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Undid revision 1210201647 by Cossde (talk) Its a clear unreliable source by a indian security force associated source, the burden is on you to show its reliable.
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{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox civilian attack
{{Infobox civilian attack
| title = Pottuvil massacre
| title = Pottuvil massacre
| image =
| image =
| caption =
| caption =
|map= {{Location map|Sri Lanka
| map = {{Location map|Sri Lanka
|width = 300
|width = 300
|float = right
|float = right
Line 12: Line 12:
|lon_deg = 81 | lon_min = 49
|lon_deg = 81 | lon_min = 49
}}
}}
| map_caption =
| map_caption =
| location = [[Pottuvil]], [[Eastern Province, Sri Lanka]]
| location = [[Pottuvil]], [[Eastern Province, Sri Lanka]]
| coordinates =
| coordinates =
| target = Muslim civilians
| target = [[Sri Lankan Moors|Muslim]] civilians
| date = 18 September 2006
| date = 17 September 2006
| time =
| time =
| timezone =
| timezone =
| type = Armed [[massacre]]
| type = [[massacre]]
| fatalities = 10
| fatalities = 10
| injuries = 0
| injuries = 1
| perps = Disputed
| perps = [[Special Task Force (Sri Lanka)|Special Task Force]]
⚫
| weapons =
*[[Special Task Force (Sri Lanka)|Special Task Force]] (''allegedly'') <ref name="themorningleader"/>
*[[Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam]] (''allegedly'') <ref name="satp"/>
⚫
| weapons =
}}
}}


The '''Pottuvil Massacre''' was the killing of 10 Muslim labourers who had gone to repair the bund of Rattal Tank in Pottuvil in the southern part of the [[Ampara District]] on 17 September 2006. The victims were all men aged between 18–35 whose bodies were found hacked to death the next morning. The massacre was widely believed to have been carried out by the [[Special Task Force (Sri Lanka)|Special Task Force]] (STF).<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=7 November 2006 |title=The Choice between Anarchy and International Law with Monitoring |url=https://uthr.org/SpecialReports/spreport23.htm#_Toc174529736 |website=UTHR(J)}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=29 May 2007 |title=Sri Lanka’s Muslims: Caught in the Crossfire |url=https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/32062/134_sri_lanka_s_muslims_caught_in_the_crossfire.pdf |website=International Crisis Group |pages=20-21}}</ref>
The '''Pottuvil Massacre''' was a disputed event in the [[Sri Lankan Civil War]]. On Monday, 18 September 2006, 10 unarmed Muslim civilians engaged in clearing a reservoir at Rattal Kulam in Pottuvil in the southern part of the [[Ampara District]] were attacked and killed.


Although the [[Government of Sri Lanka|Sri Lankan government]] blamed the [[Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam]] (LTTE), members of the [[Sri Lankan Moors|Muslim]] community accused the STF of involvement in the massacre.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/5355088.stm |title=Sri Lankan civilians found dead |access-date=2006-09-18 |work=BBC | date=2006-09-18}}</ref> The local Muslim population staged protests demanding the removal of the STF officers. One of them stated:<ref>{{Cite web |date=2006-09-21 |title=Muslims protest against police massacre in eastern Sri Lanka |url=https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2006/09/sril-s21.html |access-date=2024-02-24 |website=World Socialist Web Site |language=en}}</ref><blockquote>"Special Task Force troops killed these people. We don’t blame anyone else. The LTTE can’t come into this area. It is completely controlled by the STF. Without the STF’s knowledge, no one can come into this area."</blockquote>They also questioned how the LTTE could infiltrate into an area carrying swords, kill 10 people and then leave without the STF spotting them; with no encounter between the LTTE and the STF taking place.<ref name="themorningleader">{{cite web |url=http://www.themorningleader.lk/20060920/news.html |title=When will the war end? |access-date=2006-09-30 |work=The Morning Leader }}</ref> [[Rauff Hakeem]], the leader of the [[Sri Lanka Muslim Congress|SLMC]], requested an international commission to probe the incident.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.themorningleader.lk/20060927/interviews.html |title=‘Muttur must be a neutral zone’ |access-date=2006-09-30 |work=The Morning Leader }}</ref>
All the men were aged between 19–35 years of age; three of the men were decapitated and the others were shot or hacked to death by the unknown gunmen.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/sair/Archives/5_12.htm#assessment2 |title=SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW Weekly Assessments & Briefings Volume 5, No. 12,October 2, 2006 |access-date=2006-10-02 |work= South Asia Terrorism Portal }}</ref>


