the armed forces, police and the paramilitary.

Later, the causing of enforced disappearances was practiced on a much larger scale in the south, north and the east. In relation to the JVP uprisings from 1987 to 1991, the number of persons who were made to disappear was around 30,000, according to the statistics given by the commissions of inquiry into involuntary disappearances. Many are of the view that the numbers are much larger.

As for those who have been made to disappear from the north and the east from the early 80s to May 2009, no records have been made but obviously they would outnumber the enforced disappearances from the south. Once again, no government has ever expressed any regret about such killings and no attempt has been made to conduct any inquiries or hold anyone accountable. In fact, to demand inquiries into these enforced disappearances is considered treachery and an act which favours the LTTE. The simple issue of the protection that should have been afforded to an arrested person is no longer taken for granted in Sri Lanka. The principle that is really in practice is that after arrest, if the particular agencies so wish, a person could be extrajudicially killed or made to disappear altogether.

A complete transformation has taken place in the basic norms regarding crimes. What was universally considered a crime may not be considered a crime in Sri Lanka if, for some political or practical reason, the government wishes to treat them as not being such. Thus, the idea of crime has been relativised and the choice as to whether to treat even a heinous crime as a crime or not is now in the hands of the government in power.

It can be said that no other government in the region regards crimes in as much of a casual manner as is done in Sri Lanka. There are countries in which, due to certain historical reasons, there has been the collapse of their legal system and they have ignored basic norms of legality and illegality. Two such countries that are known to face such situations are Cambodia and Burma. However, even these countries have not gone to the extent of ignoring the criminality of an action to the extent that it is being done in Sri Lanka now. Even in situations like those of Cambodia and Burma, there is still protection for a person who has been arrested and taken into custody.

In a country where lawlessness has gone that deep, the illegal impeachment of a superior court judge, ignoring universally accepted norms regarding the removal of such judges, is merely a logical extension of the overwhelming disregard of the law.

The law now is that whatever the government does is correct and that the correctness will be demonstrated by the use of the mob under its control. Any kind of behaviour that a law abiding nation might consider illegal or even vulgar may go as decent and right in Sri Lanka under the present circumstances.

This is a bewildering situation and the implications are beyond comprehension. Both the rights of the individual, as well as property rights, will fall foul of this situation. Anyone who has the will to defy the law and has any connection with the government would be able to do whatever they like. Each individual citizen will learn about it when his or her rights are directly affected by this situation. There are already tens of thousands of people who have had that experience.

If the people thought that they might have some recourse to the courts and find some solace as in the past, that too will prove an illusion more and more. In a country where the Chief Justice herself is helpless before lawlessness how could any other citizen expect the protection of the law?

‘The government made several attempts to kill me’: Tamil MP wants probe of assassination claims by Sri Lankan army deserter in Canada

More from Stewart Bell-Stewart Bell | Dec 5, 2012

A Sri Lankan opposition politician said Wednesday he wanted his government to investigate allegations that an army officer now in Canada had been ordered to plant a bomb at his residence during the island nation’s civil war.

Passport photo of Ravindra Priyashantha Watudura Bandanage, who was a captain in the Sri Lanka Army until he fled to Canada and deserted. He has told immigration officials the army ordered him to place a bomb in the home of a Tamil Member of parliament in Sri Lanka.

M.K. Sivajilingam said he had no trouble believing the former Sri Lanka Army captain, who has told Canadian immigration authorities his colonel had instructed him to leave explosives at the home of the controversial Tamil parliamentarian in 2008.

The former MP said in a telephone interview the military had made three attempts on his life during the war and once placed a claymore mine under his steps. He fled the country in October 2008 but has since returned to Sri Lanka.

“At that time, especially during the wartime, the Sri Lankan government made several attempts to kill me,” he said. “I escaped so many attempts. Definitely that particular captain’s statement may be right.”

Related

• Sri Lankan military lashes out at deserter who fled to Canada, gave ‘insider’s account’ of government torture
• Sri Lankan Army deserter gives ‘rare’ insider account of government forces torturing civilians

Last week, the National Post reported that Capt. Ravindra Watudura Bandanage had fled to Canada at the end of the war between government forces and separatist Tamil rebels. During his refugee hearing, he said he had been instructed to place explosives and detonators at Mr. Sivajilingam’s home in Colombo.

