{"id":64903,"date":"2019-07-21T13:29:38","date_gmt":"2019-07-21T17:29:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=64903"},"modified":"2019-07-21T13:33:23","modified_gmt":"2019-07-21T17:33:23","slug":"horrible-killing-of-five-tamil-students-in-trincomalee-town-thirteen-years-ago","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=64903","title":{"rendered":"Horrible Killing of Five Tamil Students In Trincomalee Town Thirteen Years Ago"},"content":{"rendered":"

By
\nD.B.S.Jeyaraj<\/strong><\/p>\n

Five Tamil Students were killed near the beach in Trincomalee town thirteen years ago on January 2nd 2006. Two other students also suffered injuries but survived. The names and the dates of birth of the five victims were: (i) Manoharan Ragihar- 22.09.1985, (ii) Yogarajah Hemachchandra – 04.03.1985, (iii) Logitharajah Rohan – 07.04.1985(iv) Thangathurai Sivanantha – 06.04.1985, and (v) Shanmugarajah Gajendran – 16.09.1985. The two injured youths were Yogarajah Poongulalon and Pararajasingham Kokulraj.<\/p>\n

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Trincomalee Inner-Harbour ~ pic: Doctorandus Sarajevo<\/p><\/div>\n

The official version put out first was that all seven were members of the Liberation Tigers of Eelam(LTTE) who had been armed with grenades with the intention of attacking a security forces post. The grenades had exploded accidently killing five and injuring two. But the initial claim was soon proved wrong.The post mortem conducted by Dr.Gamin Gunatunga the Judicial Medical Officer in Trincomalee determined that the five had died from gunshot wounds. Three had been shot in the head at close quarters, while two died from shots to the chest and abdomen. Some had injuries that were not caused by gunshots. . The Trincomalee Magistrate Mr. V. Ramakamalan conducted a magisterial inquiry and recorded an interim verdict of gunshot injuries.
\n
\nReliable reports in the media as well as by reputed human rights organizations pointed the finger at sections of the security forces stationed in Trincomalee. The war against the LTTE was being renewed and fought at that time. On Feb 12th 2006, some members of the Police and Special Task Force(STF) were taken into custody in connection with the killings. However they were released in April that year for want of tangible evidence. The then Attorney -General, C.R. de Silva issued a directive then that the case should be pursued again if the Prosecution acquired fresh evidence.<\/p>\n

The Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission then chaired by Dr.Radhika Coomadaswamy appointed former High Court Judge T. Sundaralingam as a special rapporteur to probe the killings. His report was submitted on March 31st 2006 to the HRC. The report was not publicized due to some procedural hassles and transitionary issues at the HRC. The HRC chairperson Dr. Coomaraswamy\u2019s term of office too had ended on Mar 31st 2006 and she flew to New York that night to take up her new post as UN under secretary in charge of Children in armed conflict. Since the report could not be released unilaterally by the chair and required the full approval of the commission Dr. Coomafaswamy had left in her \u201chand over docket\u201d for her successors for follow up action.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately former President Mahinda Rajapaksa who had been a human rights activist during the UNP regimes of JR Jayawaene and R.Premadasa had changed track after becoming President. The human rights commission was given step motherly treatment and many of the appointments made to the HRC left much to be desired. Gradually the HRC became highly politicised and lost its lustre and effectiveness during the Rajapaksa days. So much so that the Sri Lankan Human Rights Commission suffered great loss of prestige when it was re-classified into Category \u201cB\u201d from that of \u201cA\u2019.<\/p>\n

One of the casualties during the dark days of the HRC was the Sundaralingam report. The \u201cofficial\u201d fate of that report remained a mystery for many years. Subsequently extracts of the report were quoted by Human Rights Organizations and activists in their writings but no official release of the report. Things changed after the regime change in 2015. Dr. Deepika Udagama was appointed HRC chair in October 2015 after the Constitutional Constitutional Council was renewed and re-invigorated by the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe Govt. The HRC regained much of its eroded respect under the new dispensation and was restored to \u201cA\u2019 status last year. Among the achievements of the HRC Headed by Dr. Udagama was the release and publication of Special Rapporteur Report by Judge T. Sundaralingam in March 2016.<\/p>\n

