by Tamil Centre for Human Rights; April 2004
60th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights, Geneva, Switzerland
Intervention by Deirdre McConnell
Mr. Chairperson,
I speak on behalf of the International Association of Democratic Lawyers – IADL
Former High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson said, “as part of civil society, Human Rights Defenders have always been the driving force of democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights and, accordingly, the counter-weight to the power of the state”.
Human rights defenders expose human rights violations mostly in countries where there is conflict. They expose arrest, detention, torture and disappearances, killings, violence against women committed mostly by the government forces. They speak out on behalf of civilians including women and children, marginalized social groups and other victims. They seek justice to end impunity by challenging the perpetrators of human rights violations and remind all states of their obligations to uphold the rule of law. These activities sometimes bring them disaster.
Here, we would like to raise our concerns about an eminent and distinguished Lawyer and human rights defender, Mr. Kumar Ponnambalam, and senior Tamil media journalist, Mr. Mylvaganam Nimalarajan, both from Sri Lanka.
Mr. Kumar Ponnambalam, who made his last intervention in the 54th session of Commission on behalf of our organisation, – was assassinated in the capital Colombo by so-called “unknown gunmen” on 5 January 2000.
Journalist Mr. Mylvaganam Nimalarajan was shot dead by so-called “unidentified gunmen” in the Sri Lanka Army-controlled high security zone in Jaffna on 18 October 2000.
Since the assassinations of Mr. Ponnambalam and Mr. Nirmalarajan many NGOs have raised their concern in this forum. The Special rapporteurs Mr. Dato’ Param Cumaraswamy and Ms. Asma Jahanhir also raised concern in their reporting.
Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers (E/CN.4/200/61-21 February 2000, E/CN.4/2001/65-1 February 2001and E/CN.4/2003/65/Add.1 – 25 February 2003) and Special Rapporteur on Disappearances and Summary executions, Ms. Asma Jahanhir (E/CN.4/2001/9/Add.1 17 January 2001 and E/CN.4/2003/3/Add.1 – 12 February 2003).
A Member and an Expert, Mr. Louis JOINET of France, raised concerns in the UN Sub Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights. Mr. Joinet said, “I met Mr. Kumar Ponnambalam here in the United Nations during a previous session. He had told me personally of his fears due to the fact that he had been verbally threatened and certain media had written attacks against him. Immediately, I had made an appointment with the Ambassador of Sri Lanka, whom I met in this building. I talked the matter over with him bringing to his notice these threats to Mr. Ponnambalam. Mr. Ponnambalam’s fears proved to be right and he is no more alive”!
P.T.O.à
According to Colombo media reports during 2003, the two main suspects involved in the assassination of Mr. Kumar Ponnambalam were killed! One was killed on 18 May by an “unknown killer before spilling the beans”, the Sunday Leader newspaper reported on 01 June 2003.
On 20 August another killer, “the sole remaining suspect in the murder trial of Kumar Ponnambalam was killed”, the Daily Mirror newspaper reported on 23 August 2003.
Both alleged murderers of Kumar Ponnambalam were believed to have been killed by contract killers, say the Sri Lanka newspapers. In Sri Lanka civil society and the media could not find answers to the following questions.
Who contracted to kill these two suspects? Why they were killed? How did these two suspects manage to move freely for nearly three years without being brought to justice? Who was protecting and sheltering them?
Are the Sri Lankan Police and judicial system investigating this serious matter? If so what about those who masterminded the brutal killing of a brave human rights defender?
The Daily Mirror article quoted the former Minister of Interior John Amaratunga, saying “the killing of these main suspects in those cases prove that some hidden hand was trying to mislead the police by destroying all evidence of the earlier VIP killings.”
Mr. Chairperson, who masterminded the brutal killing of a brave human rights defender Mr. Kumar Ponnambalam?
In Sri Lanka, Mr. Ponnambalam defended 98% of the cases of political prisoners arrested by the Sri Lanka government under the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and Emergency regulations (ERs) – both Singhalese and Tamil.
Mr. Mylvaganam Nimalarajan was the Jaffna correspondent for Tamil and Sinhala services of the BBC, the Tamil daily “Virakesari”, and the Sinhala weekly newspaper “Ravaya”. He was also the secretary of the Northern Journalists Association.
Mr. Mylvaganam Nimalarajan was fearlessly reporting election malpractice, thuggery and intimidation during the general election in the Jaffna peninsula in October 2000.
Three days before the assassination of Mr. Nimalrajan, he told his colleagues that he “had earned the ire of the armed pro-government group, the Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP), which was widely implicated in violence against other parties contesting the polls and in rigging and intimidation.”
Killings of human rights defenders have been happening for decades in Sri Lanka. The list is long, both before and after the killing of popular Singhalese journalist Richard de Zoysa thirteen years ago. Lack of time prevents us quoting many other cases of human rights defenders who were assassinated in the same manner.
We urge this Commission to request the government to call for a public and independent inquiry into the brutal killing of Mr. Kumar Ponnambalam, a noble and passionate Human Rights Defender, and the killing of senior journalist Mr. Nirmalarajan.
Thank you.
Originally published April 23, 2004