Sinhala colonists storm into lands south of Kokku'laay lagoon provoking Pulmoaddai Muslims

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 05 September 2018, 21:04 GMT]
Sinhala colonists, backed by the occupying SL military stationed in Pulmoaddai have stormed into 25 acres of lands, located south of Kokku'laay lagoon in the Trincomalee district on Monday night. They have hurriedly put up several huts overnight at Maalanoor. The intruders have plan to put up 30 shelters. SL authorities in Colombo have assured State-sponsored housing scheme to them, informed civil sources said. Most of the encroached lands belong to Tamil-speaking Muslim families. The hostile move comes at a time when Sinhala Buddhist establishment was clashing with Eezham Tamils at Kumuzha-munai and Naayaa'ru in the Mullaiththeevu district to the north of the Kokku'laay lagoon. The time has come for joint action by Eezham Tamils in the North and the Tamil-speaking Muslims in Trincomalee in the East against the cultural and demographic genocide, the activists in Pulmoaddai said.



Agricultural lands belonging to 24 Tamil-speaking families have been seized in the latest over-night occupation in Pulmoaddai.

The lands belonging to Road Development Authority (RDA) and the SL Forest Department have also been absorbed into the colony as well as the deed and permit lands of private land-owners.

Tamil-speaking Muslim activists in Pulmoaddai blamed the Sinhala extremist monk, Panamure Thilakawansa thero, who has vowed to Sinhala-Buddhicise the Pulmoaddai area, as an active promoter of the Sinhala colony.

The Muslim villagers have been confronting the monk through lawsuits as well as political pressure against the expansion of the so-called “Shanthipura Rajamaha Vihara,” which was being schemed near Maalaanoor in 2014-2015.

The latest intruders are from outside the district. They were seen clearing the jungles at the presence of SL Forest Department guards, news sources in Pulmoaddai said.

The SL military from the 27th Battalion of the Gajaba Regiment of the occupying SL Army was providing security to the settlers as well as the SL Police, they said.

Informed civil sources in Pulmoaddai said that the SL authorities in Colombo, including the UNP Minister Sajith Premadasa, were behind the allocation of five-lakhs worth housing scheme per settler family.

A Sinhala GS officer, who doesn't belong to Pulmoaddai, was interacting with the settlers, the civil sources said.



Furthermore, the SL Governor of Eastern Province Rohitha Bogollagama has instructed the Divisional Secretary of Kuchchave'li not to entertain complaints against the encroachment, the civil sources said.

Maalanoor is located between the 12th Mile Post and the 13th Mile Post.

The 27th Battalion of the Gajaba Regiment of the SL Army is situated at the 13th Mile Post (22 km post) on Anuradhapura - Pulmoaddai Road.

The so-called ‘Shanthipura Rajamaha Vihara’ is located between the military base and the colony.



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In a video interview to TamilNet in July 2017, former Village Officer (GS) Abdul Salam narrated how the land grab in Pulmoaddai has been systematically stepped up and jointly waged by SL ministries, departments, Sinhala Army, Navy, STF commandos, Buddhist monks, ‘home guards’ paramilitary and the encroachers from bordering divisions of Trincomalee and Anurahapura since 2010. The interview is reproduced below:





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