⚫
Amid these accusations, the government had acted irregularly. The ambulance transporting the only survivor was prevented by police from going to the hospital at a predominantly Muslim town called [[Kalmunai]]. The ambulance was redirected to a hospital at Sinhalese-dominated [[Ampara]]. The survivor was held incommunicado by armed guards at the [[Ampara Hospital|Amparai Hospital]] and the [[Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission|SLMM]] were prevented from seeing him. Eyewitness also reported that the police destroyed crime scene evidence.<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 June 2007 |title=Sri Lanka's Human Rights Crisis |url=https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/32576/135_sri_lanka_s_human_rights_crisis.pdf |website=International Crisis Group |page=17}}</ref>
Initially a [[BBC]] report stated that members of the Muslim community accused the [[Special Task Force (Sri Lanka)|Special Task Force]] of involvement in this incident.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/5355088.stm |title=Sri Lankan civilians found dead |access-date=2006-09-18 |work=BBC | date=2006-09-18}}</ref>


The sole survivor of the attack, Meera Mohideen (60), identified the LTTE as the attackers in a videotaped testimony given from the hospital to Minister [[A. L. M. Athaullah]]. However, doubts were raised about how the interview was conducted as the survivor was held incommunicado; and Athaullah was suspected to have been behind the fabricated statements that [[Ministry of Defence (Sri Lanka)|Defence Ministry]] claimed it had received from several community organizations in the eastern province blaming the LTTE for the massacre. Mohideen was also said to have been unable to later recall giving the interview, suggesting that he had been put through a "propaganda exercise" while in an unstable state.<ref name=":0" />
The local Muslim population staged protests demanding the removal of the STF officers. They also questioned how the [[LTTE]] could infiltrate into an area carrying swords, kill 10 people and then leave without the STF spotting them; with no encounter between the LTTE and the STF taking place.<ref name="themorningleader">{{cite web |url=http://www.themorningleader.lk/20060920/news.html |title=When will the war end? |access-date=2006-09-30 |work=The Morning Leader }}</ref>


The human rights group [[University Teachers for Human Rights|UTHR(J)]] blamed the STF for the massacre.<ref>{{Cite web |date=21 February 2008 |title=The Second Fascist Front in Sri Lanka – Towards Crushing the Minorities and Disenfranchising the Sinhalese |url=https://uthr.org/SpecialReports/spreport29.htm#_Toc191332115 |access-date= |website=UTHR(J)}}</ref> Muslims in the area had a troubled history with the Sasthiriveli STF camp; they accused its Chief Inspector S.N. Gunaratne of aiding the local Sinhalese community in land disputes and of threatening them the day before the massacre for seeking his transfer. Muslim eyewitness testimonies also indicate the involvement of the STF and Sinhalese elements in the abduction of the labourers.<ref name=":0" />
Rauff Hakeem, the leader of the SLMC, requested an international commission to probe the incident.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.themorningleader.lk/20060927/interviews.html |title=‘Muttur must be a neutral zone’ |access-date=2006-09-30 |work=The Morning Leader }}</ref>


