Over of period of six months the LTTE controlled parts of Trincomalee and the parts of Batticaloa adjacent to Trincomalee district were subjected to massive military onslaughts by the Sri Lanka military that did not spare the civilians. Indeed the area was cut off and as a result accurate recording has not been made to date of the events that resulted in more than 200 civilian deaths. This is a brief description of the events over this six months period. The number of people killed in each of these military assaults is sketchy.
However, accurate data obtained from AGA divisional offices, where families registered the loss of family members gives away the picture.
The onslaught was started on the pretext of taking control of a sluice gate that let water to the rice fields from a water tank called the Mavilaru. Tamils in Muthur in Trincomalee where this water tank is located closed the sluice gate that let water to several acres of paddy fields as a protest for not giving them the same water supply facilities. Though this dispute was resolved with the mediation of the SLMM, the government went ahead with its onslaught.
The first onslaught from air and land over the Mavilaru issue was staged on 6 August. The villages that were affected on that day include, Eechilampattu, Nallur and Upparu.
Already, there were many displaced people in these villages who had displaced earlier due to previous assaults in Sampur nearby. The displaced civilians had by now got pushed from Muthur East in Trincomalee by continuous onslaughts into Vaharai, a narrow strip of coastal belt joining Batticaloa and Trincomalee districts. The second largest assault took place on 19 August targeting Vaharai. Again land and air attack on the civilians resulted in more than 100 deaths.
Families did not even have the chance to give decent burials for the dead. Civilians who were still left behind in the Muthur East area north of Vaharai were now considered to be families of LTTE members and the Sri Lanka military brutally attacked these people on 28 August. When the SLA started its attack, the people tried to move out using the bridge at Ilankathurai-Muhathuvaram. The bridge was destroyed by the SLA preventing any escape of the people. In the ensuing attack at least 25 civilians were killed.
Having expelled the people by such attacks on Muthur East, the SLA began its onslaughts on Vaharai, where the displaced civilians were crowded. This area saw massive attacks during November and December months, causing hundreds of deaths. While this was going on over a period of six months, the Government of Sri Lanka prevented, humanitarian agencies including the ICRC, and even the SLMM from visiting Vaharai. When the SLMM was finally permitted to go, people pleaded with the SLMM to give them protection from the bombing and shelling. For the six months the Government of Sri Lanka did not even allow food convoys to enter Vaharai. On more than two occasions, attempts made by ICRC to take food convoys were thwarted by the SLA.
Eventually, the SLA succeeded in its attempt to push all the people out of Vaharai as a way to expelling the LTTE from the area. LTTE too was criticized internationally for preventing the fleeing civilians and not allowing the civilians to leave Vaharai sooner. Some of the civilians took to their feet and walked through forests to escape the attacks and hunger. Five civilians who took by boat were drowned when their boat capsized. Tamil people on the other hand were critical of the international community for failing to condemn the indiscriminate attack on civilians and for denying them humanitarian aid.
