STF commandos torture Tamil man in Batticaloa, victim held incommunicado

[TamilNet, Thursday, 14 March 2019, 22:36 GMT]
The occupying Sinhala police Special Task Force (STF) commandos brutally assaulted 27-year-old Tamil man Mannan Kajanthan at Iluppai-adich-cheanai in Karadiyan-aa'ru of Batticaloa district on Monday morning. The STF personnel tortured Kajanthan and also attacked another Tamil youth who went to help Kajanthan, the relatives of the victim said. The STF was assaulting the Tamil man blaming him for logging trees in the jungle. However, the exact cause is yet to be known, rights activists in Batticaloa said. The victim is still kept incommunicado by the notorious STF in the Batticaloa prison.

The SL Police at Karadiyan-aa'ru has refused to register a complaint from the relatives of the victim stating that they would not entertain any complaint against the STF, the relatives said. They were only able to file a complaint with the so-called Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission in Batticaloa.

In the meantime, witnesses who have seen the state of the victim said the STF had brutally assaulted him with boots and fits.

After meting out the torture, the STF took the victim to the SL Forest Conservation Department office located in the area. The SL Forest guards were reluctant to take over the victim who was in an unconscious state.

The STF commandos then transported Kajanthan to Ea'raavoor base hospital in the vehicle belonging to the SL Forest Department.

The medical sources at the base hospital said the man had sustained severe injuries, which they were unable to treat and transferred him to the Teaching Hospital at Batticaloa.

The medical sources at Batticaloa hospital said that heavily armed STF commandos were present at all times when the man was being treated.

Already the following day, before the victim was able to talk, he was transferred to Batticaloa prison where he is held incommunicado.

Iluppai-adich-cheanai is located 16 km north of Batticaloa city.