Dear friends,
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information about the alleged brutal killing of a young Christian pastor by the security forces in Jaffna on 13 January 2007. The army initially claimed that they killed a terrorist in self-defence. Now they have changed their version of the story claiming that the pastor was shot because he did not follow the soldiers’ instruction to stop. However it is known that he is a well-known pastor in the area. No serious action has yet been taken to investigate the incident and no arrests have been made.
CASE DETAILS:
Rev. Nallathamby Gnanaseelan, 38-year-old pastor of Tamil Mission Church in Jaffna, was brutally gunned down, allegedly by Sri Lankan security forces at the road block at Library junction, Wembedy School Road, Jaffna at around 10:30am on 13 January 2007. On that fateful Saturday morning, he had gone on his motorbike to Jaffna hospital with his wife Serena and his eldest daughter who was sick. He had left the mother and daughter at the hospital at about 10:00am asking them to return home by bus after the medical treatment was over.
The killing took place at Chapel Street when Rev. Gnanaseelan was heading to his church to conduct a day long prayer-fast at the church. According to the eyewitnesses, Rev. Gnanaseelan was shot in the stomach and then as he lay on the street, shot in the head and killed by the soldiers on duty stationed at the Wembady-Library Junction. The soldiers were sauntering along Chapel Street at that time. His Bible, bag, ID card and motorcycle were taken away and he was left lying on the road. Eyewitnesses say that the pastor had not done anything provocative.
According to the online report of Sunday Leader newspaper, Rev. Gnanaseelan’s body lay on the road for more than an hour till he was officially discovered by the police at around 11:30am. The acting Jaffna District Judge M. Thirunavukkarasu went to the scene for a preliminary inquiry and instructed police to trace the victim’s identity. The “unidentified’ body was the taken to the Jaffna hospital morgue.
On the following day, the family was looking for the missing pastor. Some parishioners were informed by the police that an unidentified body was lying at the morgue. The family members went to the morgue and found the pastor’s body there.
The soldiers on duty at Wembady Road Junction reported that that Rev. Gnanaseelan was carrying explosives. On January 13, the Media Centre for National Security (MCNS) website www.nationalsecurity.lk posted a brief news item that one person, who was to be searched at the road block at Library junction, Wembedy School Road, Jaffna, attempted to hurl a hand grenade and the troops shot him dead in self-defence. It is also claimed that a grenade was found in the pastor’s possession. The Defence Ministry had posted a similar story on its website www.defence.lk on January 13.
However, it is reported that the Sri Lankan military changed their claims after they discovered that the dead man was a well-known Christian pastor. Now it is claimed that the pastor was shot because he did not stop when the soldiers instructed him to do so. However, the AHRC has a view that this is a deliberate attempt by the security forces to frame Rev. Gnanaseelan and justify his killing.
The two news items mentioned above have reportedly been deleted from those websites.
It is also reported that military officials pressured the pastor’s wife to sign some documents but she refused to do so.
In its statement, the National Christian Evangelical Alliance wrote “Rev. Gnanaseelan was a member of the National Christian Evangelical Alliance Clergy Fellowship in Jaffna and was not involved in any political activity. He was a law abiding citizen and the pastor to his congregation.” The statement also said that “His death is not an isolated incident, but one of many, which takes place in the North East of Sri Lanka, daily.”
The statement further said that “Jaffna recently has been the scene of extra judicial killings, abductions and disappearances” and appealed to the international community “to raise their voices and prevent the massacre of the innocents in this country and to establish a United Nations human rights monitoring mission in Sri Lanka is urgent need.”
Rev. Gnanaseelan was survived by his wife and four children. The oldest daughter is seven years old and youngest is one year old.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the relevant authorities listed below and express your concern about this serious case. Please urge them to order a thorough and impartial inquiry into the case and take legal action against the alleged perpetrators.
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
SRI LANKA: A brutal killing of a pastor by the security forces in Jaffna
Name of the victim: Rev. Nallathamby Gnanaseelan, aged 38, the pastor of Tamil Mission Church in Jaffna and the member of the National Christian Evangelical Alliance Clergy Fellowship in Jaffna, married with four children
Alleged perpetrators: Unidentified soldiers on duty stationing at the Wembady-Library Junction, Wembedy School Road, Jaffna, Sri Lanka
Date of incident: at around 10:30 on 13 January 2007
Place of incident: at the road block at Library junction, Wembedy School Road, Jaffna
I am appalled to learn of the alleged murder of Rev. Nallathamby Gnanaseelan, 38-year-old pastor of Tamil Mission Church in Jaffna, by Sri Lankan security forces at the road block at Library junction, Wembedy School Road, Jaffna at around 10:30am on 13 January 2007.
On that fateful Saturday morning, he had gone on his motorbike to Jaffna hospital with his wife Serena and his eldest daughter who was sick. He had left the mother and daughter at the hospital at about 10:00am.
I was informed that the killing took place at Chapel Street when Rev. Gnanaseelan was heading to his church to conduct a day long prayer-fast at the church. According to the eyewitnesses, Rev. Gnanaseelan was shot in the stomach and then as he lay on the street, shot in the head and killed by the soldiers on duty stationed at the Wembady-Library Junction. The soldiers were sauntering along Chapel Street at that time. Incredibly, his Bible, bag, ID card and motorcycle were taken away and he was left lying on the road. Eyewitnesses say that the pastor had not done anything provocative.
According to the media report, Rev. Gnanaseelan’s body lay on the road for more than an hour till he was officially discovered by the police at around 11:30am. The acting Jaffna District Judge M. Thirunavukkarasu went to the scene for a preliminary inquiry and instructed police to trace the victim’s identity. The “unidentified’ body was the taken to the Jaffna hospital morgue. On the following day, the family members found the pastor’s body there at the morgue.
Initially the report by the Media Centre for National Security (MCNS) indicated that the pastor was carrying explosives and had even tried to hurl a grenade at the soldiers. However, the military changed this story when they discovered how well known and popular pastor Gnanaseelan was in the area. I was informed that now the military is saying that the soldiers shot the pastor because he refused to stop when ordered. I have a view that this is a deliberate attempt by the security forces to frame Rev. Gnanaseelan and justify his killing.
I have also learned that military officials pressured the pastor’s wife to sign some documents but she refused to do so.
According to the National Christian Evangelical Alliance, Rev. Gnanaseelan was a member of the National Christian Evangelical Alliance Clergy Fellowship in Jaffna and was not involved in any political activity. He was a law abiding citizen and the pastor to his congregation. I am also concerned that the pastor’s killing is not an isolated incident, but one of many, which takes place in the North East of Sri Lanka every day.
I strongly request you to conduct a prompt, thorough and impartial investigation into this brutal slaying. The perpetrators must be brought to justice and if it is found that the higher ranking officers have tried to cover up the killing then they too must be brought to book. Furthermore, compensation must be paid to the victim’s family.
Rev. Gnanaseelan was survived by his wife and four children. The oldest daughter is seven years old and youngest is one year old. They need to be assured of a decent life without the comfort of their father.
Yours truly,
———————-
PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTER TO:
1. Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse
President
Socialist Democratic Republic of Sri Lanka
C/- Office of the President
Temple Trees
150, Galle Road
Colombo 3
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2472100 / +94 11 2446657
Email: secretary@presidentsoffice.lk
2. Mr. Ratnasiri Wickremanayake
Prime Minister
Temple Trees
Galle Road, Colombo 03
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 575317-8 or 370 737-8
Fax: +94 11 2 575454
3. Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa
Minister
Ministry of Defence, Public Security, Law and Order
15/5, Baladaksha Mawatha,
Colombo 03,
Sri Lanka.
Tel: 94-11 2 430860-9, 430878-9 or 435879 (for the secretary)
Fax: 94 11 2 446300 or 421529
E-mail: secdef@sltnet.lk
4. Minister of Disaster Management and Human Rights
Ministry of Disaster Management and Human Rights
383,Bauddhaloka Mawatha
Colombo 07
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 390895, 384116
5. Mr. K. C. Kamalasabesan
Attorney General
Attorney General’s Department
Colombo 12
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 436421
Email: attorney@sri.lanka.net
6. Mr. Victor Perera
Inspector General of Police
New Secretariat
Colombo 1
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 440440/327877
E-mail: igp@police.lk
7. Secretary
Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka
No. 36, Kynsey Road
Colombo 8
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 694 925 / 673 806
Fax: +94 11 2 694 924 / 696 470
E-mail: sechrc@sltnet.lk
8. Mr. Philip Alston
Special Rapporteur on Extra-judicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions
Attn: Lydie Ventre
Room 3-016
c/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9155
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (ATTN: SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR EXECUTIONS)
Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ahrchk@ahrchk.org)
