A memorial event to remember the massacred in 2019.
A Sri Lankan court has sentenced five Sri Lankan police officers over their role in the killing of eight Tamils in 1998, an incident dubbed the Thampalakamam massacre, more than 26 years after the murders.
The five police officers, who were attached to the Bharathipuram police post in Trincomalee, were only reportedly charged with unlawful assembly with the intention to commit murder. Despite their conviction, at least another 7 suspects were acquitted in the 26 years that have passed.
Those sentenced were Constable Chandrathna Banadara, Constable Nimal Premasiri Konara, Inspector R.M. Ranaraja Bandara, Sub Inspector Y.L. Somaratne, and Constable Senarath Bandara Medawela.
It is not clear what happened to those officers who were acquitted and whether they continued to serve with the Sri Lankan security forces. At least one of those accused of taking part in the massacre was shot dead in January 2000 by unidentified gunmen.
According to the US State Department's 1998 Sri Lanka Country Report:
Some 31 police officers and 10 home guards were arrested in connection with the case. In September 21 of these individuals were charged, 4 with murder and 17 with unlawful assembly. The other 20 were released after the Attorney General determined that there was insufficient evidence against them. The cases were scheduled to be heard in early 1999. The case was continuing at year's end.
The perpetrators of most extrajudicial killings had not been arrested by year's end.
Thampalakamam massacre
A memorial event to remember the massacred in 2019.
On February 1, 1998 civilians working at the local paddy fields were taken to the nearby police station where officers and home guards began shooting at them, before mutilating the dead bodies by stabbing and kicking them.
One dead Tamil child's penis was cut off and stuffed inside his mouth. They later went from house to house and beat up villagers. Several sources indicate that the Sri Lankans were reportedly drunk at the time.
The eight Tamils killed included at least four children.
They were later identified as 14-year-old Surenthiran Amirthalingam along with his 18-year-old brother, Gajenthiran Amirthalingam, 17-year-old Murukesu Janakan, Nathan Pavalanathan, Subramaniam Thivaharan, Gunaratnam Sivarajan, Ponnambalam Kanagasabai and Aarumugam Sekar. Seventeen others were severely wounded.
The next day, the Sri Lankan police began pressuring families to sign statements claiming that those killed were members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
Sri Lankan national news also regurgitated government reports and claimed that LTTE members were killed by the police during a “confrontation”.
“This incident is reminiscent of the killing by army and home guards of 24 civilians, including 13 children, two years ago in the same area and still the suspects have not been punished,” said Amnesty International at the time of the massacre. To date, there has been no accountability for the previous killing either.
Read more from Amnesty International here, UTHR-J here, and Together Against Genocide here.
