Fear and turmoil continue to grip the Jaffna peninsula due the disappearance of and increasing number students disappear, and the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) allegedly responds by threatening to censor reports on the abductions.
At least 10 students have been reported missing, another two confirmed as having being killed and at least 2 students released after being tortured by Sri Lanka’s Military Intelligence division in the past two months alone.
Another small number of students also continue to be officially detained by the Sri Lankan forces and other students have sought the protective custody of the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission (SLHRC).
Combined with students not attending school from fear over what could happen while they are out of the house, these incidents have severely reduced the number of students attending educational institutions in the Jaffna peninsula and worsened the already poor educational state of the region.
Four high school boys disappeared on May 4. Three boys from Jaffna Hindu College, and another from St John’s College were all taken from their homes by armed men arriving in white vans – generally believed to be either Sri Lankan military personnel not wearing uniform or paramilitary cadres working alongside Sri Lankan military intelligence – who broke into houses and abducted some of the boys in the presence of their parents.
"I strongly condemn the SLA personnel intimidating the Jaffna media not to publish any news of the student agitation calling for the immediate release of the four students," S. Gajenthiran, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Jaffna parliamentarian said.
“This is a gross violation of the freedom of the press,” he added.
“The SLA again intimidating media persons after the recent killing of journalist Selvarajah Rajitharan is highly deplorable,” the MP noted.
A consortium of private educational institutions in Jaffna had urged the abductors to release the students and accused the SLA of complicity in the abductions.
A number of student organizations also appealed to the students for a peninsula wide boycott of schools, and the students responded by staying away in droves.
However, anticipating student agitation in reaction to the abductions, the SLA in Jaffna had deployed troopers in large numbers in front of schools and were conducting checks and blocking outsiders entering the schools.
On April 23, a student from Jaffna Technical College disappeared while on his way to college.
Also in April, two students had sought protection from the Jaffna office of the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission (SLHRC), saying they feared for their lives. An 18-year-old claimed that armed men in white vans came to his house several times during the night, with the intention of abducting him. A 16-year-old said his father had been summoned to the SLA civil administration office and ordered to hand him over to the SLA.
Another 16-year-old student and his family sought protection with the SLHRC on April 19, after the boy’s brother had been arrested the previous week. The family had been harassed by the SLA after the arrest, and they feared for their safety.
On April 16, a Jaffna University undergraduate student was released after being detained and severely tortured by Sri Lankan Military Intelligence. He was pushed out of a white van alongside a road three days after he disappeared.
And another University student was released on April 10, again after being tortured. The Arts faculty student had been waylaid outside his home and abducted by Sri Lankan Military Intelligence personnel the previous day. He was interrogated and tortured in a military camp before being dumped out of a white van alongside a road.
And on March 31, a 19-year-old student disappeared after leaving his house at Colombuthurai in Jaffna to take care of some personal errands.
Meanwhile, on Saturday May 5, armed men in civil clothes forcibly entered the Jaffna University campus, injuring the security guard.
The gang had remained inside and the vicinity of Jaffna campus for several hours and allegedly destroyed memorial photographs of students killed in the conflict.
The men also allegedly stole funds raised by the students to support refugees in the east.
The following Monday Jaffna University students boycotted lectures protesting against the invasion.
The situation has deteriorated to such an extent that students from outside the Jaffna peninsula are allegedly considering leaving the region.
Jaffna University administrative officers have expressed concern that another exodus would only further worsen the academic situation, and could even bring into question the viability of the institution. The University Senate held a special meeting last Friday to discuss the abductions and the death threat issued to staff and students.
As far back as January, the Jaffna University Students’ Union had been appealing to Sri Lankan government authorities and the international community to ensure the safety of students.
The statement also called on the authorities to create a “safe, free and conducive atmosphere” for educational activities in the Jaffna district and urged them to take steps to investigate the whereabouts of those who had been abducted.
In that month, a Hartley College student and a Velayutham Boys’ School student, both from Point Pedro, also disappeared. Their parents have been reported as saying they suspect the SLA of being behind the disappearances.