He said he had refused the assignment and was transferred to a unit that conducted search-and-cordon operations that rounded up ethnic Tamils in Colombo. He said he was aware the army was torturing, beating and raping civilians.

While there have been mounting allegations that both sides committed war crimes during the final stage of the war, the ex-captain’s account is considered particularly damaging because it comes from a former commissioned officer who served 16 years in the army.

The Immigration and Refugee Board ruled the deserter was not eligible for refugee protection because he was complicit in the Sri Lanka Army’s “relentless brutality” towards Tamil civilians. His appeal to the Federal Court of Canada was dismissed last month.

The Sri Lankan military has confirmed the captain was AWOL but denied the allegations on its website on the weekend, calling his statement a lie by “a man of dubious repute and questionable integrity towards his motherland.”

David Poopalapillai, the Canadian Tamil Congress spokesman, said the deserter’s account “shows once again how deliberately the leadership of the army and the leadership of the government went after the elected officials and also civilians, to harass them and to incriminate them.

“It’s a gross human rights violation.”

Mr. Sivajilingam was an MP affiliated with the Tamil National Alliance party at the time of the alleged bomb incident. He is now leader of the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization. He said he did not know the officer who allegedly gave the order to plant the bomb, identified in Canadian immigration records as Colonel Atapattu. He said several other Tamil MPs were assassinated during the long armed conflict.

Sri Lanka Placed 79th In Global Corruption Perception Index

By Transparency International -December 5, 2012 

In the annual Global Corruption Perception Index (CPI) just released by Transparency International (TI), Sri Lanka has scored 40 points and is placed in the 79th position among 176 countries.

Among the South Asian Countries Sri Lanka ranks second above India, Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Only Bhutan has fared better than Sri Lanka. In Asia Pacific region Sri Lanka is ranked number 11.

Two thirds of the 176 countries ranked in the 2012 index score below 50, on a scale from 0 (perceived to be highly corrupt) to 100 (perceived to be very clean), showing that public institutions need to be more transparent, and powerful officials more accountable.

Since Sri Lanka has scored below 50, it is apparent that the country is yet among those who were unable to minimize the level of corruption in the public sector. Thus Transparency International Sri Lanka believes there is a need to strengthen the anti – corruption mechanisms in Sri Lanka.

The Index, which focuses on corruption in the public sector, is conducted by Transparency International (TI), the global civil society organization leading the fight against corruption. The CPI, though perceptional, has been accepted as the most recognized and often quoted international index on corruption.

A release issued by Transparency International states: “A growing outcry over corrupt governments forced several leaders from office last year, but as the dust has cleared it has become apparent that the levels of bribery, abuse of power and secret dealings are still very high in many countries. Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index 2012 shows corruption continues to ravage societies around the world.”

“Governments need to integrate anti-corruption actions into all public decision-making. Priorities include better rules on lobbying and political financing, making public spending and contracting more transparent and making public bodies more accountable to people,” said Huguette Labelle, the Chair of Transparency International.

“After a year of focus on corruption, we expect governments to take a tougher stance against the abuse of power. The Corruption Perceptions Index 2012 results demonstrate that societies continue to pay the high cost of corruption,” Labelle said.

In the Corruption Perceptions Index 2012 Denmark, Finland and New Zealand tie for first place with scores of 90, helped by strong access to information systems and rules governing the behavior of those in public positions. Afghanistan, North Korea and Somalia once again cling to the bottom rung of the index. In these countries the lack of accountable leadership and effective public institutions underscore the need to take a much stronger stance against corruption.

This year Transparency International has changed the methodology for the Corruption Perceptions Index, allowing for year-over-year comparisons for all editions published from 2012 onward.

Governments should hear the global outcry against corruption

A growing outcry over corrupt governments forced several leaders from office last year, but as the dust has cleared it has become apparent that the levels of bribery, abuse of power and secret dealings are still very high in many countries. Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index 2012 shows corruption continues to ravage societies around the world.

