Arrested youth escapes army custody

[TamilNet, Friday, 12 March 1999, 22:10 GMT]
Shanmuganathan Kumaran, 18, who is in hiding after escaping from Sri Lankan Army custody is now at the ICRC in Jaffna. An ICRC official in Jaffna said they were waiting for advice from their head office in Geneva before they could take any decision.

Kumaran was arrested by the Sri Lankan Army from his house in Madduvil in Chavakachcheri on Tuesday (March 10) morning.

The SLA had told his family that he was a LTTE suspect and that they wanted ask him some questions.

According to sources in Jaffna, Kumaran had been tortured at the Chavachcheri SLA camp. However, he had managed to escape from the camp the same evening.

The youth had then informed his mother from a hide out that he wished to surrender to the Human Rights Commission (HRC).

The HRC, when contacted by th youth's mother, had told the mother that her son should give himself up at the nearest SLA or Police camp as they could not accept anyone who had escaped from custody.

Then the mother had contacted the ICRC.

ICRC officials went to his hide out and brought him to the ICRC office.

Meanwhile the Sri Lankan Army arrested two fishermen who went out for fishing yesterday, March 11, in Thondamanaaru in the Jaffn peninsula. They are: Sathasivam Uthayasooriaan, 25, and Joseph Sasikumar, 32.

On March 7, another civilian, Vairamuthu Vasanthan, of Madduvil North was arrested by the SLA.

Namasivayam Ganesan,35, of Pannakam; Chulipuram was arrested on January 25, his wife informed the Human Rights Commission (HRC).

However, the Army has told the HRC that they have not arrested him.