Abducted driver escapes, alleges SLA torture

[TamilNet, Saturday, 21 October 2006, 00:39 GMT]
An auto trishaw driver who disappeared after being last seen at a Sri Lankan Army (SLA) check point in Jaffna Wednesday, escaped from the SLA camp in Chavakachcheri and appeared in Courts under the protection of Human Rights Committee (HRC)'s Jaffna branch officials Friday, legal sources said. The driver alleged he was taken to several SLA camps and was tortured while in SLA custody.

Kandiah Kandeepan, 30, a father of 2 children of Sivan Kovil road, Chavakachcheri told the HRC officials that he was stopped and interrogated by soldiers at the Sarasalai Army Checkpoint on 18 October.

After the interrogations, the soldiers had ordered him to take 3 other soldiers in his vehicle to the nearby Vannaththippalam Army camp in Vatharavaththai. There he was blindfolded and subjected to severe torture and transferred to various camps in Thenmarachchi region, Kandeepan said.

Later he was brought to the Army camp near Manthuvil School,

On Thursday night SLA soldiers took him to Kompikkulamkadu area in Sarasalai, along the Chavakachcheri- Point Pedro road. Using the night time as cover, he said he managed to escape and took refuge at a house in Puthur.

Friday morning he contacted the HRC who produced him before Chavakachcheri judge, Annalingam Premachchandran and the judge gave orders to keep him in the custody of prison officers in Jaffna prison, HRC sources said.