⚫
The majority of [[Pottuvil]] residents remain convinced that the state is engaged in a cover-up.<ref name=":1" /> The Sri Lankan state forces themselves have a history of intimidating witnesses and forcing false statements.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-26670691 BBC News - Tamil doctor 'was pressured to recant war reports by Sri Lanka']. (2014)</ref><ref>[https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/07/08/sri-lanka-no-justice-trinco-5 Human Rights Watch - Sri Lanka: No Justice for ‘Trinco 5’]. (2019)</ref>
⚫
Amid these accusations the government had acted irregularly. The ambulance transporting the only survivor was prevented by police from going to the hospital at a predominant Muslim town called [[Kalmunai]]. The ambulance was redirected to a hospital at Sinhalese dominated [[Ampara]]. At the hospital the survivor was held incommunicado by armed guards. Further the [[Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission|SLMM]] was prevented from talking to the survivor. Eyewitness also reported that the police destroyed crime scene evidence.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/DBC51E0313E10AB5852572FA006892C6-Full_Report.pdf |title= Sri Lanka's Human Rights Crisis |access-date=2019-01-06}}</ref>


⚫
No independent or international commission to probe this incident has been carried out till date.
The sole survivor of the attack, Kareem Meera Mohideen, recuperating from grave injuries in the hospital, identified the rebels of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as the attackers. However, serious questions have been raised about how the interview was conducted, apparently when the survivor’s family was unable to visit him in hospital and he was completely isolated.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/32062/134_sri_lanka_s_muslims_caught_in_the_crossfire.pdf |title= International Crisis Group - Sri Lanka's Muslims: Caught in the crossfire p20-21}}</ref>

The Indian based anti-rebel South Asian Terrorist portal claimed that the LTTE tried its best, to wash its hands off the incident by blaming it on the STF.<ref name="satp">{{cite web |url=http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/sair/Archives/5_12.htm#assessment2 |title=SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW Weekly Assessments & Briefings Volume 5, No. 12,October 2, 2006 |access-date=2006-10-02 |work= South Asia Terrorism Portal}}</ref>

Despite this the Muslims continued protesting against the STF and suspected a cover up:<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25_ON-jwPsc1 Associated Press - Ten young Muslim laborers massacred in jungle]. (2006)</ref>

{{Quote
|text="M.S. Mohideen, one of 2,000 people gathered near the Jumma mosque, where the bodies were being kept before burial, told Reuters "Special Task Force troops killed these people. We don’t blame anyone else. The LTTE can’t come into this area. It is completely controlled by the STF. Without the STF’s knowledge, no one can come into this area."<ref>[https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2006/09/sril-s21.html K. Ratnayake - Muslims protest against police massacre in eastern Sri Lanka] (2006)</ref>
}}

⚫
The majority of [[Pottuvil]] residents remain convinced that the state is engaged in a cover up.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/32062/134_sri_lanka_s_muslims_caught_in_the_crossfire.pdf |title= International Crisis Group - Sri Lanka's Muslims: Caught in the crossfire p20-21}}</ref> The Sri Lankan state forces themselves have a history of intimidating witnesses and forcing false statements.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-26670691 BBC News - Tamil doctor 'was pressured to recant war reports by Sri Lanka']. (2014)</ref><ref>[https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/07/08/sri-lanka-no-justice-trinco-5 Human Rights Watch - Sri Lanka: No Justice for ‘Trinco 5’]. (2019)</ref>

⚫
No independent or international commission to probe this incident has been carried out til date.


== References ==
== References ==
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[[Category:2006 crimes in Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:2006 crimes in Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Attacks on civilians attributed to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam]]
[[Category:Attacks on civilians attributed to the Sri Lanka Police]]
[[Category:Attacks on civilians attributed to the Sri Lanka Police]]
[[Category:2000s massacres of the Sri Lankan Civil War]]
[[Category:2000s massacres of the Sri Lankan Civil War]]
[[Category:Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam attacks in Eelam War IV]]
[[Category:Mass murder in 2006]]
[[Category:Mass murder in 2006]]
[[Category:Mass murder of Sri Lankan Muslims]]
[[Category:Mass murder of Sri Lankan Muslims]]

Revision as of 14:21, 25 February 2024

Pottuvil massacre
Pottuvil is located in Sri Lanka
Pottuvil
Pottuvil
Pottuvil (Sri Lanka)
LocationPottuvil, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka
Date17 September 2006
TargetMuslim civilians
Attack type
massacre
Deaths10
Injured1
PerpetratorsSpecial Task Force