\u201cWikileaks\u201dReport<\/strong><\/p>\n

Interestingly enough a \u201cWikileaks\u201d report that came to light a few years ago referred to a US state dept cable in October 2006. According to \u201cWikileaks\u201d, Mahinda\u2019s sibling Basil Rajapaksa who was a Special adviser to the president at that time had admitted to the US ambassador Robert O. Blake(jnr) that the STF was responsible for the killings and that there was no evidence to convict them.. The \u201cWikileaks\u201d report of the State dept cable quoted Basil Rajapaksa as saying \u201c. \u201cWe know the STF did it, but the bullet and gun evidence shows that they did not.They must have separate guns when they want to kill someone.\u201d<\/p>\n

The war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam(LTTE) ended in 2009 with the military defeat of the tigers. Riding the crest of a wave of war victory euphoria , Mahinda Rajapaksa was re-elected president in 2010. President Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) in May 2010. It was chaired by former Attorney – General CR de Silva known popularly as \u201cBulla\u2019 since his rugby playing days at Royal College. The LLRC submitted its report to President Rajapaksa in November 2011 after the mandated 18 month period. Among its observations pertaining to the Trincomalee student killings was the following \u2013\u201cThere are strong grounds to surmise the involvement of uniformed personnel in the commission of the crime.\u201d There was no follow up action by the President on the LLRC report then.<\/p>\n

The reluctance displayed by the Rajapaksa regime in addressing issues of accountability and reconciliation led to increasing pressure by the \u201cinternational community\u201d on the Govt. International human rights organizations played a crucial role in helping to sustain this momentum. One of the cases taken up by Human rights activists was the killing of the Trincomalee students referred to in those circles as the \u201cTrinco \u2013 5\u201d case. The families of the murdered Trincomalee students who had fled Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the killings due to intimidation and harassment co-operated with the human rights activists to spotlight the lack of concrete legal action against suspected perpetrators.<\/p>\n

Mahinda Samarasinghe<\/strong><\/p>\n

The UN Human Rights Council sessions in March 2013 in Geneva was a water shed of sorts. Two of the parents concerned Dr.Kasipillai Manoharan the father of Ragihar and Mr. Aiyamuttu Shanmugarajah the father of Gajendran were in Geneva during the UNHRC sessions and participated in several meetings and conferences held on the sidelines. They pointed out that no sction had been taken for seven years. Their impassioned pleas demanding justice for their children made a profound impact in Geneva. To his credit the then Plantation industries minister Mahinda Samarasinghe who was in Geneva leading the Lankan delegation at the UNHRC returned to Sri Lanka and pressed for an investigation and follow up action, Thereafter the CID re-commenced its probe.<\/p>\n

With the CID probe in progress, the current foreign secretary Ravinatha Aryasinha who was earlier Sri Lanka\u2019s permanent representative at the UN in Geneva addressed the UNHRC Regular session in May 2013. During the course of his address Aryasinha stated as follows \u2013 \u201c Pursuant to recommendations made by the LLRC, in relation to the killings of the 5 students in Trincomalee, investigations have been concluded and upon studying the material, the Attorney General has advised the Police to initiate non-summary proceedings, and the formal institution of these proceedings before the Trincomalee Magistrate is due to take place in the first week of June\u201d.<\/p>\n

On July 4th 2013 , Twelve Special Task Force (STF) personnel and a Police officer. were arrested and produced in courts the following day. The 12 STF Officers were Inspectors Sarath Chandra Perera and Rohitha Vijithakumara, Sgt. M.G. Jayalath, Sgt A.P. Amal Pradeep, Constables s R.K. Ratnayake, M. Chaminda Lalitha, R.M. Udhaya Mahinda Bandara, M.G.H. Sanjeewa, K.A. Tharaka Ruwansiri, J.M. Nimal Bandara, J.M. Senarath Dissanyake and S.J. Indika Thushara of the STF. The Police Officer was Sub -inspector P.G. Ananda Bulanawewa .On October 14th 2013 they were all released on bail. The case however proceeded in fits and starts.<\/p>\n

