tamilweek.com

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

Trincomalee and its environs continued to be caught up in a vicious cycle of violence as various agencies engaged in sporadic attacks and counter – attacks.. While the armed forces were at the receiving end of Tiger – sponsored violence civilians particularly Tamils suffered at the hands of security forces and other sinister state – aligned elements. Adding to the tensions was the announcement by the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission that it was suspending duties in the district until further notice.

The SLMM decision has begun causing panic in Trincomalee.The much maligned monitors provided a reassuring oasis of stability in a bleak desert of violence. With the SLMM decision fears began mounting on either side of the ethnic divide. The security forces are apprehensive of escalating levels of tiger motivated attacks against them. The helpless Tamil civilians are fearful of increasing harm at the hands of the security forces and their “lumpen” sidekicks.

If ever the ordinary people of Trincomalee needed a comforting third party this is that time. But the SLMM has chosen to desert the people at a crucial time. The Monitors seem to have a history of abdicating their duties at times when people sorely need them. In 2004 Batticaloa was under severe strain due to the rebellion of eastern tiger commander Vinayagamoorthy Muraleetharan alias “Col” Karuna. Yet the SLMM suspended its functions and withdrew.Now the same thing is happening in Trincomalee.

One does understand that the SLMM is in a predicament. The Nordic representatives from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland and Denmark came to the North – East to monitor what they thought was a genuine ceasefire. Instead they have seen violations in their thousands. Now the situation is changing for the worse.The atmosphere is that of an undeclared war. The SLMM is being required to monitor “ceaseless firing” instead of a ceasefire. Monitoring a war – overt or covert – is not their mandate. Besides there is the question of the safety of the monitors themselves.

It was the incident at Uppuvely on Jan 17th that led to the SLMM ‘s decision. The monitors staying at a hotel in Nilaweli travel along the Nilweli – Trincomalee road to their headquarters in Trincomalee and back on a daily basis. They had done so that morning too but later on a claymore mine had exploded at Uppuvely on the same road.The monitors had passed through on the same route about 90 minutes before.

Furthermore a monitor team was proceeding towards Thiriyai along the same road when the explosion had occurred. The Police at Upuuvely had refused to let the monitors proceed further in the interests of their own safety. While held up at the Police the reprts of gunfire were also heard. It was after this incident that the SLMM announced its suspension of duties.

The Uppuvely incident was one more instance of the tragic pattern of violence enveloping Trincomalee. About 24 Naval personnel were travelling in a bus via the Nilaweli road. They were going from their camp at Gopalapuram in the Nilaweli region to the dockyard road base in Trincomalee town. The sailors had reached a point near the Uppuvely junction or the third mile post junction from Trinco town on the Nilaweli road. Uppuvely is predominantly Tamil.

The naval vehicle had veered off the road and taken a short cut . This apparently was a regular practice. The vehicle was yards away from the Love lane – Palms road intersection when a claymore mine attached to a parked cycle on the wayside was triggered off by a remote – controlled device. The obvious suspects were the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.Fortunately for the navy the explosion occurred a fraction of a second late after the bus had almost passed the claymore – cycle. This minimised the damage.The time was 10.05 am.

Nevertheless twelve naval personnel sustained injuries. None were killed though the condition od three sailors is said to be serious. Dazed security personnel hit the ground and began firing away. Some ran here and there firing away at a non – existent enemy. There was no enemy to fight against. This was not a conventional ambush where guerillas trigger a landmine and then shoot it out with surviving security personnel. It was only a one- sided shooting spree. This was simply because the tigers had exploded the claymore by remote and fled the scene letting innocent civilians face repercussions.

Though sections of the media say there was a shootout and that civilians were killed in the crossfire the reality is that all the firing was done by the naval personnel alone. There is an army camp at Uppuvely within a stone’s throw of where the explosion took place. But none of the soldiers participated in the shooting spree. It was during this melee that at least six civilians sustained serious and another ten minor injuries.

Two civilians were killed.According to eyewitness reports these two were killed at close quarters.Reportedly an injured sailor bleeding from his injuries was seen killing one and then daubing his victim’s body with that of his own blood. The cruelly melodramatic gesture seemed to indicate a “blood for blood” thirst for vengeance.

The shooting melee lasted for about 20 to 25 minutes. It may have gone on further but for the intervention of a high – ranking Naval officer who arrived at the scene. It was this officer who brought the situation under control and ensured that the sailors leave the scene with injured sailors and civilians being given priority . This officer apparently arrived with reinforcements from Trincomalee upon hearing of the incident. Affected civilians are grateful to this man but are unaware of his identity.

The civilians injured and killed at Uppuvely were not tigers. They were people who were either passing through the place or had come to buy things or for other matters. tragically they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.Among the places in the vicinity was the Asian Hardware stores; Opposite to that was the Kandeepan enterprises a telecommunications agency. On top of this was an NGO office. Adjoining Kandeepan Enterprises was the Jeya studio.

