The Hon. Sivagnanam Shritharan
Hon. Sivagnanam Shritharan referred to JMO findings that unclothed remains of infants, children, women and men showed signs of torture, alleging these were crimes committed under previous governments and that further remains may exist near former torture sites. Citing Mandaitivu, the area near St. Thomas’ Church, and the NESHOR report “Footprints in the Sand,” he said youths taken in 1990 from Mandaitivu, Allaipitty and Mankumban were detained and disappeared. He called for an investigation into Douglas Devananda, alleging his complicity through his then association with EPRLF/EPDP paramilitary activity.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, I could not fully present my questions. The JMO’s report states infants, girls, boys, women and men — without clothing — showed signs of torture. This did not occur under your tenure but under former governments; a grave crime. Many more remains are believed to exist from torture camps.
¶ 02 Mandaitivu is known to all; likewise near St. Thomas’ Church. A report “Footprints in the Sand” by the North-East human rights organization NESHOR contains photos and details of 60 persons, including some who studied with me at Parashakti Vidyalaya, Allaipitty. It notes that in 1990 youths taken from Mandaitivu, Allaipitty, Mankumban were held and then taken away by Denzil Kobbekaduwa, and that Douglas Devananda, then aligned with EPRLF/EPDP as a paramilitary, was complicit. You must investigate Douglas Devananda as well.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Tuesday, 17 June 2025 ·No. 1750929357043199 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Sivagnanam Shritharan. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 17 June 2025. No. 1750929357043199. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/14584