The Thirteen accused were charged by the CID under Section 296 of the Penal Code for committing the murder of Manoharan Rajiharan, Yogarajah Hemachandra, Lohitha Raja Rohan, Thangadorai Sivanathan and Sammugarajah Gajendran by shooting near the Gandhi roundabout on January 2, 2006 and the attempted murder of Yogarajah Poongulalon and Pararajasingham Kokulraj under Section 300 of the Penal Code read with section 32.The CID had submitted seven productions to court in this connection and cited 36 witnesses.<\/p>\n

Intimidating Witnesses<\/strong><\/p>\n

As the case progressed it became apparent that the prosecution was finding it difficult to produce credible witnesses. Some of the key witnesses were the two survivors who were eye-witnesses and some close family members of the murdered students. What had happened over the years was that the two survivor youths and their families as well as the families of the killed students had all fled Trincomalee and Sri Lanka due to fear caused by continuous threats and consistent harassment. A systematic terror campaign had been unleashed to frighten them. This included the sending of letters by post saying Get out of Trincomalee and Sri Lanka. It was specifically mentioned that Sri Lanka was a \u201cSinhala Rata\u201d.<\/p>\n

The families of the victims had therefore left the land of their birth one by one. They were now safe in foreign countries and were not prepared to return to Sri Lanka and testify in a Trincomalee court. Moreover there was palpable fear among the people of Trincomalee to come forward and testify too. Over a hundred persons including vendors, people on the beach,passers – by , auto rickshaw drivers and curious onlookers had witnessed the incident in different degrees. However none was ready to say anything due to intimidation and fear. Contributing to this state of fear was the fate of a Tamil three-wheeler driver and photojournalist. Some days after the killing of the Trinco- 5, they were both killed by \u201cunknown\u201dpersons. The three-wheeler driver was an eye witness to the incident and had been prepared to testify in a rial. told family mem. The journalist had reportedly published incriminating photographs of the victims showing they had been shot dead point blank.<\/p>\n

This state of affairs where key witnesses were reluctant to give evidence in a Sri Lankan court was sought to be remedied by the new government of 2015 headed by President Sirisena and Prime Minister Wickremesinghe. The \u201cAssistance to and Protection of Victims of Crime and Witnesses Act\u201d was passed in 2015, and later amended in 2017, These measures enabled witnesses to testify by skype from a Sri Lamkan diplomatic mission abroad. The witnesses concerned were in Australia, Europe and North America.<\/p>\n

The prolonged legal delay even after the advent of the new Govt prompted former US envoy Atul Keshap to tweet about it in January 2018 and re-iterate that \u201cJustice delayed is justice denied\u201d. The then Law and Order minister Sagala Ratnayake responded to it by tweeting that the case was progressing after the legal reforms.\u201cWe could not proceed with the case as the main witness was overseas and was not in a position to support proceedings. The case is now progressing as new reforms have allowed the use of Skype evidence,\u201d Sagala Ratnayaka said on Twitter in Jan 2018.<\/p>\n

Amnesty International<\/strong><\/p>\n

In spite of well-intentioned action by the present Govt to proceed with the case the reluctance of the key witnesses to testify persisted. They continued to keep refusing. Dr. Kasipillai Manoharan refused to give evidence via Skype and instead asked that evidence be recorded using satellite technology. There was also opposition to the idea of going to a Sri Lankan diplomatic mission and testifying by skype.The position taken up by the potential witnesses was endorsed by reputed human rights organizations such as the Amnesty International(AI) A news report in a Colombo newspaper published in January this yer stated as follows \u2013<\/p>\n

\u201cAmnesty International said that a witness can only provide evidence to a diplomatic mission of Sri Lanka, which was unacceptable. Justice for the students murdered over 13 years ago still eludes their loved ones and given the difficulties in securing witness testimonies, the Trinco-5 case has seen little to no progress in the most recent past. The Assistance to and Protection of Victims of Crime and Witnesses Act was passed in 2015, and later amended in 2017, enabling witnesses to give evidence from outside Sri Lanka. However, the fact that a witness can only provide such evidence at a diplomatic mission of Sri Lanka means that a witness may face intimidation.The safety of a diplomatic mission is not sufficient for a victim to give evidence, especially in this case where levels of intimidation were so high,\u201d Research, Campaigns, and Communications Assistant at Amnesty International Rehab Mahamoor told The Sunday Morning\u201d.<\/p>\n

