Teachers demand release of arrested colleague

[TamilNet, Monday, 02 January 2006, 17:16 GMT]
Trainee teachers at the Palaly Teachers Training college boycotted classes Monday demanding the release of fellow trainee Packianathan Kamalakannan who was arrested and being detained by the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) following the claymore mine attack in Point Pedro on 27 December when twelve SLA soldiers were killed.

Mr Kamalakannan from Thumpalai, Point Pedro, was arrested soon after the claymore blast from Point Pedro town.

A delegation comprising of high level administrative staff of Palaly Training College, including the Principal, visited the Point Pedro Police station Monday and discussed possibilities of obtaining Kamalakannan's release. The discussions did not result in any positive moves towards his release.

The delegation said they will attempt another round of talks including Jaffna Government Agent, K Ganesh, as part of the delegation.

The Teacher Trainees' spokesperson said that the boycott of classes will continue tomorrow, and if Kamalakannan is not released, they will solicit support from other educational institutions and widen the boycott.