19 March, 2024

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Matale Mass Grave Dates To 87-90 JVP, Says Judge

By Colombo Telegraph

Suspicions mount that remains of 154 people found in hospital grounds are from abductions carried out by security forces, the Guardian reports.

Magistrate Chathurika de Silva told a court in the central town of Matale on Wednesday that tests carried out by archaeological and judicial medical officers show the skeletal remains found inside the premises of a government hospital dated to between 1987 and 1990. During that period thousands of men and women suspected of having ties to the rebels disappeared after being arrested by security forces.

e of 154 skeletons unearthed at the Matale hospital in Sri Lanka. Photograph: Eranga Jayawardena/AP

In Shanie column which is censored by the Island newspaper, Shanie wrote;

“Last year, C A Chandraprema, the political writer, wrote ‘Gota’s War’ eulogising Gotabaya Rajapakse’s contribution to the crushing of the northern insurgency, indirectly rubbishing claims that Sarath Fonseka, as Army Commander, was the principal architect of the military victory. But that book was written and published before the discovery of the mass graves at Matale. In that book, in the twenty-eighth chapter titled ‘The Second JVP Insurrection’, the author makes an unintended revelation. He writes on Page 173: “On 1 May 1989, with Colonel Wimalaratne being promoted to the rank of Brigadier, Gota was made the commanding officer of the 1st Battalion of the Gajaba Regiment…With this promotion, he was posted to Matale as the district coordinating officer tasked with bringing the JVP under control. The first Gajaba Battalion, which had been in Trincomalee for nearly one and a half years, was brought down to Matale. Lieutenants Shavendra Silva, Jagath Dias and Sumedha Perera were among his company commanders in Matale…(p 177) Gota remained the security coordinating officer of Matale until the end of the second JVP insurrection. In January 1990, he applied for three months leave and went to the USA to see his family.” In view of these facts, it becomes all the more necessary for an independent probe to be conducted so that Rajapakse and/or anybody else are cleared of any war crimes in 1989. It may be ironic that the persons being accused of war crimes now are the same persons who were then in charge of Matale. An independent probe may reveal they are innocent, But a probe by a body unconnected with these persons is necessary to show this.”

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Latest comments

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    Gota’s gang and their gory fingerprints are appearing everywhere. How much longer before they are dragged in chains to The ICC in the Hague?

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      Gerard Thurai

      We need an interdependent credible investigation into all human rights violations and crimes against humanity covering the period from 5th April 1971 to date.

      • 0
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        no, investigations from 1956 will have more scums unearthing

        • 0
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          msk

          You could have an investigation from 1956 if you want to.

          There is a difference between mob lynching and organised state atrocities.

          For the time being I am only after war crimes and crime against humanity perpetrated by Sri Lankan armed forces, its paramilitaries, JVP, LTTE, IPKF and other armed groups.

          Investigation into riots against civilians should cover the period from 1915.

          If you plan to use such investigation to promote charges of genocide against Sri Lankan state then I would like to remind you of genocide of my people for the past 2,500 years by both land grabbing Sinhalese and Tamils.

          Where do we start?

          • 0
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            You cannot blame what happened before Independence, but after that the responsibility belongs to elected govt, hence I mentioned that peiod

  • 0
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    [Edited out] Please write instead of posting web links – CT

  • 0
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    Why is the JVP quiet on this matter, where the JVP is vociferous in bashing Ranil on Batalanda even after he was exonerated after an Inquiry. Similarly let Gota also face an Independent Inquiry. Ranil after clearing himself of another inquiry where Mangala accused him of having misused Indian credit, went to Court and was exonerated once again. Ranil asked MR to do the same with reference to the Hambanthota scam. But MR shivered in his boots and that Scum of a CJ Sarath N Silva let him go scot free not on Law but on his own conviction and further preventing the Police from probing the matter.

  • 0
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    Where is this Dr. RN who will say this picture is taken from bus accident happend in 1987 from place called xyz with hungarian background, or the photo is morphed. SL is always a state full of saints, and the judge who declared this, also belongs to LLTE rump. I love his fake intelligence show-up.

    • 0
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      LOL made me laugh out load, I am sure Rajasingham Narendran will appear sooner or later to say exactly as you have stated, and even ask great questions like
      “why is that man in the picture not wearing rubber slippers?”
      (He asked such questions re the pictures from the last days of the war)

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      MSK
      Dr RN is busy licking the AH of Rajapakses, he is not available now…!!

  • 0
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    Summarised, this joke is relevant to the times – over to you Hakeem.

    An Afghan, upon landing at Colombo Airport, introduced himself to a Colombo Immigration Officer, as Ex-Minister of Ports & Shipping of Afghanistan.

    The Immigration Officer was surprised, and asked: “But there is no sea in Afghanistan. How can you be the ex Minister of Ports & Shipping?”

    The Afghan replied: “Oye Haramzaade ke aulad, don’t you have a Minister for Law & Justice in Sri lanka?”