It is against this backdrop therefore that the Trincomalee Five case progressed. After lengthy legal proceedings the curtain descended last week on July 3rd 2019. Eight of the thirty -six witnesses cited had not been heard by court as they had not made themselves available to testify. These included key witnesses including two surviving eye witnesses. Courts was told that the two key survivor eye-witnesses reportedly living abroad were unreachable and untraceable.<\/p>\n

After some hearings in 2013 \/14 where several witnesses testified proceedings dragged on thereafter without any tangible fresh evidence being provided. Dates were set and re-set and proceedings postponed for umpteen times without witnesses being presented. In fairness to the Attorney -General\u2019s Dept ,its officials tried very hard to persuade the witnesses to turn up and present themselves in court with full protection or testify via skype from abroad. Lawyers appearing for the defence were very patient and cooperated fully with the prosecution by not protesting against the long delay. The case dragged on for more than five years without any positive forward movement . It was heard by three different Magistrates during this period.<\/p>\n

Finally Trincomalee Chief Magistrate M.M. Mohammed Hamza on July 3rd 2019 acquitted all thirteen accused of all charges. The Magistrate after considering the evidence ruled that the accused were released due to non-availability of sufficient evidence to continue the case in a satisfactory manner. Additional Solicitor General Dilantha Rathnayake prosecuted and Attorneys Dhanushka Madagedara and S.Chandrasiri appeared for the defence until the last stages of the case. Thus ended the Trinco five case. It is unclear at present as to what the Attorney -General further proposes to do regarding this case.<\/p>\n

Writing From Toronto<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Trincomalee tragedy of five students being killed in cold blood is a sad episode I can never ever forget or want to forget both in a personal and professional capacity. The truth behind the horrible killings was initially covered up by the state and state -controlled media. I was then a columnist for \u201cThe Sunday Leader\u201d edited by my friend the late Lasantha Wickrematunga. I pursued independent inquiries from Toronto about what had really happened in Trincomalee and unearthed as much of the truth as possible within a relatively short period relying mainly on the telephone. Piecing together information obtained from primary,secondary and tertiary sources, I reconstructed what had happened in Trinco from Toronto.<\/p>\n

My article when published in \u201cThe Sunday Leader\u201d on Jan 15th 2006 upset the powers that be as it went against the grain of official propaganda about the incident. This article is one that I am proud to have written as it was the first of its kind to expose the terrible truth.I became the target of threats and intimidation as a result of the article. The only consolation was the sense of satisfaction one had in relating the painful truth and exposing deliberate falsehood.<\/p>\n

Later the University Teachers for Human Rights (Jaffna) published more detailed reports on the entire incident. However the UTHR Special Report No 20 issued on April 1st 2006 stated as follows – \u201cA full version of the incident has been given by D.B.S. Jeyaraj with which our sources are in agreement\u201d.<\/p>\n

I shall conclude this article by including a condensed and slightly modified version of the article written thirteen years ago about the Tragic killings of five Tamil students in Trincomalee.<\/p>\n

Trincomalee Town<\/strong><\/p>\n

January second of the New Year 2006 was a Monday. It was 5.30 in the evening when 20 year old Manoharan Rajihar set off from home on St. Mary\u2019s road in Trincomalee town. Both his father and mother were medical doctors jointly running the welcome Medical clinic. He told his parents that he would be going to worship at the Pillaiyar temple and the Pathragali Amman temple. Thereafter he said that he would chat for a while with friends at the beach and return.One of his friends, now an undergraduate at the engineering faculty in Moratuwa university had come home for the new year and was scheduled to go back the following day. Rajihar said he would be back home by 7. 30 pm.<\/p>\n

