COLOMBO — An Oct. 11 report said at least 36 people, including 20 JVP extremists, were killed in separate incidents of extremist linked violence since October 11 amidst unconfirmed reports of a large number of killings by pro-government vigilante group in western Kalutara, reports PT.
While official sources confirmed the discovery of 20 bodies of JVP extremists from Kalutara district, Colombo was agog with strong rumours that a large number of dead bodies of JVP men being found from the district.
Such unconfirmed reports reaching the capital said an estimated 60 to 80 bodies of youths with gunshot injuries were discovered scattered all over Kalutara Matugama Road,. in a stretch of 15 km. The killings were apparently in retaliation to a JVP am bush on a security force patrol at Bulathsinhala area of the district in which three security force personnel were killed and three others injured.
While the senior police officials in the area reached over telephone were tight lipped, the joint operations command here confirmed recovery of 20 bodies at Dodangoda in Kalutara-Atu-gama Road.
An October 16 report said 17 persons were killed in separate incidents in Sri Lanka during the past 24 hours, official sources said.
Suspected activists of the JVP hacked to death a man and his two sons at Rada liyadda while two Buddhist priests were abducted from Hambegamuwa Temple in the Moneragala district Sunday.
Two brothers were stabbed to death while manager and security guard of a rural cooperative bank were killed by suspected extremists, who also took away some cash from the bank, an official communique said.
Security forces killed two JVP activists in southern Amatara while two bodies of suspected JVP men were recovered in central Kandy district.
Elsewhere, two members of EPRLF and two civilians were killed in an exchange of fire between the LITE and the EPRLF in laffna. Another civilian was killed by LITE militants in Batti caloa, the communique added.
While unconfirmed reports said bodies were scattered in groups of six to ten, spread all along the roadside, the military spokesman said they have no such information, as yet.
During the past two months, anti JVP vigilante groups have killed a number of suspected JVP activists or their sympathisers and claimed responsibility.
The military spokesman confirmed recovery of nine other bodies in Hanwella area of Colombo district on Tuesday. Three JVP activists were killed in an exchange with the police in Poddala in southern Galle district in which two policemen were also seriously injured.
In another incident southern Hambantota, the two policemen were killed and two others injured in an extremist ambush while another reserve police con stable was killed in Moneragala.
Three JVP extremists, three civilians and a security guard were injured when suspected extremists made an abortive attempt to rob a bank in central Anuradhapura on Tuesday, the military spokesman added.
Article extracted from this publication >> October 20, 1989