  • 0
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    What an irony, when Gota ( alleged ) to have been responsible from bringing the JVP rebellion to an end in Matale. His Brother, was at the UN complaining that Human Rights violations were happening in SL.

    Btw, Ranjan Wijeyrathna, commended Gota for his martial skills.

    • 0
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      Vishvaith, absolutely right. Gota must have definitely violated Human Rights under the UNP, killing so many youth, so that his brother MR had enough first hand evidence to place before the UN. Hopefully someone interviewing Gota next should touch on this topic.

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    Dont believe all this this must be the work of Western Imperialists with Indian help aided and abetted by the diaspora and funded by Channel 4 with the aim of destabilising an innocent country!

  • 0
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    Its time to start the impartial investigation with current regime and go backwards until 1958 or even before. Unfortunately there is no charismatic leader who can lead the nation uniting people of all three races (Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims) and lead a revolution to change the culture of politics in Sri Lanka. The race and religious based politics in Sri Lanka lead to break the rule of law and the fundamentals of justice system by politicising all institutions. The country has taken thousands of innocent civilians live, their livelihood, the economy and we lost the human values. How can you allow the fundamentalism to grow and grow and to a level multi factorial level. How can you protect our religion by others livelihood. It is true that Sinhala people live only in this land but Buddhisim is widespread. Tamils live widespread but they don’t have a country. Moors live only in Sri Lanka but Islam is widespread. Why can’t we share the nation by clustering the groups based on their identities and have a common identity (SriLankan or Some other name) based on then principle of rule of law and justice as the supreme power.

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      Ajith

      “uniting people of all three races (Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims)”

      Sorry may I take this opportunity to remind you that my people too live in this island as a separate race.

  • 0
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    Some guys here on moonlighting exercise to connect certain defence personal at that time which is not correct..

    I can say people who were behind JVC demise are now retired and they have carried lawful orders that came from the UNP hierarchy ..

    If they investigate where the orders came then it will open up a can of worms… I know the head of the unit and he is a retired brigadier and he still has JVP supremos bullet proof jacket.

    If you have seen his house then I would say his execution is justified since he was a rouge who brought miseries to young youths… his house was full of gold and ill gotten wealth.

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    The forensic and expect evidence carried out on 150 odd skeletons found in a mass grave in Matale reveals that they were bodies of suspected rebels abducted ,killed and buried by security forces that quelled the second JVP uprising. The political writer Candraprema’s “Gota’s War” published before the exaction of mass grave has disclosed who were in charge of security forces in Matale that crushed JVP uprising during the period.
    On the issues of accountability to allegations of violations the international human rights and humanitarian law during the final stages of the civil war in 2009 the Panel of experts appointed by UN Secretary to advise him has found that there were “credible allegations”, if proven, of war crimes and crime against humanity committed by the Sri Lanka military and the LTTE. The Sri Lanka government on behalf of Sri Lanka military has denied that its army has committed any war crimes and strongly opposed to any international investigation. The Government’s domestic Commission Report on Lessons Learnt and reconciliation (LLRC) could not rubbish the allegations against the government.
    On Matale episode there was “credible evidence” on accountability to the bodies of suspected rebels abducted, killed and buried during the period of JVP second up rising. It appears that that the same persons being accused of war crimes in 2009 were in charge of Matale during the JVP second uprising.
    An independent probe in to this is the need of the hour and the people should agitate for such a move. In fact the JVP has a bigger role to play in this regard and I believe that Weerawansa at that time would have been in the same political fold.
    Against the above backdrop , what Weerawansa and the like has to say to sustain the “international conspiracy” theory and Dr. Gunadasa Amerasekera’s Sinhala Buddhist theory to white wash and defend Sri Lanka military against war crimes and crime against humanity and oppose an international investigation, at all costs.. In what way Sri Lanka military differs from that of any other repressive state!!!.

    Chandra Seneviratne

  • 0
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    Please don’t comment here using abusive names – CT

    This comment was removed by a moderator because it didn’t abide by our Comment policy.For more detail see our Comment policy
    https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/comments-policy-2/

  • 0
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    Where were the “good” Sinhalese when state sponsored riots against Tamils happened in 1956, 1958, 1977, 1981……… or against the Muslims in 1915?
    In fact, a lot of Sinhalese gleefully joined the riots and burned unarmed children and families alive….. There is no such a thing as a good Sinhalese… No wonder Vijaya (father of Sinhala race) was exiled from his original motherland in Bengal for his wicked behaviors…[Edited out] Buddha probably committed suicide in heaven after knowing that Sinhalese are Buddhists.

  • 0
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    Matale mass murders were committed by UNP, when the ruthless anarchist was in power, whose destruction was a joyous ocassion for numerous Sri Lankans. Most of the victims in this mass murder were political opponents of the UNP MP and his thug sons, and that horrendous criminal died on the same day Velupillai died and will be in HELL.

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