Tamil politicians, including a Minister and activists have expressed their disappointment over the ruling by the Colombo High Court which acquitted all five suspects involved in the murder of former TNA MP Nadaraja Raviraj.
Raviraj
According to reports Lawyer and TNA Parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran, who also represented the victim’s family in the case said he did not accept the ruling, and will appeal Saturday’s ruling, which saw five personnel including three former intelligence officers of the Sri Lanka Navy being released.
Sumanthiran pointed out that this verdict is one reason why the TNA was continuously advocating for foreign judges to be present in an effort to maintain the independence of the judiciary, even when it comes to matters relating to war crimes.
Meanwhile, Minister of National Coexistence Dialogue and Official Languages Mano Ganesan who also tweeted his disappointment over Saturday’s ruling said the decision was frustrating because the ruling made it look as if Raviraj shot himself and his security. “It is frustrating as if Raviraj shot himself and his security,” he said.
Raviraj was shot dead in November 2006 along with his bodyguard. He was shot five times while his police bodyguard Sergeant Laxman Lokuwella was shot eight times.
Following the court decision, Suren Surendiran, spokesman of the GTF highlighted that all the accused, legal representatives, as well as the judge and seven jurors were Sinhalese, while the victim who was murdered was Tamil. “Should Tamils trust Sri Lanka’s justice system?,” he asked.
The order release was granted to the suspects after the case was heard before a special jury, even though the state witness had given details of the murder plot including who had pulled the trigger to kill Raviraj.
Incidentally, the order is the latest in a series of court decisions to release military intelligence officers, after President Maithripala Sirisena launched a verbal attack over the arresting and remanding of army intelligence officers in October. Since Sirisena’s statement, all arrested army intelligence officers including Army Intelligence Officer Premananda Udalagama who was involved in the murder case of Sunday Leader Editor Lasantha Wickrematunge has been released. Also, the last two Army Intelligence Officers who were remanded in connection with the disappearance of Prageeth Ekneligoda, were also released last month.
vetmahadeva / December 27, 2016
The Plain truth of degrading the JUSTICE ethnic wise even by the GOOD GOVERNANCE GOVERNMENT lays, from the outset – appointing a person who did his PhD in Law of Buddhism born by Mahawamsa theoreticians as Minister of Justice.
So there is no any change in the attitude of the GOVERNMENTS since independence even it is an unity government of both major political parties, who still continue on the path of competitive or rather complementary racism, and found a good totally corrupt persona in who staged a disguised crossed over to UNP from corrupt MR regime – if he had really meant the anti-corrupt of MR regime he would have been laying under one of the tomb of Kanntte Cemetery by now for the good of the NATION
The GOVERNMENT is Cleverly maneuvering, and did maneuver through the appointment of JURORS of ALL SENIOR SLAS – who naturally jealous of minorities
– depicting well institutionalized racism
The Sri Lankan Buddhism Justice is that no minorities(exception Burgers) can seek redress from any Sri Lankan Government!
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Burt / December 27, 2016
The justice minister is a fraud but you cannot do anything when the president himself is a fraud.
I am sorry for the people that don’t have a choice and decided to live in that country.
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Thanga / December 27, 2016
Some of the comments made are due to ignorance. Attorney Sumanthiran did object to the all Sinhala jury selection, but the presiding judge who is also a Sinhalese over ruled him. The Sri Lankan judiciary from top to bottom has been politicised by corrupt politicians and communal minded judges. Under Mahinda Rajapaksa the independence of the judiciary took a nose dive. Most of the judges appointed by Mahinda Rajapaksa still hold office. Though there was a change of regime, there is no change in the bureaucracy that runs the state machinery. The murder cases relating to the killing of Lasantha, Wasim Thajudeen, Eknaligoda, 5 Trincomalee students and the Muttur Massacre of 17 ACF Aid Workers belonging to Paris based charity Action Against Hunger (Action Contra la Faim, ACF)NGO. The cases are limping in the courts because this government like the previous government lacks the political will to expedite prosecution. And President Sirisena is not helping the judicial process either by his injudicious statements that he will not allow prosecution of war heroes. He is also against foreign judges. In this respect he is in the same boat as Mahinda Rajapaksa. There is no doubt he has disappointed the millions of voters who voted for him. It is time both the President and the Prime Minister who talks big but do pretty little to act decisively in 2017.
