Kurunakar parents approach Colombo HRC to file complaints
[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 February 2008, 02:51 GMT]
The relatives of the two school students from Kurunagar, Jaffna arrested recently by Jaffna police have lodged a complaint at the National Head office of Human Rights Commission (HRC), Colombo stating that the office of Jaffna HRC has refused to accept their complaint.
The students were arrested from the Jaffna residential address of the accused arrested in Colombo regarding the killing of former parliamentarian Thiyagarajah Maheswaran.
The two students Joseph Jerome Milton, 16, and Johnson Colin Savio, 21, were taken to Colombo for further investigations and later released on bail.
When the mother of the students attempted to lodge a complaint at Jaffna HRC regarding their arrest and subsequent transport to Colombo for further investigations was told by a coordinator at HRC office that only complaints regarding missing persons will be recorded at their office.
The official also had stated that if their complaint was to be registered they should obtain a police report and submit to them, the relatives of the students said.
Acting on the complaint of the mother, Colombo office of HRC issued an urgent instruction to the Jaffna office to record the complaint regarding the arrests of the youths, both of whom are affected by polio.
Meanwhile, another civilian, a 20 year old youth from Kaithady west, Chavakachcheari in Thenmaraadchi, a farmer by profession surrendered at the HRC Office in Jaffna Monday morning complaining that he has received death threats.
In addition, the mother of a youth from Velanai in the islet of Kayts lodged a complaint at Jaffna HRC office Monday regarding her son Sathasivam Yogendiran, 32, of Velanai-04 who disappeared in Colombo on 16 February.
The youth, said to have left Colombo Fort railway station in a Vavuniyaa bound train, has been missing since then, Yogendiran’s mother stated in her complaint.