Trincomalee had been tensed up for quite a while. There had been much violence along with hartals paralysing normal life. Police and security personnel along with civilians had been targeted. The civilian killings and in some cases reprisal killings cut across ethnic barriers. On Dec 23rd 2005 a contingent of STF personnel were deployed from Colombo to Trincomalee on the instructions of the then Defence Adviser retired DIG of Police HMGB Kotakadeniya. The STF unit led by Inspector VA Sarath Chandra Perera consisted of two sub inspectors, two sergeants, twenty -two constables and two drivers was placed under Kapila Jayasekera, Superintendent of Police (Operations), Trincomalee. Jayasekera a former STF officer appointed Sub Inspector Ananda Bulanwewa of the Uppuveli Police to liaise and work with the STF contingent.<\/p>\n

In the prevailing security situation , Rajihar\u2019s parents too were concerned about their son staying out till dark. But they were not unduly worried because they knew their son was a decent, level \u2013 headed boy. He was very punctual and if he said he would be back at 7. 30 they knew he would keep his word. Besides the place he was going to was not very far from home. Also they knew his friends. All of them were quiet, well \u2013 behaved youths with little interest in politics let alone tiger politics. They were youths with glowing , dreams of a bright future. The parents had no worries about their son or his friends getting mixed up with the LTTE.<\/p>\n

Seven Close Friends<\/strong><\/p>\n

Seven young men all of them born in the year 1985 gathered that evening at the Dutch Bay beach. The spot was near the Gandhi statue roundabout where the Dockyard road and Koneswarar or Fort Frederick road intersected.. There was an important checkpost manned by navy. army and Police personnel close by. Actually there were three more checkposts manned by naval personnel within a 100 metre radius. There was also a small boutique selling provisions.<\/p>\n

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There were stone benches on the beach front where people sat and took in the sea breeze. The seven close friends were now seated on those benches chatting gaily. They had been frisked and cleared at the checkpost before coming to the spot.They arrived on four cycles and a motor cycle with two riding\u201d doubles\u201d. Six of the friends were alumni of Sri Koneswara Hindu College. One was an old boy of St. Joseph\u2019s College. The key figure in the group was Thangathurai Sivanantha, the Moratuwa campus undergrad. He had come home on Dec 31st and was returning on Jan 3rd. The seaside chit \u2013 chat was like a send off to Sivanantha.<\/p>\n

All of them had completed their A levels in 2004\/5. Apart from Sivanantha another too had gained entry to Katubedde. The others too were hopeful of higher education or at least a good job in Colombo. Some had ideas of going abroad. They were good all round students in both studies and extra \u2013 curricular activities. They were computer proficient too.Time just flew as the friends swapped stories and teased each other in all good fun.<\/p>\n

Green Three-wheeler<\/strong><\/p>\n

It was about 7.15 when a green three \u2013 wheeler coming along Dockyard road slowed down. A grenade was rolled on the ground from the vehicle. It exploded yards away from where the seven friends were seated. The three \u2013 wheeler then sped away on Koneswarar -Fort road towards the Fort. A tiny piece of shrapnel struck one of the youths on his ear. The bleeding youth passed out for a few minutes.He was revived by some water splashed on his face.<\/p>\n

The dazed friends realised the situation had taken a turn for the worse and decided to go away. Besides they wanted to get medical treatment for their injured friend. They speedily mounted their cycles and motor cycle and prepared to get away from the spot. They also tried to hail a three-wheeler to take the injured youth to a hospital or medical clininic. But That was not to be!<\/p>\n

Almost as if on cue a security force truck trundled in quickly. Instead of giving chase to the three- wheeler the occupants of the truck zoomed in on the seven Tamil youths. They surrounded them and forced them to kneel down. They started checking their ID cards. Thereafter they began assaulting them. They were then put aboard the truck and assaulted again and again. Their explanations and protests were ignored.<\/p>\n

At this point some more security personnel on motor cycles and in a land rover arrived. There was excited discussion in Sinhala among the new and old arrivals. The youths could only hear the noise. Suddenly they were kicked and pushed out of the truck. Even as they fell they found that the entire area was now pitch dark. The lights in the vicinity had been turned off. The youths were now hit again and forced to kneel down<\/p>\n

After some more rounds of assaulting the youths were forced to kneel down again. Firearms were taken out and brandished. The youths were told that they were going to be killed as a warning to the tigers in Trincomalee. The innocent youths began wailing and pleading. Their pathetic cries were heard far and wide.<\/p>\n

