Lawyers who appear for the aggrieved parties in the court case into the alleged mass grave site at Kokkutuduwai are being threatened and intimidated by
state intelligence members, alleged one lawyer V.S. Niranjan.
He said Mullaitivu district court judge Dharmalingam Pradeepan was informed of these threats at a hearing on 31 August.
Intelligence officers were openly demanding personal and vehicle details of the lawyers, who were part of an on-site inspection team on 10 August, several lawyers and the area’s Grama Officer told the judge.
When the police asked that a complaint be lodged, judge Pradeepan instructed that investigations be conducted on the basis of the information revealed at the court.
It has been decided to resume excavations at the gravesite on 05 September, with the required funding amounting to Rs. 5.6 million now approved.
There have been calls for the involvement of international experts in the excavations at the gravesite.
Water supply workers digging to lay pipelines stumbled upon human skeletal remains and pieces of clothing at the site 200 metres away from Kokkutuduvai Central College on 29 June.