The Pottuvil Massacre was the killing of 10 Muslim labourers who had gone to repair the bund of Rattal Tank in Pottuvil in the southern part of the Ampara District on 17 September 2006. The victims were all men aged between 18–35 whose bodies were found hacked to death the next morning. The massacre was widely believed to have been carried out by the Special Task Force (STF).[1][2]

Although the Sri Lankan government blamed the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), members of the Muslim community accused the STF of involvement in the massacre.[3] The local Muslim population staged protests demanding the removal of the STF officers. One of them stated:[4]

"Special Task Force troops killed these people. We don’t blame anyone else. The LTTE can’t come into this area. It is completely controlled by the STF. Without the STF’s knowledge, no one can come into this area."

They also questioned how the LTTE could infiltrate into an area carrying swords, kill 10 people and then leave without the STF spotting them; with no encounter between the LTTE and the STF taking place.[5] Rauff Hakeem, the leader of the SLMC, requested an international commission to probe the incident.[6]

Amid these accusations, the government had acted irregularly. The ambulance transporting the only survivor was prevented by police from going to the hospital at a predominantly Muslim town called Kalmunai. The ambulance was redirected to a hospital at Sinhalese-dominated Ampara. The survivor was held incommunicado by armed guards at the Amparai Hospital and the SLMM were prevented from seeing him. Eyewitness also reported that the police destroyed crime scene evidence.[7]

The sole survivor of the attack, Meera Mohideen (60), identified the LTTE as the attackers in a videotaped testimony given from the hospital to Minister A. L. M. Athaullah. However, doubts were raised about how the interview was conducted as the survivor was held incommunicado; and Athaullah was suspected to have been behind the fabricated statements that Defence Ministry claimed it had received from several community organizations in the eastern province blaming the LTTE for the massacre. Mohideen was also said to have been unable to later recall giving the interview, suggesting that he had been put through a "propaganda exercise" while in an unstable state.[1]

The human rights group UTHR(J) blamed the STF for the massacre.[8] Muslims in the area had a troubled history with the Sasthiriveli STF camp; they accused its Chief Inspector S.N. Gunaratne of aiding the local Sinhalese community in land disputes and of threatening them the day before the massacre for seeking his transfer. Muslim eyewitness testimonies also indicate the involvement of the STF and Sinhalese elements in the abduction of the labourers.[1]

The majority of Pottuvil residents remain convinced that the state is engaged in a cover-up.[2] The Sri Lankan state forces themselves have a history of intimidating witnesses and forcing false statements.[9][10]

No independent or international commission to probe this incident has been carried out till date.

References

  1. ^ a b c "The Choice between Anarchy and International Law with Monitoring". UTHR(J). 7 November 2006.
  2. ^ a b "Sri Lanka's Muslims: Caught in the Crossfire" (PDF). International Crisis Group. 29 May 2007. pp. 20–21.
  3. ^ "Sri Lankan civilians found dead". BBC. 18 September 2006. Retrieved 18 September 2006.
  4. ^ "Muslims protest against police massacre in eastern Sri Lanka". World Socialist Web Site. 21 September 2006. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  5. ^ "When will the war end?". The Morning Leader. Retrieved 30 September 2006.
  6. ^ "'Muttur must be a neutral zone'". The Morning Leader. Retrieved 30 September 2006.
  7. ^ "Sri Lanka's Human Rights Crisis" (PDF). International Crisis Group. 14 June 2007. p. 17.
  8. ^ "The Second Fascist Front in Sri Lanka – Towards Crushing the Minorities and Disenfranchising the Sinhalese". UTHR(J). 21 February 2008.
  9. ^ BBC News - Tamil doctor 'was pressured to recant war reports by Sri Lanka'. (2014)
  10. ^ Human Rights Watch - Sri Lanka: No Justice for ‘Trinco 5’. (2019)

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