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The International investigation team appointed by the UN human rights Council to inquire into the alleged crimes committed during the final phase of the war and other grave human rights violations across the country commenced its proceedings officially day before yesterday (15) . A high ranking commanding officer of the army told Lanka e news that he is ready to give evidence before the international human rights commission pertaining to the war crimes.
He asserted that just to save an individual who gave orders to commit war crimes , the entire forces and the whole country cannot be made to pay for his sins. He went on to reveal who this individual is , and named him as Gotabaya Rajapakse, the younger brother of Mahinda Rajapakse.
This high rung commanding officer who cannot disclose his name because he is still in active service revealed , during the war , a group including Pullithevan and Nadesan came forward carrying white flags stating they came to surrender on an agreement reached at the highest levels . As they were crying and clinging on to the legs of the soldiers, the latter who could not therefore kill them were asking for instructions when Major general Shavendra Silva said , he had received orders from Gotabaya to kill them , and instructed them to be liquidated. Consequently , they were killed.
The high rung Commanding chief further stated , the Commando soldiers were hesitant to kill them as they have been trained to kill much worse terrorists than kill people who surrender falling at their feet.
In addition to this ,in the videotape that was put out by channel four service , the individuals who were arrested were killed on Gotabaya’s orders, and over a hundred persons who surrendered were taken to another place and murdered. The high rung commanding officer stated what was shown in the videotape is this group of over hundred that was taken and killed . This group of over hundred who surrendered to former chief of staff , Major general Chrishantha Silva who commanded the Vavuniya FMA camp alias Forward Maintenance Area, was handed over to the army intelligence division , and it was the latter that killed them.
During that period Chrishantha Silva carried out the orders of the Wanni commanding officer at that time , Jagath Jayasuriya. It was Gotabaya who gave the orders to the latter to kill , the high ranking army commanding chief further revealed. (Incidentally , Chrishantha Silva has now been appointed and sent as the SL’s deputy Ambassador to Russia).
The commanding chief stated these were war crimes ,but a large number of members of the forces along with him acted lawfully towards the surrendering enemies who were arrested .However because of Gota’s stupid arrogance the war crimes resulted , he added. Hence , they are answerable today to them , but not the entire armed forces in general, the Commanding chief pointed out.
Answering our question whether the Commanding chief is going to give evidence before the international human rights commission ? He said , he is ready to give evidence , otherwise the image of the entire forces will be tarnished.
What follows is the discussion we had with the Commander :
LeN : ''Did they come to surrender with white flags?''
Commander : ''Yes, when they arrived to surrender , orders were given to murder them. They pleaded not to do that because they were instructed to surrender.''
LeN : ''Who made the plea?''
Commander : ''Pullithevan and Nadesan. They had wept and told the soldiers after holding their both legs. When these boys plead like this falling at the feet of the soldiers , a commando soldier does not like to shoot at such individuals, because they have been trained to combat hard core criminals. The soldiers said ‘Sir we cannot do that ’. The reply was , ‘No, no , the orders are not to receive anyone , but kill all those who surrender.”
LeN : ''Who said like that ?''
Commander : ''It is Shavendra Silva at the top who had told that. The soldiers have pointed out , they cannot commit this crime when they are crying . In fact , they ought to have been received and legal action should have been filed . Pullithevan is a member of the enemy political wing.
The women who surrendered with him are still there. The biggest blunder and error committed is taking the law into the hands and committing the crimes based on stupid arrogance. No thought or consideration whatsoever had been given by Gotabaya to the lawful course of action available. There is no civilized country in the world that kills an individual who surrenders . Hence , the liability for these crimes have to be shouldered.
When we were fighting the war there were enemies captured following shooting . We had not killed them this way. Haven’t we taken them and placed them in custody ? The soldiers know this. Hence , the soldiers will not do that .Only when they are ordered they commit that wrong having no choice.
Later those who surrendered were turned over to a detention camp. After identifying those who surrendered , a hundred of them or more were taken and murdered. This is what channel four video is displaying .That time it was the Wanni commander later in the C D S who ordered to take them and entrust them to Army Intelligence.''
LeN : ''Who is this ? where was the camp ?''
Commander : ''That is the camp where those who arrive are placed with the detainees. It was this Chrishantha Silva who was in charge of the camp, Vavuniya. He later became chief of staff , and now has been made SL deputy ambassador in Russia.''
LeN : ''What does FMA stand for ?''
Commander : ''FMA means Forward maintenance area. The prisoners are brought there . The POW camps are there. POW means prisoners of war. When anybody surrenders to the POW camp , they must be allotted a number and looked after until the case is filed or for any other reason. They cannot be killed under any circumstances.''
LeN : ''Who gave orders to Chrishantha?''
Commander : ''On the orders of Gotabaya , Jagath Jayasuriya , the then Wanni commander (later became army commander) instructed Chrishantha Silva to release them, and hand them over to Army Intelligence. It is thereafter they were taken and killed including the remainder. Over a hundred were taken from there .
LeN : ''Were all of them killed?''
Commander : ''yes. The dead were those who were identified with the help of others. This is a cursed case. This is not a trifling incident. I do not know whether Fonseka too allowed this. If he had done that , he should also be answerable. I do not know he was also there . But in a war , no matter what ,those who surrender cannot be killed.''
LeN : ''Are you ready to expose all these facts before the human rights commission ?''
Commander : ''yes.''
LeN : ''In that case , aren’t you a traitor ?''
Commander : ''How can that be? Weren’t we who fought the war? Never at any stage have we fled in fear of the war . Twice I received gun shot injuries. Need the whole country or the entire forces be compromised and made to pay for the sins of one person’s crimes stemming from his stupid arrogance , and merely to save that individual ? If evidence is not given , our entire forces will suffer and their image will be dented and damaged.''
Commander : ''Who is this individual , do you know?''
LeN : ''Who else other than Gotabaya .''
- Courtesy LankaeNews
http://www.lankaenews.com/English/news.php?id=14354