SRI LANKA: CONDITIONS DETERIORATING IN JAFFNA;

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 001036 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/INS AND PM MCC FOR D NASSIRY AND E BURKE E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/02/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PHUM MOPS CE SUBJECT: SRI LANKA: CONDITIONS DETERIORATING IN JAFFNA; EMBASSY INTERLOCUTORS LEAVING REF: COLOMBO 463 Classified By: Acting Deputy Chief of Mission, Michael DeTar, for reaso ns 1.4(b,d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Conditions in the military-controlled portion of the Jaffna peninsula are deteriorating, with eight extra-judicial killings in just three days and 21 dead in the past two weeks. Among the dead is a Tamil employee of the Danish Refugee Council, who was shot twice in the face at point-blank range while stopped on his motorcycle in front of the ICRC office. Embassy sources allege that military intelligence officers are working with paramilitaries to cleanse Jaffna of suspected LTTE sympathizers. Additionally, the military and other pro-GSL entities are putting pressure on Embassy interlocutors, including many who met with Assistant Secretary Boucher during his trip to Jaffna in May, ¶2007. Of those, Father J.J. Bernard is being transferred to the Philippines; University of Jaffna Law Lecturer S. Sutharshan moved to Colombo when his name was posted on a death notice; Government Agent Ganesh plans to retire from government service when his term expires in September; and human rights lawyer M. Remadious has moved his family to Colombo and will join them as soon as he can find employment here. These interlocutors have suggested that we be wary of their replacements. END SUMMARY. EXTRA-JUDICIAL KILLINGS SURGE IN JAFFNA -------------- ¶2. (C) After an period of relative quiet in the military-controlled portion of the Jaffna peninsula, July has seen a spike in the number of extra-judicial killings. The AmCit Director of the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) Jaffna branch, Joann Ellen Kingsley (strictly protect),told us on July 24 that there have been eight extra-judicial killings from Saturday, July 21 to Monday, July 23, with 21 killed in a two-week period. Kingsley stated that the coroner's office at the Jaffna Teaching Hospital is unable to conduct autopsies quickly enough. As a result, grieving families are required to wait to receive a post-mortem report before disposing of their loved one's remains. ¶3. (C) One of those killed on July 23 was 26 year-old Mariyanayagam Aloysius, a Tamil employee of the DRC. He was shot twice on the right side of his face by an unknown gunman with a 9mm handgun at point-blank range while stopped on his motorcycle in front of the ICRC office. When Kingsley arrived at the scene, Aloysius was still lying face-down in the street, although police had dragged his body out of the roadway. Sinhala media reports have speculated that Aloysius had ties to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) -- a claim that Kingsley vigorously denies, noting that he recently received a re-certification of his security clearance from the Ministry of Defense. He is survived by his wife, who is seven months pregnant. EPDP'S COORDINATION WITH MILITARY INTELLIGENCE -------------- - ¶4. (C) Numerous Embassy interlocutors have told us that extra-judicial killings in Jaffna are being conducted by the pro-GSL paramilitary group Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) and by the security forces themselves. One source, a high-ranking Anglican cleric, told us that he has personally witnessed assassinations. He said police officers make a perfunctory investigation, taking measurements and drawing sketches, with the understanding that no arrest will ever be made. Kingsley told us on July 24 that police officers COLOMBO 00001036 002 OF 003 candidly admitted to her that no investigation of Aloysius' murder would be made because there were no eye-witnesses. The police did not bring a camera to the scene of the crime and asked Kingsley to give them the pictures of Aloysius body that she took with her mobile phone. ¶5. (C) Several sources have told us that EPDP works closely with military intelligence to target suspected LTTE sympathizers. Member of Parliament Mano Ganesan (strictly protect) told Poloff on July 21 that during the Cease-fire Agreement, Western donors and the UNP government encouraged moderate Tamils to work to "transform" the LTTE into a legitimate political party, analogous to the transformation the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) underwent after its insurrection was crushed in 1989. According to Ganesan, EPDP is now using old video footage of Jaffna citizens in Tiger-controlled territories to help military intelligence officials identify those who may be loyal to the LTTE. ¶6. (C) On July 4, Dr. Sinniah Sivaruban (strictly protect) from the Jaffna Teaching Hospital told Poloff that his friend and third-year medical student, Kunaratnam Suganthapan, attempted to recruit him to work for EPDP. According to Sivaruban's account