Most of the affected civilians were either in these buildings or on the road when the shooting started. These buildings too were damaged. Later on another development occurred. Naval personnel presumably from the Gopalapuram camp arrived later and conducted an intensive search of the area for the “elusive” tigers as if the LTTE was waiting to be captured. Soldiers from Uppuvely also joined them. Of course no tigers were snared but the operation was not without its rewards.One result of this search operation was the large- scale looting of houses, businesses and shops.

The people had all fled from the scene. Seven civilians three women and four men were trapped but managed to hide themselves. Again it was the intervention of superior officers who arrived at the scene which ended the “search cum looting spree”. After the security personnel left the scene Policemen from the Uppuvely station arrived. They took the seven civilians to the station, recorded statements and arranged for safe return to their homes.

The two men killed in the Uppuvely shooting were identified as Sellathurai Selvarajah (25) of Chelvanayagapuram and Wilson Christopher George a resident of Nithyapuri in Allesgarden, Uppuvely. Selvarajah was a mason by profession and George a construction labourer. Both were at the Asian Hardware stores to buy materials when they were killed.Trincomalee Judicial Medical Officer Dr. Gamini Kulatunge who conducted the post – mortem stated that deaths were caused by gunshot injuries.Trincomalee magistrate V. Ramakamalan recorded a verdict of death due to gunshot injuries.A joint funeral for both victims was held at the Alles Garden cemetery in Uppuvely on Jan 19th afternoon.

Seven civilians were admitted to hospital for surgery after the Uppuvely incident. . Six of these were victims of the Uppuvely shooting spree. They were TM Chandrasena (38), AKE Premadasa (36),Kadiramalai Duwaraga (45), Ganesh Saraswathy (46), Sebastian David (35) and Sivagnanam Kavitha (25).Three of the six were women . Two were Sinhala and four Tamils. Apparently Sailors on the shooting spree had not discriminated gender or ethnicity – wise in targeting victims.

The seventh civilian to receive surgery was 20 year old S. Devadharshan. He worked in a boutique at Madathady junction in Trincomalee town. Within minutes after the Uppeveli attack there was much excitement in Trincomalee town with naval personnel rushing to the scene. It was at this time that some “persons” in a vehicle had lobbed a grenade at this boutique seriously injuring the Tamil shop employee.The Police station is in close proximity to this shop.

Another “mystery” grenade targeting Tamil civilians had been thrown at a Tamil residence on Jan 14th Thaipongal day too.The family comprising Rajkumar (35) his wife Rajeswari (35) daughter Saivithya (10) and son Vithyakaran (04) were at their residence in the Urban Council residence quarters at Anbuvalipuram on the Trinco – Kandy road. The family was watching TV in the evening when a grenade was lobbed inside injuring all four. Again the Police came out with a version that a grenade concealed inside the house had exploded. SLMM monitors however discovered the grenade clip outside the house.Senior DIG Mahinda Balasuria has ordered a full investigation into the incident.

Meanwhile the magisterial inquest into the killing of five Tamil youths at the Dutch bay beach was concluded on Jan 18th with Trincomalee magistrate V. Ramakamalan ruling that all five had died due to gunshot injuries. Earlier Trincomalee JMO Dr. Gamini Kulatunga submitted post – mortem reports . The JMO stated that all five had been shot with bullets piercing through heads, lungs,liver, intestines and other vital organs causing instantaneous death.The shots had been fired from above. Though there were other injuries it was gunshots that had caused death said Dr. Gamini Kulatunga.

Parents and close relatives of the five youths also gave evidence. Deputy Solicitor – General De Livera and three other state counsels from Colombo were in Trincomalee to lead evidence. Attorney at law A. Jegasothy watched the interests of the families of the dead students.At the conclusion Mr. Ramakamalan delivering his order ruled “The court determines that the five Tamil youths killed on January 2 night near the sea beach of the east port town had died due to gunshot injuries instantaneously. The court has come to a conclusion that an offence has been committed in this instance. Therefore the court orders the Police to conduct further inquiry into these deaths and to produce the suspects before the court,”

With this official verdict being recorded and President Rajapakse himself giving his word that the guilty ones would be punished let us hope justice would be done. The false propaganda about the five youths being killed through a grenade explosion has now been disproved legally and officially. It is time for all human rights organizations to increase pressure on the regime and urge full inquiry and retributive justice. President Rajapakse has to be given full support to overcome reactionary elements and pursue justice. Let it not be forgotten that the image of Mahinda the man of human rights and the self – respect of the nation lies in how this issue is handled.

In what seemed to be the only silver lining in a dark Trincomalee scenario a satisfactory decision was arrived at on the question of the continuous hartals called in Trincomalee by Tamil and Sinhala organizations.The Sinhala organizations called off their hartal with effect from Jan 15th following a meeting with Senior Police DIG in charge of North – East Mahinda Balasuriya on Saturday 14th evening.

Thereafter on Sunday Jan 15th DIG Balasuriya met with Tamil organization representatives, religious leaders and senior security officials. With Mr. Balasuriya assuring Tamil reps that he would take steps to implement decisions taken the Tamil organizations also announced that they were calling off their hartal.Tamil and Sinhala organizations for different reasons had paralysed Trincomalee with their respective hartals causing immense hardship to the ordinary people.

