Jaffna, once the epicentre of Sri Lanka’s protracted ethnic conflict, is once again gripped by violence. But amid escalating attacks on security forces, there is a new dimension of unrest: violent protests by civil society groups.
Long simmering animosity against Sri Lankan security forces’ continued occupation of civilian places, including homes, schools and places of worship, has resulted in sporadic rioting against troops in the past two years. It has also fuelled the massive ‘Pongu Thamil’ demonstrations across the northeast, attended by tens of thousands in each location.
But in the past month, several protests in Jaffna led by students and other civilian groups have turned violent. In the past few days protests by students have provoked clashes with Sri Lankan troops and police.
Tensions are rising. On streets bearing the scars of past bombs and shells, soldiers stood with assault rifles and sticks, some obscuring their faces with black bandannas, Reuters reported.
On Monday troops and protesters clashed in Jaffna with one person shot and wounded and each side accusing the other of trying to provoke further violence.
The army said it had fired into the air after protesters hurled stones at checkpoints. Protesters said troops attacked a peaceful demonstration against army brutality and beat up lecturers and students.
The injured included senior university staff who said they had been beaten with sticks and rifle butts. The army said it had no details on anyone being shot.
Amid continuing attacks on military personnel and positions, the clashes between demonstrators and security forces has heightened tensions across the peninsula, as have intensified patrolling and cordon-and-search operations by troops.
Heavily armed soldiers aggressively searched numerous villages throughout the Jaffna district, including Mandaitivu, Kacchai and Kodikamam in Thenmaradchy, Ariyalai in Jaffna, Myilankadu in Valilkamam North, Erlalai North and Mandan in Vadamarachy last week.
Residents said they were threatened with dire consequences if they involved themselves in the protests or other actions against the military.
Some youths were taken to military stations and detained for questioning, without their families being given any reasons, inevitably raising anxious memories of the times of the ‘disappearances’ during times of conflict.
On Wednesday, Sri Lanka’s newly elected President Mahinda Rajapakse called a meeting with Tamil parliamentarians to discuss the crisis.
The inconclusive meeting with the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) was also attended by the new head of the Army, Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka, who bluntly rejected the MPs’ protests and said that his troops would take measures to impose order in the troubled region.
On Tuesday, Sri Lanka’s parliament was briefly suspended on Tuesday as the TNA MPs shouted slogans demanding troop pull-backs from the occupied north.
R. Sampanthan accused the army of opening fire on peaceful crowds around Tamil-dominated Jaffna before heading to the centre of the chamber with the rest of his party’s MPs and shouting slogans.
"Incidents of this nature have been systematically used against Tamil civilians as a weapon of war," he said, demanding that the government "withdraw all armed forces from all civilian inhabited areas".
The SLA says it only fired into the air on Monday to break up a student demonstration it says was LTTE-backed and stoning checkpoints. The protesters said the troops attacked without provocation. Doctors said at least one man was shot and wounded.
Last Saturday SLA soldiers attacked rickshaw drivers at Irupalai junction, on the Point Pedro road. Troops opened fire to disperse drivers for using the junction for business. As drivers fled, one rickshaw and another civilian’s motorbike were abandoned, and were appropriated to a nearby SLA camp. Nearby businesses closed as the region remained tense.
Following this, drivers reported the incident to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM). However, the next morning, auto-rickshaw drivers were again attacked at the same junction in retaliation for complaining to the SLMM about the harassment they experienced.
Another driver was attacked on Monday, prompting over 100 drivers to gather in protest the following day with the Auto-Owners Union. The drivers blocked Stanley Road, Kasturiar Road, and other roads near the SLA camp, when soldiers began attacking protestors and damaging their vehicles. In addition, civilians in the surrounding shopping center were also attacked, causing most businesses to close in fear.
The premises of the Tamil daily Namathu Eelanaadu were searched last Thursday, prompting the Free Media Movement to decry it as a violation of the freedom of expression. “Media and journalists in Jaffna face challenging situations now in gathering and disseminating information as war clouds gather by every passing day.”
The Liberation Tigers have been accused of orchestrating the protests and carrying out the attacks, charges which the LTTE denies. But the claims by emergent militant groups in Jaffna are deliberately thinly disguised fronts for the Tigers.
However, the resentment amongst many Tamils unable to return to their homes from which they were displaced by Sri Lankan military offensives in the mid-nineties, is a potent mobilising factor.
Up to a third of the Jaffna peninsula, including hundreds of villages, have been incorporated into the military High Security Zones (HSZs) from which the military, though obligated to do so under the February 2002 truce, is refusing to withdraw.