of Suganthapan's recruitment pitch, EPDP uses Jaffna citizens to identify potential LTTE targets and then reports that information to military intelligence. When a decision is made to eliminate a suspected Tiger sympathizer, EPDP conducts the abduction or assassination, liaising with military intelligence to ensure that EPDP is not disturbed in its activities. According to Sivaruban, military intelligence provides a generous incentive program to EPDP members for successfully targeting suspected LTTE cadres. EMBASSY INTERLOCUTORS LEAVING JAFFNA -------------- ¶7. (C) Embassy interlocutors in Jaffna are finding it increasingly difficult to document human rights abuses. Several Embassy contacts have either been transferred out of Jaffna or are voluntarily leaving because of pressure from military and paramilitary groups. Of those who have either left or are leaving, many are long-time Embassy contacts who met Ambassador and Assistant Secretary Boucher during their visit to Jaffna in May, 2007. -- Additional District Judge and Magistrate Srinithi Nanthasekeran was transferred to Colombo in the mid-February, ¶2007. She was stripped of her responsibilities as a magistrate and was relegated to the lower position of additional district judge in juvenile court. She remains an ardent human right advocate. -- Father J.J. Bernard served as Director of the Center for Policy and Peace Initiatives before being transferred to Colombo on July 5. He was opposed to his transfer and has lodged a formal complaint with his superiors who have since decided that his next permanent assignment will be in the Philippines. Father Bernard met with Assistant Secretary Boucher and is a primary source of the list of abductees that Ambassador presented to Presidential Chief of Staff Lalith Weeratunga on March 20 (ref A). -- Mr. S. Sutharshan served as Senior Law Lecturer for Jaffna University and was one of the guests at the civil society lunch hosted by Assistant Secretary Boucher. In June, suspected EPDP cadres wearing black scarves over their faces posted a notice during school hours in Jaffna University listing several "traitors" to be executed for supporting the COLOMBO 00001036 003 OF 003 LTTE. Sutharshan was among those targeted for death by the notice. As a result, he resigned his position and has moved to Colombo with his family. -- Mr. M. Remadious is a human rights lawyer and legal consultant to the Jaffna Human Rights Commission (HRC). Along with Father Bernard, Mr. Remadious has provided hundreds of names of potential abductees along with volumes of supporting documentation. Currently, he is the only Embassy contact still providing detailed information about human rights conditions in Jaffna. On June 26, Mr. Remadious was among several human rights activists who received threatening phone calls allegedly as a result of helping four families file missing persons claims with the HRC and Jaffna Commander Major General Chandrasiri's office. After Father Bernard was transferred to Colombo on July 5, Remadious moved his family to Colombo as well. He will join them as soon as he is able to secure employment, but plans to leave Jaffna no later than September 1. Remadious met with Ambassador and Assistant Secretary Boucher jointly with Father Bernard. -- Government Agent M. Ganesh has served as the local governmental civil authority in Jaffna since September, 2004. After his briefing to Assistant Secretary Boucher, General Chandrasiri summoned him to his office, demanding to see a copy of Ganesh's PowerPoint presentation and a list of the people that Boucher met with in Jaffna. Ganesh was also sanctioned for allowing Boucher to use his SUV during his time in Jaffna. Ganesh said that he received numerous anonymous death threats after Chandrasiri's interview and several calls from Colombo demanding that he account for his behavior. On July 24, he told Poloff that he will not seek a second term as Government Agent and will retire in Colombo on September 1. HRC REPLACEMENT A CAUSE FOR CONCERN -------------- ¶8. (C) Father Bernard and Mr. Remadious have independently told us that the GSL is placing EPDP-friendly people in the Jaffna branch of the HRC. Particularly, both men expressed concern about Mr. Sambanthar Sivarajasingham, who was serving as Inquiry Officer beginning in May before assuming responsibilities as HRC Office Coordinator on July 20. Remadious and Bernard expressed concern that if people fear reprisal for reporting claims to the HRC, there will be no other organization capable of fully documenting abductions and extra-judicial killings in Jaffna. ¶9. (C) COMMENT: The near-clean sweep of our human rights contacts in Jaffna will make it increasingly difficult for this Embassy to monitor the situation there. After GA Ganesh and Mr. Remadious leave in September, all of the Embassy's most important and reliable sources of information will have been eliminated. However, the GSL effort to remove those responsible for advising us on human rights conditions will have the counterproductive result of leaving only pro-LTTE sources of information, such as TamilNet. MOORE