Hundreds of Sinhalese prisoners entered a separate Tamil-detained area within the prison and attacked them with knives and clubs killing Jaffna residents Maruthalingam Dharmalingam and Shanmugarasa Sivanesan and Mannar refugee HG Khan. Seventeen others were injured, seven of them seriously.
Detainees who escaped the ordeal say soldiers present refused to intervene when the prisoners begged them for help as they were beaten to death and thrown into a drain near the prison walls. Soldiers also made no attempt to prevent civilians gathered outside the prison throwing stones at the Tamil detainees. Prison officers later told MPs that soldiers on guard can intervene only in case of an attack on the prison or if prisoners attempted to escape.
In late November, 220 Tamil detainees were transferred to Kalutara from Colombo’s Magazine prison after they staged a protest fast against poor prison conditions and prolonged detention without trial. Detainees say they were attacked by jailors and force-fed before being transferred.
On 10 December, Sinhalese prisoners attempted to enter the Tamil section, after Tamil prisoners demanded more food, but were prevented by guards. Thereafter the Tamils were attacked with stones. The following day some prisoners succeeded in entering the area and seriously wounded two Tamils. Following a complaint by a Colombo human rights agency, the Kalutara High Court ordered the Prison Superintendent to submit a report on the incident.
Human rights observers are concerned that the authorities failed to take precautions despite the continuing tension. London-based human rights agency Amnesty International says prison staff and soldiers appear to have failed to protect Tamil detainees and according to some reports were even actively involved in the attack.
A conference of senior government officers on 15 December, summoned by Justice and National Reconciliation minister GL Peiris, decided to immediately set up a special police unit at Kalutara for the protection of Tamil detainees and transfer them later to the Boossa detention centre in Galle District, 60 miles south of Colombo.
The Boossa detention centre is notorious for ill-treatment and torture of Tamil prisoners. The 460 Tamil detainees at Kalutara who launched a protest fast, were distressed by the decision and demanded visiting MPs that they should be transferred to a prison where safety of prisoners and visiting relatives would be guaranteed. The fast ended on 16 December after State Attorney Sugatha Gamlath promised protection and expeditious disposal of their cases.
Opposition United National Party MP Jayalath Jayawardena who visited the prison says Tamil prisoners continue to live in fear and has called for an independent investigation. Mr Peiris says that he would recommend to President Chandrika Kumaratunge for a commission of enquiry into the deaths and promised compensation to families of those killed.
Amnesty International’s view that the attack on Tamil prisoners appears to have been premeditated gained strength after it was revealed that the murder incident had been photographed by a prison officer. The Defence ministry has appointed a team to investigate the allegation. Questions over how prisoners had access to weapons also remain unanswered.
Six days before the prison murders, President Kumaratunge issued new regulations on visits to detainees under Emergency and the Prevention of terrorism Act. Visits will now be restricted to one a week to a person nominated by the prisoner. The visitor must obtain a letter from the police where he resides stating that there are no objections. Observers say the regulations are intended to restrict visitors and will further affect Tamil detainees.
Several Tamil detainees who witnessed the killings refused to give evidence at the magisterial enquiry for fear of their lives. Human rights agencies have expressed dismay over the prison murders. The Movement for Inter-Racial Justice and Equality (MIRJE) says in a late December statement that the government must accept responsibility and has urged adequate preventive measures.
In July 1983, 53 Tamil prisoners were massacred in the Colombo maximum security Welikade prison. In February 1996, over 100 prison officers attacked Tamils in the capital’s Magazine prison injuring many detainees. No investigation has been carried out into these and a number of other incidents.
Since the present government gained power there have been a number of deaths in custody. MPs who have complained for many years over treatment of Tamil detainees say unless those responsible are identified and punished, impunity and such atrocities will continue.