Four more bodies identified

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 31 October 2000, 13:32 GMT]
The bodies of four detainees killed in the Bandarawela massacre were identified Tuesday morning at Colombo National Hospital. They were named as Kokulamani Sajeewan of Kallady, Batticaloa, Perinpanayagam Nimlaraj of Batticaloa, Somasuntharam Sellarasa and Sivan Kubendran of Arayampathi. All bodies were found to be in a highly decomposed state, hospital sources said.

So far nine bodies of fifteen Batticaloa Tamil detainees killed in the Bandarawela massacre have been identified by their relatives. Four more bodies are yet to be identified.

Funeral of Vaisvaparam Rubeshkumar, one of the victim killed during an attack on Bindunuwewa detention centre. Photo:TamilNet

In the meantime, a report from Vavuniya said that two of the five PLOTE cadres detained at the Bandarawela rehabilitation center are reported to have been killed in the massacre. They are named as Vaisvaparam Rubeshkumar alias Siinathamby of Urmila Kottam, Vavuniya and Ramasamy Karunakaran of Santhasolai,Vavuniya.

PLOTE is a paramilitary Tamil group which fights alongside the Sri Lanka Amry (SLA). Some time ago, five PLOTE cadres, including the two deceased deserted from the PLOTE camp in Vavuniya, accoriding to ex-militant sources. They were arrested by the Sri Lanka Navy enroute to India in a boat. Later they were handed over to the Anti-Subversive Unit of the Police in Vavnuiya.

The Police sent them to Bandarawela rehabilitation center after they pleaded that they would be killed by the PLOTE if they returned to their own native villages. Of the five ex-PLOTE members, two have been identified among those killed in the Bandarawela massacre, sources said.