Sarathambal funeral | |
|---|---|
 Father and 3-year-old daughter during thelast rites at theburial grounds in Colombo | |
| Born | 1970 |
| Died | (1999-12-28)28 December 1999 Pungudutivu, Sri Lanka |
| Occupation(s) | Housewife and mother |
| Parent | ChandrasekaraSarma |
Sarathambal Saravanbavananthatkurukal or better known asSarathambal was aminoritySri Lankan Tamil woman who wasgang raped and killed on 28 December 1999. This became an internationally known incident of theSri Lankan Civil War.[1][2][3]
According toAHRC report on 28 December 1999, Mrs. Sarathambal Saravanbavananthakurukal, 29, daughter of a localHindu temple priest[4] was forcibly dragged out from her home, inPungututheevu, nearJaffna Peninsula, allegedly bySri Lankan Navy sailors.[1][5]
According to theAmnesty International her house was situated at about 500 m from the nearest naval base and her father and brother were tied up allegedly by four security officers dressed in black. Her dead body was found on barren land about 100 m away from their home the next day.[1]
After public protest at the village where the incident happened[Protest][6] and inJaffna her body was sent to the capitalColombo forpost-mortem by a senior medical officer who indicated that the cause of death was "asphyxia due to gagging; her underpants had been stuffed inside her mouth, and that forcible sexual intercourse had taken place".[1]
According to the pro-LTTETamilnet, her funeral was attended by a cross section of Sri Lankan activists from around the nation.Vasudeva Nanayakkara, thenMember of Parliament, S.Sivadasan, the thenEPDP Parliamentarian,Maheswary Velautham, Attorney-at-Law and the Secretary Of the Forum for Human Dignity[FFHD] andNimalka Fernando of the Movement for Inter Racial, Justice and Equality[MIRJE] delivered funeral orations.[7]
The government under thenpresidentChandrika Kumaratunga ordered an immediate investigation but in mid-March 2000,U.N. Special Rapporteur on Violence against WomenRadhika Coomaraswamy, emphasized the lack of government response to allegations of sexual violence by security personnel in Sri Lanka.[1]
Furthermore she noted, that, despite a presidential directive, little effort had been made to investigate the December 1999 gang-rape and murder of Sarathambal Saravanbavananthatkurukal.[8]
Amnesty International also allege that the victim's father and brother were allegedly threatened not to reveal the identity of the four men who came to the house. Also Director of theSri Lanka Police's Criminal Investigation Department, who had been instructed by the President of Sri Lanka to investigate the rape and murder,
"the brother had not been able to identify any of the four persons who came to the house".[1]
Amnesty International further mention that the alleged sailors who raped Sarathambal have been transferred from the area to prevent action being taken against them.[1]
TheAttorney General’s Department informed the Committee of Inquiry into Undue Arrest and Harassment (CIUAH).[CIUAH] in late May 2001 that there will be no prosecution relating to the Sarathambal rape and murder case, as the police report contained no evidence on the offenders.[9]