The University Student’s Union also noted that between August 2006 and January, one undergraduate, two technical college students, and five secondary school students had been killed, in addition to the abduction and disappearance of many other students.
At least 10 students have been reported missing, another two confirmed as having being killed and at least 2 students released after being tortured by Sri Lanka’s Military Intelligence division in the past two months alone.
Another small number of students also continue to be officially detained by the Sri Lankan forces and other students have sought the protective custody of the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission (SLHRC).
Combined with students not attending school from fear over what could happen while they are out of the house, these incidents have severely reduced the number of students attending educational institutions in the Jaffna peninsula and worsened the already poor educational state of the region.
Four high school boys disappeared on May 4. Three boys from Jaffna Hindu College, and another from St John’s College were all taken from their homes by armed men arriving in white vans – generally believed to be either Sri Lankan military personnel not wearing uniform or paramilitary cadres working alongside Sri Lankan military intelligence – who broke into houses and abducted some of the boys in the presence of their parents.
"I strongly condemn the SLA personnel intimidating the Jaffna media not to publish any news of the student agitation calling for the immediate release of the four students," S. Gajenthiran, Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Jaffna parliamentarian said.
“This is a gross violation of the freedom of the press,” he added.
“The SLA again intimidating media persons after the recent killing of journalist Selvarajah Rajitharan is highly deplorable,” the MP noted.
A consortium of private educational institutions in Jaffna had urged the abductors to release the students and accused the SLA of complicity in the abductions.
A number of student organizations also appealed to the students for a peninsula wide boycott of schools, and the students responded by staying away in droves.
However, anticipating student agitation in reaction to the abductions, the SLA in Jaffna had deployed troopers in large numbers in front of schools and were conducting checks and blocking outsiders entering the schools.
On April 23, a student from Jaffna Technical College disappeared while on his way to college.
Also in April, two students had sought protection from the Jaffna office of the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission (SLHRC), saying they feared for their lives. An 18-year-old claimed that armed men in white vans came to his house several times during the night, with the intention of abducting him. A 16-year-old said his father had been summoned to the SLA civil administration office and ordered to hand him over to the SLA.
Another 16-year-old student and his family sought protection with the SLHRC on April 19, after the boy’s brother had been arrested the previous week. The family had been harassed by the SLA after the arrest, and they feared for their safety.
On April 16, a Jaffna University undergraduate student was released after being detained and severely tortured by Sri Lankan Military Intelligence. He was pushed out of a white van alongside a road three days after he disappeared.
And another University student was released on April 10, again after being tortured. The Arts faculty student had been waylaid outside his home and abducted by Sri Lankan Military Intelligence personnel the previous day. He was interrogated and tortured in a military camp before being dumped out of a white van alongside a road.
And on March 31, a 19-year-old student disappeared after leaving his house at Colombuthurai in Jaffna to take care of some personal errands.
Meanwhile, on Saturday May 5, armed men in civil clothes forcibly entered the Jaffna University campus, injuring the security guard.
The gang had remained inside and the vicinity of Jaffna campus for several hours and allegedly destroyed memorial photographs of students killed in the conflict.
The men also allegedly stole funds raised by the students to support refugees in the east.
The following Monday Jaffna University students boycotted lectures protesting against the invasion.
The situation has deteriorated to such an extent that students from outside the Jaffna peninsula are allegedly considering leaving the region.
Jaffna University administrative officers have expressed concern that another exodus would only further worsen the academic situation, and could even bring into question the viability of the institution. The University Senate held a special meeting last Friday to discuss the abductions and the death threat issued to staff and students.
As far back as January, the Jaffna University Students’ Union had been appealing to Sri Lankan government authorities and the international community to ensure the safety of students.
The statement also called on the authorities to create a “safe, free and conducive atmosphere” for educational activities in the Jaffna district and urged them to take steps to investigate the whereabouts of those who had been abducted.
In that month, a Hartley College student and a Velayutham Boys’ School student, both from Point Pedro, also disappeared. Their parents have been reported as saying they suspect the SLA of being behind the disappearances.
The University Student’s Union also noted that between August 2006 and January, one undergraduate, two technical college students, and five secondary school students had been killed, in addition to the abduction and disappearance of many other students.