See also AI Index: ASA 37/033/2006 (Public), 8 November 2006
Available names of victims (name, age)
1. Ariyam Arasaretnan,,42
2. Gopalapillai Konesarajah, 46
3. Gunanathagam Sarojini, 10
4. Gunanathagam Rajkumar, 6
5. Gunanathagam Sivitha, 10
6. Gunanathan Manchuladevi, 23
7. Illayathamby Bavani, 24
8. Kathirkamathamby Natkunam, 36
9. Murugupillai Thangavel, 22
10. Seeniththamby Mahalingam, 32
11. Sellakkandu Chanthirakala, 18
12. Singaravel Thiraviyamalar, 55
13. Sinnathamby Muthulingam, 45
14. Sivakumar Rosipiriyan, 1
15. Sivalingam Sivakumar, 25
16. Sounthalingam Thavanya, 21
17. Subramaniyam Yoheswaran, 29
18. Suntharalingam Kanapathipillai, 62
19. Tharmalingam Poomani, 45
20. Velan Tharmalingam, 50
21. Vasanthakumar Thivya, 14
22. Jeevan Chithiravel
23. Kanthalingam Rajesvaran
24. Raman Thevarajah, 25
25. Sinnathamby Sivasangar, 27
26. Vetrivel Arumugam, 28
27. Nallathamby Thiyakarasa, 48
28. Alakuraja Selvaratnam
29. Kalikkuddi Pathma
30. Kumarappillai Thivakaran
31. Marimuththu Nahesvaran
32. Marimuththu Sounthararaja
33. Nagalingam Indran, 46
34. Naguleswaran Premalatha, 35
35. Sinnaththamby Sivasothy
36. Subramaniyam Nanthini
37. Vasanthakumar Sumanathan
38. Vettrivel Koneswaran
39. Vijayakumar Rathikala
40. Yogeswaran Sithamparam, 45
41. Alakuvel Yoganathan, 26
42. Ariyamalar Arasaratnam, 33
43. Arulampalam Jeganathan, 12
44. Arumugam, 34
45. Balasundaram Thavamany, 27
46. Chellaiya Jeyachandran, 24
47. Disanakka Pathmasiri, 27
48. Ganesalingam Sasikkuar, 17
49. Ganesh Gopal, 19
50. Inparasa Tharsini, 7
51. Jegatheesan Manikkapody, 19
52. Jeyathasan Naguleswaran , 21
53. K.Ajanthan, 15
54. K.Pushpan, 25
55. K.Rathi, 31
56. Kanapathippillai Rajeendran, 27
57. Kanthasamy Sankar, 23
58. Kanthasamy Santhkanagam, 20
59. Konamalai Nagendran, 70
60. Kopalakirushnan Thanapakkiyam, 28
61. Kovintharasa Thavarasa, 32
62. Logitharasa Sasikaran, 26
63. Mahendran Varathan, 24
64. Markkandu Kallippilai, 52
65. Muththaiyah Sivamani, 58
66. Muththaiyha Paskaran, 29
67. Myilvaganam Gunarasa, 31
68. N.David, 25
69. N.Gunarasa, 22
70. N.Pakkiyarasa, 40
71. N.Vimalenthiran, 35
72. Nagarasa Yokeswaran, 28
73. Naguleswaran, 32
74. Nakalingam Thiraviyamalar, 65
75. Nanthakumar Thanusalin, 4
76. Navaratnam Nishanthan, 20
77. Pathakuddy Nagentheran, 20
78. Pathakuddy Thiyananthini, 22
79. Pattgunaraja Koneswaran, 31
80. Pillaiyan Thavanesan, 36
81. R.Ramachchanthiran, 32
82. Rasenthiram Prapu, 17
83. Ratheeswaran Sathursan, 0
84. Ratheeswaran Vijaya, 30
85. Raveenthiran Kopinath, 22
86. S.Jeyakanthan, 21
87. S.Kiruparaja, 30
88. S.Sivanesan, 25
89. S.Thayakaran, 29
90. Sabapathy Manikkapody, 27
91. Sabaretnam Sanmuganathan, 29
92. Saravanamuththu Santhirasekaran, 22
93. Sasikumar Chosspiriyan, 0
94. Seeniththambi Bavani, 22
95. Sellapillai Tharmalingam, 31
96. Selvaraja Srikantharaja, 17
97. Sinnaththambi Niranjan , 20
98. Sinnaththambi Niththiyananthan, 22
99. Sithuran Chandran, 39
100. Sivagnasuntharam Santhiramohan, 23
101. Sivakolunthu Pakkiyaraja , 30
102. Sivararasa Indran, 46
103. Sivarasa Vijaya, 34
104. Soundraraja Koneswaran, 28
105. Suntharalingam Yuvanathan, 10
106. Thambaiya Nimalanathan, 34
107. Thambipillai Varatharaja, 22
108. Thambiraja Pillaiyan, 51
109. Thampaiya Ranjan, 24
110. Thangaththurai Jokeswaran, 27
111. Tharmalingam Sumathy, 42
112. Tharmarasa Santhiran, 20
113. Thiyagarasa Tharshika, 11
114. Thiyakarasa Thashanth, 16
115. Varatharaja Gnanawathy, 58
116. Velupillai Ranjan, 35
117. Veluppillai Manojkumar, 28
118. Vetrivel Navaneethan, 22
119. Vigneswaran
120. Vinayagamoorthy Viswalingam, 19
121. Viswalingam Thuraisamy, 44