There were more than a hundred people in the vicinity when all this started happening. But Police and Navy personnel cordoned off the area and forced the people consisting of vendors and others relaxing on the beach front to kneel down or squat or lie prostrate on the ground. Some could however see and\/or hear partially what was going on. Almost everyone heard the report of the grenade explosion and the subsequent gunfire reports.<\/p>\n

Assassins Began Firing<\/strong><\/p>\n

After playing cat and mouse for a while the assassins now began firing. Two of the youths were shot behind the ear. One was shot in the back of the head. The other four then scrambled to their feet and made a desperate attempt to escape by running away. They were mowed down by gunfire. They were shot in the chest, abdomen, shoulders, thighs etc and collapsed. A little while after the firing was over a grenade was thrown at the still bodies. It proved a dud and did not explode.<\/p>\n

The assassins were in no mood to take their victims to hospital. They delayed for nearly half an hour. The calculated delay presumably was to let the youths bleed to certain death. Finally an ambulance was called and even the lights came back on \u201cmiraculously\u201d. When the youths were brought inby the security personnel it was presumed that all seven were dead or dying. But the medical staff on duty at the Hospital found the condition of two youths to be “out of danger”. Three were pronounced dead on arrival and two others succumbed to their injuries despite medical treatment. Thanks to the efforts of the hospital, the two injured youths survived. One was even able to talk to family members within a few days. <\/p>\n

News began spreading and the parents of the victims began converging at the hospital notwithstanding the security situation. Their long night of sorrow was made unbearable by the deliberate attempt to twist the truth.<\/p>\n

The security forces who had brought in the youths to the hospital had made a Police entry that some tigers plotting to attack the security forces had suffered casualties due to some grenades exploding accidentally.<\/p>\n

This then was the version hastily disseminated by the security propagandists. Given the tense situation in Trincomalee and the vain boasts of the LTTE that the people were rising up against the armed forces there were many takers for this story. Many newspapers and news agencies also carried the security version initially. The defence ministry spokesperson as well as other army and Police officials also stood by this story.<\/p>\n

Dr.Gamini Gunatunga JMO<\/strong><\/p>\n

The truth however became known when the post \u2013 mortem and judicial inquiry was conducted. The Trincomalee Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) Dr. Gamini Gunatunga himself a native from the district conducted the post \u2013 mortem and ruled that all five dead victims had died due to gunshot injuries. Three had died of head injuries while the other two had succumbed to abdomen and chest injuries. The JMO however observed that some of the victims had injuries other than gunshot wounds too. But the fatal ones were from gunshots. There was tremendous pressure on the JMO to “doctor” the report in accordance with the “Official” explanation. But this great man refused and stated only the truth in his report.<\/p>\n

With the JMO report the explanation provided by the security forces was blown to smithereens. The Trincomalee Magistrate Mr. V. Ramakamalan recorded an interim verdict of gunshot injuries and instructed the bodies be handed over to the families. But there was a hitch. The Police at the hospital refused to release the bodies. They insisted that the parents sign letters accepting that their children were tigers. Otherwise the bodies would not be handed over they threatened.<\/p>\n

The parents of the victims however were not prepared to do that. They had lost their innocent children. They were not prepared to sacrifice their reputations. They were not prepared to let them be stigmatised as \u201cterrorists\u201d when they were not. They simply refused to budge.<\/p>\n

One parent said \u201cif you dont give the body I will have a funeral with an empty coffin and a picture of my son but I will never admit to this untruth of calling my son a terrorist. I have lost my son but I wont lose his honour\u201d. The TNA Parliamentarian from Trincomalee district Thurairatnasingham also arrived at the hospital and exerted pressure. Finally the cops relented and the bodies were released without any letters being signed.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile the Trincomalee magistrate V. Ramakamalan began his judicial inquiry. He spoke to the two youths receiving treatment at the ICU. One was Yogarajah Poongulalon and the other Pararajasingham Kokulraj. Though conscious the condition of one was not well enough to make a statement. Dr. Kasipillai Manoharan and the woman lawyer Subashini Chitravelu also made statements before the magistrate. Subashini is the sister of Mrs. Thangathurai the mother of Sivananda the Moratuwa undergrad. The witnesses who testified at the inquiry were subject to several threatening calls in Sinhala. The families of the victims were also intimidated. They also began suspecting that they were being watched.<\/p>\n

