'Chemmani graves need international investigation'

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 February 1999, 19:50 GMT]
The Jaffna district leader of the LTTE's political wing, S.Thooyavan, said today, in a letter sent to magistrates in the peninsula that the Chemmani mass grave issue must be investigated by representatives of international human rights bodies, and not by the local courts.

"It has been established that the local courts in Jaffna are handling the inquiries into the Chemmani graves. The government is not going to give justice to the affected people of Jaffna," he said.

The letter said that the Sri Lankan government is merely trying to re-impose its military run administration in the peninsula. "We are not going to allow this," Thooyavan said in his letter, adding that the courts should cease functioning.

He said that the 'disappearances' and mass arrest of Tamil people still continues, despite claims a civil administration is in place.