DIG Balasuriya is to be commended for persuading both parties to call off the hartals. It remains to be seen as to how quickly and effectively the assurances given by Balasuria are implemented.According to Mr.V.Vigneswaran, President of the Tamil Resurgence Forum in Trincomalee the assurances provided were –
1. All government troops located near schools, temples, sea beach and Government Technical College should be removed.
2. Police personnel should be deployed in addition to members of armed forces at sentries in the town and its suburbs. Police should be allowed to check civilians passing through sentry points.
3. Home guards should not be allowed alone on duty. Home guards should accompany Police. Home guards should not be allowed alone to enter Tamil areas.
4. Police and government troops should provide in writing on the spot to relatives of a person arrested by them the reason and where the arrested is being taken for inquiry.
5. Soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army and Sri Lanka Navy should not cover their faces with black clothes when they conduct search operation and when they are on patrol.
Mr. Vigneswaran further said the DIG had asked them not to launch hartal without informing him if there is a delay in implementing these decisions. He also said the Forum had asked the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) in Trincomalee to monitor the implementation of the decisions.

Though normalcy began returning to Trincomalee from Monday Jan 16th incidents like the Uppuvely attack on 17th were soon plunging the region into turmoil and despair. With the SLMM announcing its temporary “withdrawal” the people particularly Tamils were feeling more and more insecure. Even the implementation of the decision arrived at with Police DIG Balasuriya was to be monitored by the SLMM.

Adding to Tamil fears was the announcement that more security personnel were to be deployed in Trincomalee to fill the vacuum created by the SLMM suspension of duties. This itself was an ironic contradiction because the SLMM was here to monitor the ceasefire between the LTTE and Sri Lankan government troops. For one party to announce that it was filling the gap will be unacceptable because the security forces cannot be regarded as neutral or independent. They are a party to the conflict and cannot be seen as impartially carrying out their duties.

Another development increasing Tamil insecurity is the move to train and arm 600 homeguards from the district. In a blatant racist move all 600 were to be from the Sinhala and Muslim commuities. This is seen as something clearly detrimental to ordinary Tamil civilians. Already some lumpen Sinhala elements aided and abetted by sections of the armed forces have run amok in Trincomalee.

Even a BBC crew filiming the “Sinhala” hartal was not spared with club wielding mobs threatening and demanding films taken of the patriotic hartal. Most of the young men were in shorts and tee – shirts and quite drunk before noon. The terrorising of the BBC crew was done in the presence of Police and Army personnel who did not interfere at all.If this is the plight of the BBC crew with two British, one Indian and two Sri Lankan nationals then one can imagine the problems to be faced by Tamil civilians in a kingdom of armed homeguards.

It is imperative therefore that the SLMM resume operational activities as soon as possible. While understanding and sympathising with their predicament it is also of importance to emphasise that the SLMM should be at work as long as the ceasefire is “officially” in force. The SLMM must revise its stance in the larger interests of the ordinary Trincomalee civilians. The SLMM has admonished both the LTTE and the security forces for prevailing tensions and violence in Trincomalee and urged both to regulate themselves. Let us hope then that the monitors resume duties after the full import of their action sinks into all concerned parties.

Even as this article is about to end there comes bad news again from Trincomalee. According to preliminary reports three naval personnel and a Policeman were injured when a bomb was thrown at a navy jee pon Thursday Jan 19th at about 4 pm in the Gandhinagar area of Anbuvallipuram . The incident occurred near the Anuradhapura junction along the Trincomalee – Kandy road about two miles away from Trinco town. In a replay of what went on in Uppuvely on Jan 17th enraged security personnel had gone on the rampage spraying the surrounding area with gunfire.

Ten civilians were injured. One was Sinhala , two Muslims and seven Tamils. Their names and ages are – Chandrasekara (38) , Nawas (42), Mashoor (73), Benedict (38), Vinotharajah (28) , Kamalathas (48), Pakiarajah (24), Arulraj (30), Ravichandran (37) and Jeyachandran (34). A shop in the area was also damaged. Many Tamils have been detained for questioning.

With the LTTE stepping up violence through direct and indirect means the North – East is continuously on the boil. Trincomalee with its strategic importance and ethnic mixture will feel this impact acutely. It is therefore of the utmost importance that the SLMM resumes duties and helps to alleviate at least some of the tensions and insecurity felt by the people.

More importantly the LTTE must be made to realise that its deplorable conduct of launching attacks and running away leaving the innocent people at the mercy of infuriated security personnel cannot continue in this fashion.

At the same time the atrocious behaviour of security personnel in the North – East including Trincomalee cannot be condoned and deserves condemnation. Ultimately however it is the democratically elected President of Sri Lanka and his government that has to bear overall responsibility for the cruel victimisation of innocent civilians irrespective of ethnicity and habitat. Sadly Mahinda is yet to realise his responsibilities and take meaningful action.