- ITAK pushes for identification and accountability
The Government’s handling of the Chemmani mass grave excavation has come under renewed scrutiny, with Illankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi (ITAK) Parliamentarian Shanakiyan Rasamanickam questioning the delay in obtaining international expertise for deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) testing.
However, Foreign Affairs Minister Vijitha Herath said the excavation remains ongoing and the Government would consider DNA testing once the process is completed.
Rasamanickam said families and communities affected by mass graves had little faith in domestic mechanisms and questioned the Government’s continued hesitation to seek international expertise, particularly for DNA identification.
He argued that the authorities already acknowledge that they lack the expertise required to conduct sophisticated DNA testing of human remains in a manner that would satisfy the affected communities.
“There is no point in excavating human skeletons now when more than 500 remains have been found and no action has been taken,” Rasamanickam said, stressing that the excavation process must ultimately lead to identification and accountability.
Herath said the excavation at Chemmani is being conducted under judicial supervision and that the Government had already expressed interest in obtaining international assistance for DNA testing.
“The excavation process is still ongoing. After it is completely done, we will take the report for DNA testing and engage in that process,” he said.
He added that the Government was interested in obtaining scientific expertise from outside the country, including through international institutions, for DNA testing. However, he stressed that completing the excavation remains the immediate priority.
Herath also defended the Government’s approach to investigations into missing persons and mass graves, saying such matters could be handled through domestic mechanisms while ensuring that human rights are fully respected. He cautioned against international intervention in domestic investigations, arguing that it could create further tensions and communal divisions.
Meanwhile, addressing the release of privately owned land in the North and East in Parliament yesterday (8), Herath said the Government was gradually removing restrictions and releasing land through a systematic process.
He said land in the Palaly area that had previously been subject to restrictions was now being opened up and claimed that there are no military checkpoints preventing movement in the North.
However, he said the release of privately owned land had to be carried out carefully as ownership must first be verified. According to Herath, some landowners live overseas, while in other cases more than one person has claimed ownership of the same property.
He said owners must therefore visit the relevant Kachcheri and establish their ownership before the land can be released.
“The land will be gradually released in the North and the East to private parties,” Herath said.
Where land could not be released, the Government would consider providing compensation using funds allocated for that purpose, he added.
Rasamanickam, however, argued that although roads in the Palaly, Vasavilan and Thyiddy areas are open, the land has not been returned to the owners who previously lived there.