Torture & Disappearances Continue

"To us all towns are one, all men our kin.
Life's good comes not from others' gift, nor ill
Man's pains and pains' relief are from within.
Thus have we seen in visions of the wise !."
- Tamil Poem in Purananuru, circa 500 B.C

INDICTMENT AGAINST SRI LANKA

"Batticaloa student Ehamparam Damayanthi, 17, accused of failing to provide information about the LTTE to the authorities was released in late October (1998) by a High Court, after evidence of the Government Judicial Medical Officer confirmed her torture in custody. Ms Damayanthi was arrested in Batticaloa in April 1996 and the case against her was based on a confession, which the court said had not been made voluntarily. Human rights agencies visiting Sri Lanka in October found evidence of widespread torture.

Jaffna Chavakachcheri resident Kulasingham Vimala says in a fundamental rights application to the Supreme Court that after her arrest in November 1996 in a Colombo Hindu temple, she was tortured by police at the Crimes Detection Bureau (CDB). Ms Vimala had arrived in Colombo after obtaining a travel permit from the military in Jaffna...

In October (1998), three Hill Country youths, currently detained in Badulla prison, filed cases in the Supreme Court claiming breach of their fundamental rights by the security forces. Kandapola resident Sinnathamby Thamilchelvan says that he was severely tortured by police following his arrest in January. A confession had been extracted from him in July under threat of torture...

....There is concern in Jaffna over continuing search operations and arrests. The highpriest of Jaffnas Selvachannathy temple went missing on 16 October (1998) and was located on 29 October at the Kankesanthurai military base. Rasanayagam Uthayakumar, 42, was arrested by the Army at a checkpoint in Nallur on 23 October. His body was handed to the Jaffna hospital five days later, claiming that he committed suicide. The security forces made a similar claim in September over the death of GA Gunasekaram in custody. It has been alleged that Navy personnel raped a 16 year-old student on 17 October at her home in Vaddukkottai, after beating-up the parents....

....Tamil MP Neelan Tiruchelvam urged Sri Lankas Human Rights Commission in October to hold an enquiry into the death of Batticaloa farmer Ramakutty Thiyagarajah, 52, after torture in police custody. Mr Thiyagarajah, summoned by the police Special Task Force (STF) to Komari military camp on 14 October, suffered severe torture. Later he had been thrown out of the camp and died at home on the same day. Mr Tiruchelvam says three others arrested in the same area had also been tortured in the camp.

The body of Iyathurai Inbarajah, 18, was discovered on 19 October in a shallow grave at Kalmadu in Valaichenai. Mr Inbarajah went missing after he reported at Kalmadu Army camp as required by the military. Batticaloa MP Joseph Pararajasingham has written to President Chandrika demanding an investigation. People say at least 29 people have been murdered in the area this year. "