SLN kills Tamil Nadu fisherman, torture 4 others

[TamilNet, Friday, 09 July 2010, 10:11 GMT]
Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) soldiers brutally attacked Wednesday fishermen from Vethaara’niyam in Tamil Nadu killing one of them besides denuding and torturing fellow fishermen as they were fishing in Tamil Nadu seas, according to Maalai Malar Tamil daily published in Chennai. SLN continue its brutal attacks on Tamil Nadu fishermen despite protests raised by the Central and Tamil Nadu governments, Maalai Malar said.

The English version of the report is as follows:

“Fishermen Chellappan, Kaliyappan, Selvaraj and Thuruvanpulam from Ve’l’lappaalam near Vethaara’niyam went fishing in a boat Wednesday. Four more fishermen Murukesan, Arivalagan, Chinappoo and Iliyarajah from the same area too went in another boat.

Around 9:00 p.m as they were fishing near Aa’rukkaadduththu’rai on mid sea SLN soldiers who came there were enraged to see the fishermen from Tamil Nadu.

The SLN soldiers blocked Chellappan’s boat and forcibly got into it. They dumped the catch and the fishing net they found in the boat into the sea.

They then attacked the four fishermen including Chellappan with iron rods. Chellappan, unable to stand the attack, fell dead in the boat while Kaliyappan, Selvaraj and Thiruvanpulam were seriously injured.

Later the SLN soldiers got into the boat of Murukesan and attacked Arivalagan, Chinnappoo and Ilayarajah with iron rods and denuded them and threw them overboard. All four of them were seriously injured in this attack.

The SLN soldiers left them after warning the Tamil Nadu fishermen who returned to the shore at midnight.

Fisheries Resources Co-director, Umakanthan inquired the seven fishermen including Kaliyappan who had managed to escape alive.

Tension prevails in Ve’l’lampa’l’lam and Aarukkaadduththu’rai fisher folk villages where people are enraged over the killing of Chellappan by SLN soldiers.”

Chronology: