Allegations of mass grave in Chimmani may be true

Since September 6, eight skeletons, including that of a woman, have been dug up by investigators from different sites at Chemmani, a vast marsh land at Ariyalai, in a massive operation mounted by the Sri Lankan Government.

Two more were dug out in June during a preliminary dig in the area. According to reports from Jaffna, some of the skeletons bear marks of assault, for instance a cracked skull, or a broken bone. After 10 sets of remains, investigators are now convinced that more lie buried.

quot;The indications are that there could upwards of 100 bodies at Chemmani,quot; said Dr William Haglund of the Physicians for Human Rights, one of the three international observers invited by the Government to witness the excavations.

Uptil now, the information on the surreptitious burials provided by death of prisoner Somaratne Rajapakse and four other ex-soldiers, all of whom were convicted last year for the rape and murder of a teenaged Jaffna girl, has proved accurate.

The two skeletons, dug out in June, were identified as those of two young mechanics arrested by the Army in August 1996 from a garage at Ariyalai, not far from Chemmani. They were not heard of thereafter until their bones were dug up at Chemmani. Investigators are now taking seriously Rajapakse8217;s claim that between 300 to 400 quot;disappearedquot; people lie buried under the soil of Chemmani.

Refusing to accept the claim are family members of the quot;disappearedquot;. But everyday, a knot of people gather at the site and fearfully watch the shovels and the pickaxes dig into the ground.

Their agony was aptly summed up by 62-year-old Paramanathan Selvarajah, whose son went missing in August 1996. He told this newspaper in June, quot;I would be shattered if the remains of my son were found buried at Chemmani, and I would be shattered if they were not. The only way I can be happy is if my son returns to me alive.quot;

The disappearances have been the most severe test for President Chandrika Kumaratunga. Seen as a people-friendly ruler when she was elected, Kumaratunga fiercely criticises the previous United Nationalist Party UNP government8217;s human rights track record.

The disappearances, and their link to the mass grave at Chemmani proves that the Government8217;s reputation is not lily-white either. That said, the Government has made no attempt at a cover-up, and has instead gone ahead with the investigation, if only to appease international and domestic human rights groups.

quot;It is unusual for a government in the midst of a conflict to be undertaking an investigation that holds implications for its army. For this, the government needs to be commended,quot; said Mark McKenna, representative of Asia Foundation, a US-based non-governmental organisation that is aiding the investigation.