Saturday, 9 August 2014 00:11
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35 new complaints received says Maxwell Paranagama
Most complaints about final stages of war say observers
Complaints against both LTTE and military
By Dharisha Bastians
The Presidential Commission of Inquiry received 35 new complaints as it commenced public sittings in the Mannar District yesterday.
Forty-seven persons testified before the Commission headed by former High Court Judge Maxwell Paranagama and Commissioners Mano Ramanathan and Sujatha Vidyarathne.
Speaking to the Daily FT, Paranagama said the Commission had invited complaints from 48 Grama Sevaka divisions in the Mannar District. The Public Sittings were held at the Manthai Divisional Secretariat in Mannar and will continue until Monday, Paranagama said.
The Head of the Commission noted that 60 people had been invited to testify today.
Most of the complaints received during yesterday’s sittings were regarding the final stages of the war, with several families making allegations against both Government forces and the LTTE.
The Commission heard from families of the disappeared that their children were forcibly recruited by the LTTE during the end of the conflict and surrendered by parents and loved ones to the military in May 2009, observers of the public proceedings noted.
One complainant testified to the Commission that his daughter and around 400 other children had been abducted by the LTTE from the Valaignarmadam Church in April 2009, the observers noted.