Two thirds of the 176 countries ranked in the 2012 index score below 50, on a scale from 0 (perceived to be highly corrupt) to 100 (perceived to be very clean), showing that public institutions need to be more transparent, and powerful officials more accountable.

“Governments need to integrate anti-corruption actions into all public decision-making. Priorities include better rules on lobbying and political financing, making public spending and contracting more transparent and making public bodies more accountable to people,” said Huguette Labelle, the Chair of Transparency International.

“After a year of focus on corruption, we expect governments to take a tougher stance against the abuse of power. The Corruption Perceptions Index 2012 results demonstrate that societies continue to pay the high cost of corruption,” Labelle said.

Many of the countries where citizens challenged their leaders to stop corruption –from the Middle East to Asia to Europe – have seen their positions in the index stagnate or worsen.

Corruption Perceptions Index 2012: The results

In the Corruption Perceptions Index 2012 Denmark, Finland and New Zealand tie for first place with scores of 90, helped by strong access to information systems and rules governing the behaviour of those in public positions.

Afghanistan, North Korea and Somalia once again cling to the bottom rung of the index. In these countries the lack of accountable leadership and effective public institutions underscore the need to take a much stronger stance against corruption.

Underperformers in the Corruption Perceptions Index 2012 also include the Eurozone countries most affected by the financial and economic crisis. Transparency International has consistently warned Europe to address corruption risks in the public sector to tackle the financial crisis, calling for strengthened efforts to corruption-proof public institutions.

“Corruption is the world’s most talked about problem,” stated Cobus de Swardt, Managing Director of Transparency International. “The world’s leading economies should lead by example, making sure that their institutions are fully transparent and their leaders are held accountable. This is crucial since their institutions play a significant role in preventing corruption from flourishing globally,” de Swardt said.

Background

This year Transparency International has updated the methodology for the Corruption Perceptions Index 2012.To reflect this the Corruption Perceptions Index is presented on a scale from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).

Grandpass murder: Mystery continues in the letter

[ Wednesday, 05 December 2012, 03:06.44 PM GMT +05:30 ]

Police recovered bodies of father, mother and their two years old son from a house at Grandpass on October 26.

Police also found letter which was written in the Tamil language from the site. Relatives of the victims stated this letter was not written by the murdered husband and wife. Earlier police revealed this letter was written by dead wife Kokilawani. However relatives noted this was not the hand writing of these victims. Speaking to media brother of Sriskandan went on to say, his brother was fluent in English language and he was unable to write in Tamil language. He also noted this was not his sister-in law hand writting. Inspector of the Kothena police Hemantha Ovitigama stated, relatives are permitted to loge complaint this regard. He also added at present they have sent the letter and other document written by the dead couple has been sent towards government analysis department for further investigations he said.

Suresh calls upon diaspora youth to respond to Jaffna University situation

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 05 December 2012, 20:12 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian and Eelam People Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF) leader Suresh Premachandran in a video interview to TamilNet this week, called upon the diaspora youth studying in the Western World to take up the matter of SL military oppression of Jaffna University students with the Western governments, in order to push them to prevail upon Colombo’s undemocratic activities. Meanwhile, diaspora circles especially in the UK and in Canada now realize how in the last three years Colombo’s agents have succeeded in hijacking, silencing and deviating the diaspora alumni associations of the leading schools of Eezham Tamils. They also cited at the strange silence of an alumni association started in the UK in the name of the Jaffna University. 



 in his interview said that every people have the right to remember kith and kin lost in a war. The Sri Lankan military conducts a function every year to remember its fallen soldiers. The JVP is having its own day to remember its lost comrades, he cited.

The Tamils have lost nearly 300,000 in the 35-years war. They have every right to remember their dead. When the Jaffna University students were peacefully remembering the fallen heroes, the SL military and police entered into the gents as well as ladies hostels and assaulted the students, including girls. Even a silent demonstration the following day was attacked. Around 10 university students including girls were injured and were brought to the hospital, the TNA parliamentarian said.

Four students have been arrested. They have 11 more names in the list and they search knocking doors in midnight. They book them under Prevention of Terrorism Act, Suresh said

Out of 20 divisions (200, 000 soldiers) of Sri Lanka’s military, 15 divisions (150,000) are stationed in the North alone, where the population today is just 500, 000. You have to send this Army away from this soil, Suresh further said.