Long simmering animosity against Sri Lankan security forces’ continued occupation of civilian places, including homes, schools and places of worship, has resulted in sporadic rioting against troops in the past two years. It has also fuelled the massive ‘Pongu Thamil’ demonstrations across the northeast, attended by tens of thousands in each location.
But in the past month, several protests in Jaffna led by students and other civilian groups have turned violent. In the past few days protests by students have provoked clashes with Sri Lankan troops and police.
Tensions are rising. On streets bearing the scars of past bombs and shells, soldiers stood with assault rifles and sticks, some obscuring their faces with black bandannas, Reuters reported.
On Monday troops and protesters clashed in Jaffna with one person shot and wounded and each side accusing the other of trying to provoke further violence.
The army said it had fired into the air after protesters hurled stones at checkpoints. Protesters said troops attacked a peaceful demonstration against army brutality and beat up lecturers and students.
The injured included senior university staff who said they had been beaten with sticks and rifle butts. The army said it had no details on anyone being shot.
Amid continuing attacks on military personnel and positions, the clashes between demonstrators and security forces has heightened tensions across the peninsula, as have intensified patrolling and cordon-and-search operations by troops.
Heavily armed soldiers aggressively searched numerous villages throughout the Jaffna district, including Mandaitivu, Kacchai and Kodikamam in Thenmaradchy, Ariyalai in Jaffna, Myilankadu in Valilkamam North, Erlalai North and Mandan in Vadamarachy last week.
Residents said they were threatened with dire consequences if they involved themselves in the protests or other actions against the military.
Some youths were taken to military stations and detained for questioning, without their families being given any reasons, inevitably raising anxious memories of the times of the ‘disappearances’ during times of conflict.
On Wednesday, Sri Lanka’s newly elected President Mahinda Rajapakse called a meeting with Tamil parliamentarians to discuss the crisis.
The inconclusive meeting with the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) was also attended by the new head of the Army, Lt. Gen. Sarath Fonseka, who bluntly rejected the MPs’ protests and said that his troops would take measures to impose order in the troubled region.
On Tuesday, Sri Lanka’s parliament was briefly suspended on Tuesday as the TNA MPs shouted slogans demanding troop pull-backs from the occupied north.
R. Sampanthan accused the army of opening fire on peaceful crowds around Tamil-dominated Jaffna before heading to the centre of the chamber with the rest of his party’s MPs and shouting slogans.
"Incidents of this nature have been systematically used against Tamil civilians as a weapon of war," he said, demanding that the government "withdraw all armed forces from all civilian inhabited areas".
The SLA says it only fired into the air on Monday to break up a student demonstration it says was LTTE-backed and stoning checkpoints. The protesters said the troops attacked without provocation. Doctors said at least one man was shot and wounded.
Last Saturday SLA soldiers attacked rickshaw drivers at Irupalai junction, on the Point Pedro road. Troops opened fire to disperse drivers for using the junction for business. As drivers fled, one rickshaw and another civilian’s motorbike were abandoned, and were appropriated to a nearby SLA camp. Nearby businesses closed as the region remained tense.
Following this, drivers reported the incident to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM). However, the next morning, auto-rickshaw drivers were again attacked at the same junction in retaliation for complaining to the SLMM about the harassment they experienced.
Another driver was attacked on Monday, prompting over 100 drivers to gather in protest the following day with the Auto-Owners Union. The drivers blocked Stanley Road, Kasturiar Road, and other roads near the SLA camp, when soldiers began attacking protestors and damaging their vehicles. In addition, civilians in the surrounding shopping center were also attacked, causing most businesses to close in fear.
The premises of the Tamil daily Namathu Eelanaadu were searched last Thursday, prompting the Free Media Movement to decry it as a violation of the freedom of expression. “Media and journalists in Jaffna face challenging situations now in gathering and disseminating information as war clouds gather by every passing day.”
The Liberation Tigers have been accused of orchestrating the protests and carrying out the attacks, charges which the LTTE denies. But the claims by emergent militant groups in Jaffna are deliberately thinly disguised fronts for the Tigers.
However, the resentment amongst many Tamils unable to return to their homes from which they were displaced by Sri Lankan military offensives in the mid-nineties, is a potent mobilising factor.
Up to a third of the Jaffna peninsula, including hundreds of villages, have been incorporated into the military High Security Zones (HSZs) from which the military, though obligated to do so under the February 2002 truce, is refusing to withdraw.
