Home / News / Urgent Appeals / SRI LANKA: Sri Lankan Army allegedly kidnaps 17 year-old boy

SRI LANKA: Sri Lankan Army allegedly kidnaps 17 year-old boy

September 4, 2006

URGENT APPEAL GENERAL URGENT APPEAL GENERAL URGENT APPEAL GENERAL

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

4 September 2006

---------------------------------------------------------------------
UA-288-2006: SRI LANKA: Sri Lankan Army allegedly kidnaps 17 year-old boy

SRI LANKA: Arbitrary arrest; un-rule of law; impunity

---------------------------------------------------------------------

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you of yet another alleged forced disappearance of a 17 year-old boy named Thivarthan Murukesu Jebichandran by Sri Lanka's military on 9 August 2006, at Kantharodai Veethi, Jaffna, Northern Province, Sri Lanka.  The local police have refused to investigate the kidnapping of Thivarthan Murukesu Jebichandran when his father lodged a case.

Around 4:00pm on August 9, Thivarthan and his friend Vijayakumar Suresh were walking along Dutch Road when heavily armed military personnel approached and arrested the two boys.  According to several witnesses, the boys were assaulted, harassed and forced to kneel for several hours before a security group using Field Motor bikes rushed to the scene and took them away.  Witnesses recognised the field bike group as the unit based at Manjpay near the Muthanar Hindu Temple.

Although it is difficult to say how many security forces where involved with the alleged abduction because of poor visibility due to dense bushes, the incident was nevertheless witnessed by several villagers who, out of fear for their own security, wish to remain anonymous.  The witnesses contest that the kidnappers were wearing the usual camouflaged military uniform and had heavy weaponry.

When Thivarthan's family heard of the news, they rushed to the scene only to find out from the villagers that the boy had already been taken away.  The family approached the army officials who remained on the scene and asked where Thivarthan was taken; however, the military allegedly denied arresting the victim.  The family then went to the Uduvil army camp and the camp at Kantharodai in a desperate attempt to find the boy.  Again, the military denied any involvement in the abduction.

A complaint was lodged by Thivarthan's father Murukesu Jebichandran at the Sunaham police station on August 10. Shockingly, the police allegedly refused to accept the father's original statement because they claimed that they could not accuse the army of a criminal act. The statement was then officially processed stating that Thivarthan was kidnapped by unknown persons.  The father has also lodged complaints with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Human Rights Commission and has stressed that he will be approaching the Magistrate of the Open Court of Malaham.

The AHRC strongly condemns the alleged assault and abduction by the Sri Lankan military. This is another example of the rampant impunity enjoyed by Sri Lanka's military personnel and security forces.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please write to the relevant Sri Lankan government authorities listed below and express your concern about this case. Please urge them to immediately investigating this kidnapping and to secure the safe release of victim, while providing him with adequate compensation for the intense trauma that he will have suffered.  The government must also provide security for the villagers who witnessed the incident.

To support this appeal please click here:

Sample letter:

Dear _________________,

SRI LANKA: Sri Lankan Army allegedly kidnaps 17 year-old boy

I am writing to express my complete indignation about the alleged kidnapping of a 17 year-old boy named Thivarthan Murukesu Jebichandran by the Sri Lankan army on 9 August 2006, at Kantharodai Veethi, Jaffna, Northern Province, Sri Lanka. 

I have received information that alleges that around 4:00pm on August 9; heavily armed military personnel approached and arrested Thivarthan and his friend Vijayakumar Suresh when they were walking along Dutch Road.  According to several witnesses, the boys were assaulted, harassed and forced to kneel for several hours before a security group using Field Motor bikes rushed to the scene and took them away.  Witnesses recognised the field bike group as the unit based at Manjpay near the Muthanar Hindu Temple.

I have also learned that the incident was witnesses by several villagers who, out of fear for their own security, wish to remain anonymous.  The witnesses contest that the kidnappers were wearing the usual camouflaged military uniform and had heavy weaponry. 

When Thivarthan's family heard of the news, they rushed to the scene only to find out from the villagers that the boy had already been taken away.  The family then approached the army officials who remained on the scene and asked where Thivarthan was taken; however, the military allegedly denied arresting the victim.  The family then went to the Uduvil army camp and the camp at Kantharodai in a desperate attempt to find the boy.  Again, the military denied any involvement in the abduction.

It also saddens me to learn that Thivarthan's family has not received any information or cooperation from the local authorities.  When a complaint was lodged by Thivarthan's father Murukesu Jebichandran at the Sunaham police station on August 10, the police allegedly refused to accept the father's original statement because they claimed that they could not accuse the army of a criminal act. The statement was then officially processed in saying that Thivarthan was kidnapped by unknown persons.  I have also learned that the father has also lodged complaints with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Human Rights Commission and has stressed that he will be approaching the Magistrate of the Open Court of Malaham.

It is a matter of national shame that the government of Sri Lanka continues to allow the military to conduct forced disappearances. It is criminal and has made a mockery of the entire Sri Lankan justice system. I strongly urge you to immediately investigate this alleged kidnapping and use all your available resources to ensure the safe and immediate release of this child.  This investigation must be conducted independently and without any involvement by the local authorities to guarantee that sanctity of the legal process.  Also, the government must guarantee protection to the witnesses in this case and be prepared to allocate proper compensation to the victim for the trauma that he has most definitely suffered. 

I trust that you will immediately begin securing the release of this young victim.

Yours sincerely,


__________________ 


PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTER TO:

1. Mr. K. C. Kamalasabesan
Attorney General
Attorney General's Department
Colombo 12
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 436421
Email: attorney@sri.lanka.net

2. Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa
Minister
Ministry of Defence, Public Security, Law and Order
15/5, Baladaksha Mawatha,
Colombo 03,
Sri Lanka.
Tel: 94-11 2 430860-9, 430878-9 or 435879 (for the secretary)
Fax: 94 11 2 446300 or 421529
E-mail: modadm@sltnet.lk or secdef@sltnet.lk

3. Mr. Chandra Fernando
Inspector General of Police
New Secretariat
Colombo 1
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 440440/327877
Email: chandralaw@police.lk

4. Secretary
Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka
No. 36, Kynsey Road
Colombo 8
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 694 925 / 673 806
Fax: +94 11 2 694 924 / 696 470
E-mail: sechrc@sltnet.lk

5. Secretary
National Police Commission
3rd Floor, Rotunda Towers,
109 Galle Road
Colombo 03
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 395310
Fax: +94 11 2 395867
E-mail: npcgen@sltnet.lk

6. Mr. Stephen J. Toope
Chairperson
UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances
Attn: Tanya Smith
c/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: + 41 22 917 9176
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (ATTN: WORKING GROUP EXTRAJUDICIAL EXECUTIONS)

Thank you. 

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ahrchk@ahrchk.org)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-288-2006
Countries :
Document Actions
Share |
Subscribe to our Mailing List
Follow AHRC
Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.