Overwhelmed With Sorrow<\/strong><\/p>\n

Trincomalee was overwhelmed with sorrow. On the 3rd of January 2006 there was a spontaneous closure of schools and boycott of classes by students. Students of all communities and faiths expressed solidarity with the victims. Realising the public mood was turning bitter the authorities withdrew security personnel from checkposts and sentry points in the Tamil neighbourhoods of Trincomalee. Some enraged people destroyed a few of these deserted places.<\/p>\n

On the following day more organized efforts were made by Tamil youths to continue the hartal. The element of genuine spontaneity prevalent on the first day was lost.On Wednesday Jan 4th the bodies of the five victims were lying in their respective homes. They were all born in the same year on different dates.They had schooled together and now had died on the same date.<\/p>\n

Shanmugarajah Gajendran born on 16th September was living on Vidyalayam lane; Lohitharaja Rohan born on 07th April was from Sivan Kovil road;<\/p>\n

Thangathurai Sivanantha born on 06th April was a resident of Vanniya lane; Yogaraja Hemachandran born on 04th March lived in Customs street; Manoharan Rajihar born on the 22nd of September lived in St, Mary\u2019s road.<\/p>\n

Trincomalee town was grief stricken. People flocked to the houses of the victims. Again those condoling with the families were not Tamils alone but many Sinhala and Muslim families. Everyone knew what had really happened and of the innocence of the victims. The student population turned up in large numbers. The certificates, cups and medals won by the victims were laid out by the coffins.<\/p>\n

Srikoneswara Hindu College<\/strong><\/p>\n

On Thursday the 5th of January the funeral was held at the Srikonewara Hindu College generally known as Trinco Hindu College. The institution had a grand tradition of over a hundred years. Among its distinguished former Principals was the great Tamil scholar Swamy Vipulananda who went on to become the first Tamil professor of Annamalai University in Tamil Nadu.<\/p>\n

The principal then was Mr. M. Rajaratnam. He was distraught by the developments. A special dais was constructed on the day of the final farewell at the College grounds. The bodies were brought in individual processions to the College. Religious leaders of the Hindu, Christian and Islamic faiths addressed the mourners. Student representatives and Principal Rajaratnam also made speeches. They were emotional but eloquent. One thing rankling was the unjust charge that the victims were tigers. Every speaker refuted the accusation and condemned those responsible.<\/p>\n

Finally the five bodies were taken in procession through the streets of Trincomalee to the Hindu burial grounds near Ehamparam road. Once again a few checkposts were attacked on the way. Security personnel were pointedly absent. At Madathady junction some lumpen elements close to the JVP started throwing stones. They were quickly checked by the Police providing security.<\/p>\n

Inseparable in Life and Death<\/strong><\/p>\n

Trincomalee had not seen such a large funeral procession after the one for former Federal Party parliamentarian N. R. Rajavarothayam. After last rites were performed the five friends, inseparable in life and in death, were laid to rest.<\/p>\n

This is an updated version of an article written for the DBS Jeyaraj Column in the \u201cDaily Mirror\u201d of July 6, 2019. It can can be accessed here<\/em><\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.dailymirror.lk\/opinion\/Gruesome-killing-of-five-Tamil-students–in-Trinco-13-years-ago\/172-170630<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

DBS Jeyaraj can be reached at dbsjeyaraj@yahoo.com<\/span> <\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Tweet<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By D.B.S.Jeyaraj Five Tamil Students were killed near the beach in Trincomalee town thirteen years ago on January 2nd 2006. Two other students also suffered injuries but survived. The names and the dates of birth of the five victims were: (i) Manoharan Ragihar- 22.09.1985, (ii) Yogarajah Hemachchandra – 04.03.1985, (iii) Logitharajah Rohan – 07.04.1985(iv) Thangathurai …<\/p>\n

Continue reading ‘Horrible Killing of Five Tamil Students In Trincomalee Town Thirteen Years Ago’ »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[27],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64903"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=64903"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64903\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":64926,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64903\/revisions\/64926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=64903"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=64903"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=64903"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}