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Kusum / December 27, 2016
Tamil politicians and other minorities want to deliver judgments the way they want? if so what is the use of having a judiciary system? these tamil politicians have decided on their own?
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Sri Lankan / December 27, 2016
Where is justice for late Sergeant Laxman Lokuwella?????? is he committed himself?
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Real Siva Sankaran Sarma / December 27, 2016
There is no real or impartial judicial system in the country. It is just Thuggish Sinhalese majority rule. A Sinhalese can kill loot or rape any Tamil, steal their land homes and farms and with the knowledge, that he or she will never be punished for this crime. The judge and the jury will protect them. Just like it was and still largely for the blacks in the USA, especially in the south. So far not a single Sinhalese has been convicted since 1948 for killing raping looting ethnically cleansing Tamils and stealing their lands on a large scale since independence. The state has done this and got away so why should individuals be punished.
Tamil population in the island reduced from 26-28% to around 15-16% within 60 years through systematic discrimination, denial of language rights education employment. Regular state sponsored pogroms starting from 19566-1983, where Sinhalese thugs hooligans murders and criminals are let loose on the Tamil population to kill loot rape destroy and burn Tamil homes and businesses with impunity, with the Sinhalese armed forces police and the public enjoying the spectacle and looking at it idly or many times taking part in it. Around 1/3 of historic Tamil lands have been stolen from the Tamils by state sponsored illegal Sinhalese settlement, that has now resulted in the once Tamil majority east having now only a 40% Tamil population, who have now been reduced to a marginalised minority in their own land.
More than 300000 innocent Tamil civilians deliberately killed at the hands of Sinhalese racists goon, thugs hooligans and armed forces, since 1948. 145000 in May 2009 , that even the UN was forced to declare as a war crime. one million Indian origin Tamils who had lived in the country for more than 150 years and earned most of the foreign exchange were made stateless and forcibly deported to India. This was not enough the for the Sinhalese racists, the government and establishment, they forced around 1.2 million indigenous Tamils from the North East to flee the country, largely to the west. These people have lived in the island for more than 2000 years and have lived ruled and owned their land and thanks to the British in 1833 became a minority in the island, as they merged these Tamil lands in the north and east with the Sinhalese lands down south to form a colony called Ceylon. The Sinhalese benefitted immensely due to European colonisation, despite crying foul. Until the Europeans arrived they were ruled by Tamil kings and aristocracy. The Portuguese and Dutch imported hundreds of thousands of low caste Tamil indentured labour/slave from south India and settled them along the west and south of the island. Their Sinhalised descendants doubled the island’s Sinhalese and made them a 66% majority in the island at the time of independence. Now increased to 74% due to all the killing forced assimilation and ethnic cleaning of the island’s Tamils.
So far not a single Sinhalese has been tried or convicted for all these crimes that has been committed on the island’s Tamils since independence. The Sinhalese state, establishment the armed forces/police and this person states the minorities are demanding too much! You kill murder rape loot steal land and destroy the minorities with impunity and when they cry out of justice, state you demand too much, as this is the justice the Sinhalese majority state( thanks to the British, whom the Sinhalese state favoured the Tamils(sic) ) want to give to you.
