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| 1984 Mannar massacre | |
|---|---|
  | |
| Location | Mannar,Sri Lanka |
| Coordinates | 8°57′58″N79°52′59″E / 8.96611°N 79.88306°E /8.96611; 79.88306 |
| Date | December 4, 1984 (+6 GMT) |
| Target | Sri Lankan Tamils |
Attack type | Shooting |
| Weapons | Guns |
| Deaths | 200+ |
| Injured | Unknown |
| Perpetrators | Sri Lankan Army |
The1984 Mannar massacre was the killing of 200+ minoritySri Lankan Tamilscivilians bySri Lankan Army soldiers in the town ofMannar, north-westernSri Lanka, on December 4, 1984.[1][2] The attack was triggered when three Armyjeeps hit a land mine, killing one soldier. In retaliation, landmarks such as the Centralhospital, thepost office, aRoman Catholic convent as well as villagers working inricepaddy fields and bus passengers were attacked. Villages around Mannar town such asMurunkan andParappankadal were also attacked. Immediately after the incident, the thenSri Lankan PresidentJ. R. Jayawardene appointed a Presidential commission of inquiry. A localRoman Catholic priest,Mary Bastian who was a member of the Presidential commission was later killed in January 1985. AMethodist ministerGeorge Jeyarajasingham, who was a witness to the incident, was also killed in December 1984.[3][4]
By 1956, 50% of clerical jobs were held by Tamils, although they were a minority of the country's population.[5] This was partly a result of theWestern education provided byAmerican missionaries in the Tamil dominatedJaffna peninsula.[6][7] In order to win support amongst the majoritySinhalese people populist politicians initiated measures aimed at reducing the over representation of Tamils in the civil service and science based courses such as theSinhala Only Act and thePolicy of standardisation. These measures, as well asriots and pogroms that targeted the Sri Lankan Tamils, led to the formation of a number ofrebel groups advocatingindependence for Sri Lankan Tamils. Following the 1983Black Julypogrom full scalecivil war erupted between the government and the rebel groups.[8]
On December 4, 1984, three Sri Lankan Army jeeps hit a land mine, killing one soldier and wounding eleven others. In retaliation, about thirty (30) soldiers went on a rampage, attacking public buildings and civilians in and around Mannar.[citation needed]
The soldiers attacked the central hospital; stopped vehicles and shot and killed the occupants; shot 15 employees of the post office by lining them up and shooting them, killing eight; opened fire on peasants in fields; and attacked a convent, stripping the nuns of watches, gold crucifixes and chains. Another group of soldiers stopped a bus and shot all the male passengers. A bus travelling in the opposite direction was also stopped and twenty of its passengers were shot dead. Off the main road, an army jeep drove into the village ofParappankadal. The soldiers fired indiscriminately, killing 12 of people including a mother nursing her infant child. The child survived but three of its toes were blown away by the bullet that killed its mother.Murunkan was another village affected the incident.[citation needed]
By the end, more than 200 people were killed; another 20 were missing, mostly young male Tamils taken to army camps. It took three days to transport all the bodies.[9][10][2]
The then Sri Lankan PresidentJ.R. Jayawardene instituted aPresidential Commission of Inquiry to investigate the incident. Although many locals were reluctant to participate in the investigation,Mary Bastian, a Roman Catholic priest, participated in the investigation.[citation needed]
Rev Jeyarajasingham, aMethodist priest, was another the focal point ofHuman Rightsactivism on behalf of the local people[11][12] He was also the local contact for the Sri Lankan government appointed presidential committee to investigate Human Rights violations in the Mannar district.[11][12] Rev. Jeyarajasingham was shot dead on December 13, 1984, when he was travelling in his vehicle. Later his body was burnt along with his vehicle. Rev Fr Mary Bastian collected the remains of victims including Rev Jeyarajasingham and handed them to the Jeevothayam Methodist Centre.[3][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] Rev Fr Mary Bastian was himself killed on January 6, 1985, allegedly by the military.[13][19][20][21][11]
