HRW laments Tamil killings

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 25 May 2005, 04:57 GMT]
Saying that ongoing killings and abductions throughout Sri Lanka have created “a climate of fear among Tamils across the country,” Human Rights Watch (HRW) Tuesday called for “the establishment of an independent commission of inquiry into the killings and abductions in order to identify those responsible and recommend measures to end the abuses.”

HRW said “evidence available places responsibility for many of the killings on the Tamil Tigers” but admitted that “in many cases there is circumstantial evidence of LTTE involvement, such as threats.”

“Other killings have been linked to persons loyal to Colonel Karuna,” HRW said, in reference to a renegade LTTE commander who defected to the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) after his six-week rebellion against the LTTE was crushed over the Easter weekend last year.

“The ceasefire between the government and LTTE is welcome, but some are using it as an opportunity to kill their opponents,” said Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch.

“The LTTE denies all involvement in the killings. The Sri Lankan government has not responded forcefully to the killings. The government claims it can do little to protect even obvious targets and the few investigations into killings it has conducted have been ineffectual,” HRW said.

HRW’s lengthy statement Tuesday condemned the LTTE, saying most victims “were considered to be LTTE opponents.”

LTTE political wing officials contacted by TamilNet would only say they had received HRW’s statement and were studying it.

But, speaking on condition of anonymity, one senior official said that as long as the Sri Lankan military continued its covert war against LTTE using Tamil operatives, the movement would have to defend itself.

“Under the cover of ceasefire, Army intelligence is using Tamil informants and assassins to target our members and supporters. As long as this continues, we have to take steps to protect [ourselves].”

“Some of these informants and assassins are members of groups or organisations that do not agree with the LTTE, but political opinion is not the issue here,” he said. “Individuals working with the Sri Lankan military to target our members and supporters must face the consequences.”

The LTTE has repeatedly accused Sri Lankan military intelligence of orchestrating a murderous campaign against its cadres and supporters, using paramilitaries – including gunmen loyal to renegade LTTE commander, Karuna.

The Sri Lankan military denies the charge and claims the violence is an internal feud with Karuna is operating on his own.

Most killings however have taken place in Sri Lanka army (SLA) controlled areas, often close to military camps. On occasion, LTTE cadres have been ambushed in their controlled areas, with the gunmen escaping into Army-controlled territory.

In February, a senior LTTE political leader, E. Kousalyan, and his team were ambushed and massacred by uniformed gunmen on a stretch or road between two Army camps. The Karuna Group was blamed.

Shortly afterwards, Sri Lankan media exposed the presence large camps of anti-Tamil Tiger paramilitaries in Army-controlled areas.

Up to 60 Karuna Group cadres have been operating from a camp at Thivichchenei, in the Polonnarauwa District for the last seven months, the Sunday Leader reported late March.

Roads connect Thivichchenei to another village further north, Omadiyamadu, yet another base used by Karuna cadres, the Sunday Leader reported. Villagers said another paramilitary camp was located at Perakumyaya.

Last month, well Tamil political columnist and military analyst, Dharmeratnam Sivaram, was abducted from across a Colombo police station and murdered, his body dumped near the Parliament complex.

The Karun Group and Sri Lankan military intelligence are widely suspected to being responsible. Sivaram had been a harsh critic of the renegade commander.

Whilst HRW warned Tuesday of a “climate of fear” amongst Tamils, the dynamics of the cycle of violence are starkly apparent to ordinary people.

Echoing widely held sentiments, in a strongly worded editorial on the massacre of Kousalyan and his team, the Tamil Guardian newspaper said: “The central issue now is, after all, the ongoing threat to the lives of LTTE personnel amid what is supposedly a ceasefire.”

“The dismantling of paramilitary units being operated by the state’s armed forces was an essential part of the [February 2002] agreement. However, apart from some token gestures, the Sri Lanka Army has avoided disarming these gunmen. [Karuna’s desertion]prompted Sri Lankan military intelligence to indeed escalate a campaign of assassination and violent terror.”

“[The LTTE’s commitment to the peace process], however, does not mean the LTTE will not implement steps to protect its members and thwart efforts to disrupt its administration. Amid the revulsion and fear triggered by the murders of Mr. Kousalyan and his colleagues, the LTTE will have the public’s full support in this regard.”