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Siva Sankaran Sarma / December 28, 2016
Cool story, bro :D
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Sylvia Haik / December 27, 2016
Kusum. Sinhalese politicians certainly ensure the judiciary (they appoint) deliver judgements the way they want. You are right, we have no use for a judiciary. In a democratic nation the judiciary will be completely independent as we once had during the reigns of the Senanayakes and even Sir John Kotelawela. I expected better service from the new regime but they appear even more corrupt. God Help Sri Lanka. We are shooting ourselves in the foot as it will soon transpire in the eyes of the world that the only way to get justice here is through foreign judges.
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Native Vedda / December 27, 2016
Kusum
“if so what is the use of having a judiciary system?”
Its a good question.
What is the purpose of having a judiciary which is not for purpose?
The criminals who perpetrated war crimes since 5th April 1971 are roaming free, those criminal who killed, maimed, looted, raped, …. burnt down properties are free to commit crimes and free to re-offend, those who burnt down libraries still around, those who massacred prisoners in Welikada are being celebrated as war heroes, Lasantha murderers, …………….
We should stop all investigations into financial crimes and corrupt practices, …………… because non was committed. And release Duminda.
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sekara / December 27, 2016
“Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are.”
― Benjamin Franklin
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Arunasalam / December 29, 2016
sekara
Unless you explain the quotation many will not understand.
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Sylvia Haik / December 29, 2016
The quotation should remind you of the poem by Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984) about the inactivity of German intellectuals following the Nazi rise to power and the purging of their chosen targets, group after group. Being silent when racists victimise others is no help as they will affect you as well eventually.
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Gune / December 27, 2016
It’s quite evident that MS is playing pandu. Good governance has been devalued by MS and RWs inaction on many fronts. The law has no place in SL.
There is no hope for Sri Lanka as this government is priming the ground for MR’s return.
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Nagalingam Rajanayagam / December 27, 2016
It is a waste of time talking to this or any other government runned by the Sinhale people. No justice shall be fair, be a case of a killed Sinhala or Tamil. We have to roll back to India and with international community. All court cases concerning the murdered, like journalist, politicians, mulaivaikkak must be carried out under International Independent Investigation (III) or other credible and approved arrangments. If in the case, there is miscarriage of justice, then the precendence has been set to kill further and more and simply pass pseudo judgment by the very same ethnic pro sinhalese. This ruling class of Sinhala elites are not capabble of ruling and good governance. Can one talk to children?
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s.c.perera / December 28, 2016
It is strange why the person, who had given 50 million to the so called war heroes for killing Raviraj was not even questioned by CID. At least after the evidence were disclosed before court, my personal view is , the court had to give an order to question the person who had payed for murdering MP Raviraj. During the court hearing no evidence was revealed to prove that the soldiers had any personal reasons to kill the MP. Then who wanted to kill Raviraj? Did the real person who wanted to kill Raviraj use these soldiers as cat-pow or hired them as payed murderers? What a shame?
As a Buddhist I believe that nothing can happen without a reason. So why these soldiers wanted to kill Raviraj? (However if they did not really commit the crime then who did it and why they did it?) Is it enough to just say that those who were accused are innocent and the chapter is now closed and no more investigating related to this murder case.
Every one knows what the truth is but no one wants to come forward to ask who did these assassinations.
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Banished / December 28, 2016
Simple
According to the Old school Singhala jathaka kathaa
**********Raviraj shot himself and died*************
The vantage point is how he got the suspect’s gun while driving the vehicle, and its not hand gun its real heavy assault rifle, so spraying the bullets on himself while driving the vehicle.
real John Wayne action
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Daniel / December 28, 2016
It won’t be funny when Sri Lankan’s get fed up and decide to take the law into their own hands and turn on this government for inaction against these criminals as promised…
Next election they will be out for sure…
Sarath Fonseka, it’s time to send the criminals to hell you will get no justice from these politicians…
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anaconda / December 28, 2016
even if they were sentenced, these foot soldiers are just small fish. it is known fact that the big fish, those who gave orders, are well protected by the government. the government does not want to harm its survival among its sinhala electoral base in doing so. there is no justice for tamils because there is no political will, not because of independence of judiciary.
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