Genocide '83 - First Anniversary

INDICTMENT AGAINST SRI LANKA : Genocide '83

On the First Anniversary of Genocide'83
Appeal by more than 50 British Members of Parliament
The Guardian, 28 July 1984

"The ethnic violence which erupted in Sri Lanka in July 1983 brought untold misery to the Tamils. They were beaten, hacked and burnt to death in a frenzy of racial hatred. Their houses and businesses were selectively looted and destroyed. The Sri Lankan government had admitted that the violence was pre planned and well organised and that even sections of the security forces joined in the attack against the Tamils.

53 Tamil detainees held in a maximum security prison were brutally killed on July 25th and July 27th. Yet to date no impartial inquiry into these violent attacks has taken place. Amnesty International (AI) recently reported a number of cases of extra judicial killings and secret disposal of bodies without inquest or post mortem. The AI and the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) have also reported on a number of cases of torture and death in custody of persons detained incommunicado for period upto 18 months under the Sri Lankan Prevention of Terrorism Act.

'No legislation conferring remotely comparable powers is in force in any other free democracy... such a provision is an ugly blot on the statute book of any civilised country'(ICJ). The Sixth Amendment to the Constitution has virtually disenfranchised the country's 3 million Tamils by reason of the ban imposed on their political parties. This Amendment according to the ICJ, 'constitutes a clear violation by Sri Lanka of its obligations in international law'. The one million Tamils working in the tea plantations, who were deprived of nationality, citizenship and franchise in 1948 continue to remain stateless persons. We are of the opinion that:

* an impartial international commission should be set up to inquire into the violence against the Tamils in July 1983 including the killing of 53 Tamil detainees held in custody by the government

* the Prevention of Terrorism Act should be repealed and the powers given to the security forces which facilitate arbitrary killing of civilians and disposal of their bodies without inquest or post mortem should be rescinded

* the use of torture and incommunicado detention in violation of Sri Lanka's obligations under International Covenants should be discontinued

* the rights to nationality, citizenship and franchise to the Tamils working in the plantations should be restored

* the Sri Lankan government should repeal the Sixth Amendment to the Constitution and take meaningful steps to arrive at a political solution to the country's ethnic problem by the granting of the legitimate rights of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka."

— David Alton MP, Paddy Ashdown MP, Norman Atkinson MP, Tony Banks MP, Prof John Barret, Kevin Barron MP, Alan Beith MP, Tony Benn MP, Gerry Berningham M.P., Prof Tom Bottomore, Sydney Bidwell MP, Malcolm Bruce MP, Dale Campbell-Savours MP, Dennis Canavan MP, Alex Carlile MP, Tom Clarke MP, Bob Clay MP, Anne Clwyd MP, Harry Cohan MP, Jeremy Corbyn MP, Ron Davis MP, Eric Deakins MP, Alf Dubs MP, Professor Michael Dummet, Derek Fatchett MP, Mark Fisher MP, Martin Flannery MP, Roy Hattersley MP, Michael Foot MP, Simon W.H. Hughes MP, Lord Jenkins, Russel Johnston MP, Sir David Lane,, Robert Kilroy Silk MP, Archy Kirkwood MP, Ted Knight, Terry Lewis MP, Bob Litherland MP, Ken Livingstone, Tony Lloyd MP, Eddie Loyden MP, Max Madden MP, Joan Maynard MP, Willie McKelvy MP, Bill Michie MP, Dr.Paul Noone, Bob Parry MP, Alan Roberts MP, Ernie Roberts MP, Allan Rogers MP, Aubrey Rose, Ernie Ross MP, Steven Ross MP, Clare Short MP, Dennis Skinner MP, Prof Peter Townsend, Jim Wallace MP, Gareth Wardell MP, Dafydd Wigley MP and many others, The Guardian, 28 July 1984