Issue of Jaffna university students arrest. An act to crush the democracy values of youngsters.

 Party Mannar District youngsters group Secretary V.S.Sivakaran said, the arrest of Jaffna University students union Secretary Paramalingam Tharshanth and others arrest is an act crushing the democracy values  of young society which we strongly condemned.

The media statement which he stated further quotes, our freedom of speech towards our existence is completely getting crushed. The country which is functioning in the name of democracy, its administration is totally autocracy.

Their tactics in coping up with the international issues is to establish the military supremacy continuously in the north and east by sustaining it in the civil administration, and time to time raising the tiger flags hosting and to unveiling impact activities against the normal situation.

Hence the attacks against the university students  and arrest  are the wounds now generated in the minds and hearts of Tamil people.

National democracy values should respect the young society; contrary trampling actions will be insulting the government.

Sri Lanka government for a long period in the issues of Tamils is forgetting to overcome the Learnt Lessons again and again and Tamils are suppressed branding as aggressors. We urge violence against the young society through these actions, should not be executed.

Wednesday , 05 December 2012

TID officials arrest 10 individual​s in Jaffna

[ Wednesday, 05 December 2012, 04:10.09 PM GMT +05:30 ]

TID officials suddenly arrested 10 Individuals at Jaffna district and taken them towards Colombo, sources said.

Group of TID officials arrive from the Colombo last afternoon visited to the Chavakatchcheri and Kopai police stations and hold investigations against these members. Coordinator of the Jaffna district T.Kanagaraja stated all these members were arrested under the prevention of terrorist act and the complaint this regard has been lodged at the Human Rights Commission. He also stated he received complaints about 5 individuals at Chavakatchcheri area and 2 from Kopai area. Relatives of the victims visited the Jaffna police head quarters last evening and questioned about this arrest. However police officials stated they were unaware in this arrest and also they were not permitted to release further information’s this regard. Previously police officials have ordered these victims to visit Jaffna and Kopai police stations for investigations. It was revealed these rehabilitated victims have recently arrived from the Vanni district and resettled in the Jaffna, sources said. யாழில் ரி.ஐ.டி யினால் 7 பேர் கைது; எண்ணிக்கையில் அதிகரிப்பு இருக்கலாம் என சந்தேகம் சாவகச்சேரி மற்றும் கோப்பாய் பொலிஸ் பகுதிகளில் இருந்து 7 பேர் பயங்கரவாத குற்றத்தடுப்புப் புலனாய்வுப் பிரிவினரால் கைது செய்யப்பட்டுள்ளதாக மனித உரிமை ஆணைக்குழுவில் முறைப்பாடு செய்யப்பட்டுள்ளதாக யாழ். மாவட்ட பிராந்திய இணைப்பாளர் ரி. கனகராஜ் தெரிவித்துள்ளார்.    நேற்று பிற்பகல் கோப்பாய் மற்றும் சாவகச்சேரி பொலிஸ் நிலையங்களுக்கு குறித்த இவர்கள் வரவழைக்கப்பட்டு கொழும்பில் இருந்து வந்த குற்றத்தடுப்புப்  புலனாய்வுப் பிரிவினரால் கைது செய்யப்பட்டு கொழும்புக்குக் கொண்டு செல்லப்பட்டுள்ளதாக தெரியவருகின்றது.    முறைப்பாட்டில் 5 பேர் கோப்பாய் பொலிஸ் பிரிவிலும் 2 பேர் சாவகச்சேரி பொலிஸ் பிரிவிலும் கைது செய்யப்பட்டுள்ளனர் என முறைப்பாடு கிடைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளதாக தெரிவித்துள்ளார்.    இவர்கள் கைது செய்யப்பட்டதற்கான பற்றுச்சீட்டு குறித்த பொலிஸ் நிலையங்களில் வழங்கப்படுவதாகவும் தெரிவிக்கப்படுகின்றது.    அதில் பயங்கரவாத தடைச் சட்டத்தின் கீழ் கைது செய்யப்பட்டுள்ளனர் என்று குறிப்பிடப்பட்டுள்ளதாக இணைப்பாளர் மேலும் தெரிவித்துள்ளார்.   இவர்கள் வன்னியில் இருந்து வந்து யாழில் மீளக்குடியமர்ந்தவர்கள் என்றும் இவர்கள் கோப்பாய், உரும்பிராய் மற்றும் சாவகச்சேரியைச் சேர்ந்தவர்கள் எனவும் தெரியவருகின்றது.   இருப்பினும் கோப்பாய், சாவகச்சேரி மற்றும் யாழ். பொலிஸ் பிரிவில் 10 பேர் கைது செய்யப்பட்டுள்ளதாக தெரிவிக்கப்படுகின்றது. எனினும் இதுவரை 7 பேர் தொடர்பிலேயே மனித உரிமை ஆணைக்குழுவில் முறைப்பாடு கிடைக்கப்பெற்றுள்ளமை குறிப்பிடத்தக்கது.   எனினும் இது குறித்து பொலிஸ் நிலையங்களில் தொடர்பு கொண்டு கேட்ட போது இது குறித்து தமக்குத் தெரியாது என்றும்  தெரிவித்துள்ளனர்.

