Gonagala massacre: Difference between revisions
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He survived by hiding under his bed, but 14 other people who stayed at his home on that day,were killed by LTTE cadres. |
He survived by hiding under his bed, but 14 other people who stayed at his home on that day,were killed by LTTE cadres. |
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Another survivor, who was a [[home guard]] and had been on duty at a checkpoint further away, also lived. When he returned home in the morning, he found his pregnant wife, two children |
Another survivor, who was a [[home guard]] and had been on duty at a checkpoint further away, also lived. When he returned home in the morning, he found his pregnant wife, two children (ages six and eight), his father, mother, sister and brother-in-law dead.<ref name="Sunday Times"/> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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Revision as of 16:39, 2 January 2007
 | The neutrality of this article is disputed. |
The Gongala Massacre refers to a series of murders that occurred September 18, 1999, in the small village of Gonagala, located in the Ampara District of Sri Lanka. According to reports, over 50 men, women and children were killed in a variety of means. The murders are attributed to the LTTE organization, which is banned as a terrorist organization by the US, UK, EU and India.
The Gonagala massacre is one of a several attacks believed to be carried out by this organization. The murders are significant, because unlike previous attacks, most of the LTTE cadres who took part in it were women. According to survivors, there was a significant presence of female cadres among the 75 LTTE cadres who took part in the killings [1].
Incident
The incident occurred in the early morning of September 18, 1999, at the 31 Colony in Ampara. LTTE cadres first entered Gonagala village and hacked to death 50 Sinhalese civilians (most of them in their sleep). A middle aged man who had tried to protect himself had his hand severed and skull pulverised. After the attack hacked bodies of children lay in pools of blood in the cots where they had slept[1].
The LTTE cadres then moved from the Gonagala settlement to two others in the neighbourhood where they killed four more civilians,before making good their exit[1].
Victims
Of those 54 victims, there were 27 men, 17 women and 10 children. Out of the 17 women who died in the killings, two of them were pregnant.[2]
According to forensic experts only one victim was shot dead by a revolver, while the rest were killed with knives or machetes. It was reported that , four of the civilians were also seriously wounded.[2]
Eyewitness accounts
One survivor (A 29-year-old farmer), Herath Mudiyansalege Premasiri, gave a description of the gory events which happened around him.
"We finished late and went to bed. There were about 15 of us, relatives and friends who came to help us for the alms-giving. I was sleeping alone in my room. Around 2 am I heard a group of people banging on the door. They later broke into the house."
He survived by hiding under his bed, but 14 other people who stayed at his home on that day,were killed by LTTE cadres.
Another survivor, who was a home guard and had been on duty at a checkpoint further away, also lived. When he returned home in the morning, he found his pregnant wife, two children (ages six and eight), his father, mother, sister and brother-in-law dead.[2]
References
External Links
- Miller, Professor Ken. "Heartache and Healing", Pomona Collage, September 2006 .
- Gunaratna, Rohan. (1998). Sri Lanka's Ethnic Crisis and National Security, Colombo: South Asian Network on Conflict Research. ISBN 955-8093-00-9
- Gunaratna, Rohan. (October 1, 1987). War and Peace in Sri Lanka: With a Post-Accord Report From Jaffna, Sri Lanka: Institute of Fundamental Studies. ISBN 955-8093-00-9
- Gunasekara, S.L. (November 04, 2003). The Wages of Sin, ISBN 955-8552-01-1