Tension rises in Jaffna as TID arrests more people under anti-terror laws

05 DECEMBER 2012

BY RAMANAN VEERASINGHAM

The counter terrorism unit of the Sri Lankan Police on Tuesday night have arrested at least ten young men, including 'rehabilitated' former Tamil Tiger cadres, who are now resettled with their families in northern town of Jaffna, amid fears of fresh series of state violence in the war-ravaged areas.

Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission’s  (HRC) Northern Regional Co-ordinator, T. Kanakarajah has said that relatives of at least seven arrested men have lodged complaints with the Jaffna HRC about their arrests late Tuesday (04).

He said that five men from Kopay Police Division and two from Chavekachcheri Police Division have been arrested by a special team attached to  Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) from Colombo, after they were asked to report to the respective Police stations on Tuesday night.

Prevention of Terrorism Act

According to sources in Jafnna, all these people have lived under the LTTE held areas till the end of the war and later have moved to Jaffna. The arrested ex - Tiger cadres  currently have re-settled themselves in Jaffna district after the process of so-called rehabilitation.

"The next of kin have been given documents relating to their arrests by the police and it has been specifically mentioned that they have all been arrested under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA)", Kanagaraja has said in Jaffna.

These fresh arrests have come in the backdrop of the arrest of four Jaffna University undergraduates by the TID on Saturday (01).

Fear of reprisals

According to Kanagaraja the relatives of the seven men arrested have requested the Human Rights Commission not to reveal the names and other details of the arrested men fearing Police reprisals.

Meanwhile, reports from Jaffna reveal that Sinnathamby Ramadas, father of four and Selvarasa Senthildas from Urumpirai were asked to report to the Kopay Police on late Tuesday night. The relatives were later informed that they have been arrested by a special TID unit from Colombo and taken to Vavuniya.

"They were living with their families in the former LTTE held areas and continued to live with them after going through the process of rehabilitation. These men from Urumpirai, Kopay, Chavakachcheri and Jaffna areas have been arrested after reported emergence of LTTE propaganda posters in these areas during the Heroes' Day observation on November 27" the sources in Jaffna told JDS.

© JDS

Army Intelligen​ce Unit members abduct school student [ Wednesday, 05 December 2012, 05:33.54 PM GMT +05:30 ] Members of the Army Intelligence unit abducted student went on to collect water at the Valvettithurai area. Parents of the victim have filed complaint at the Jaffna Human Rights Council. Victim is identified as Arulambalam Kishokraj (19) resident of Oorani area in Valvettithurai. Victim has left the house to collect drinking water last afternoon and fail to return home since evening. Relatives and the family members have lodged complaint at the Valvettithurai police station and informed the Jaffna Human Rights Commission on this disappearance. Members of the army intelligence unit visited house of the student informed that they have arrested the victim area residents said. However relatives of the victim fail to release further information’s this regard, our correspondent said.

SRI LANKA: Learning from Nepal’s search for the missing

Photo: Amantha Perera/ IRIN

Adhri Rajbanshi,70, searching for answers from her son's disappearance in 2002

JALTHAL/KILINOCHICHI, 5 December 2012 (IRIN) - Nepal and Sri Lanka share few similarities in their post-conflict experiences. The former has a peace deal, a government ministry overseeing post-war reconstruction, a national programme to trace missing persons and an NGO to advocate for their families - none of which exist in Sri Lanka. But the two do have something essential in common: grieving relatives of the missing who are now searching for answers. 

In her village of Jalthal, 550km southeast of Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, 35-year-old Reena Mecha had for years avoided talking about her husband’s 2004 disappearance during Nepal’s civil conflict.

“At the beginning, there was no one to talk to, no one to understand what I was going through,” Mecha told IRIN. The 2006 peace agreement that ended the decade-long conflict did little to ease her burden. It was only in November 2011 that she found comfort after joining a support group for families of the missing, coordinated by Women’s Rehabilitation Centre (WOREC), a local rights group. 

Some 1,500km away, in northern Sri Lanka, 23-year-old Maheswari has embarked on a similar journey. Her brother has been missing since May 2009, when the entire family fled Kilinochchi to escape fighting between government forces and separatist rebels from the Tamil ethnic group. Some 40,000 civilians died in the final months of fighting, according to the UN. 

She and her parents have since returned. “Life is hard, I am trying my best to look for him, but I don’t know where to start or whom to ask [for] information. There are thousands of others like me here [in the former war zone],” said Maheswari, who provided only her first name. 

Thousands missing 
There are thousands still unaccounted for in both these South Asian countries. In Nepal, the tracing unit of the Nepal Red Cross, which helps reunite family members by tracking down the missing, is trying to locate 1,401 missing persons. 

Sri Lankan government data from 2011 estimated 2,635 people in the country’s former conflict zone, Northern Province, are “untraceable” (missing). Other estimates are much higher. 

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has recorded 5,671 reported cases of wartime-related disappearance, not counting people who went missing in Sri Lanka in the final stages of fighting from 2008 to 2009. At the end of 2011, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Sri Lanka had compiled a database of 15,780 cases of missing persons, some of which dated back to 1990.  

Mecha in Nepal had one piece of advice for those like Maheswari: It will be a grim and lonely search, and your only solace will be the company of others like you. 

Frustrated by lack of answers following his father’s disappearance in 2001, Ram Kumar Bhandari formed a regional group of missing families in the country’s west in December 2007. “Someone need[ed] to take the initiative and get the voice [of the families] heard and the trauma they undergo recognized,” Bhandari said. 

By 2009 the group became the National Network of Families of Disappeared and Missing (NEFAD) in Nepal and now counts more than 800 families among its membership. 

Aside from peer support and a forum for discussion, the activist said associations like NEFAD provide political leverage. “Politicians will listen to a collective voice,” he said. 

Tracing 
The Nepali Red Cross is tracing those missing by conducting periodic interviews with their families. Red Cross staff follow up on new leads with government and other officials. 

By contrast, in Sri Lanka, there is no national tracing programme thus far, though a local government unit in the northern Vavuniya District carries out local searches. Piencia Charles, who was instrumental in setting up this Family Tracing Unit in December 2009 (but who no longer serves in the north), told IRIN she was responding to the women she encountered daily who cried in her office. The unit’s main task is to find children, though it receives complaints about missing adults as well. 

“One of their [families’] main expectations is [to find out] what happened to their loved ones, and after repeated [home visits from us and] no new information, they can get very emotional,” Shubhadra Devkota, a tracing officer with the Nepal Red Cross told IRIN. She said families frequently question whether to continue searching. 

Back in Kilinochchi, in Sri Lanka, a church-based counsellor who requested anonymity told IRIN that families of the missing were only now coming out to seek counsel. 

She said due to how contentious the issue of disappearances still is – the number of persons missing is disputed – there are few efforts to expand or institutionalize tracing. 

“There is a long way to go here. A very long way,” the counsellor concluded. 
ap/pt/rz

Theme (s): Conflict, Human Rights,

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]