Location Welikanda, Sri Lanka Attack type Unknown Deaths 7 | Date 2006 (+6 GMT) Weapons Unknown | |
Target Sri Lankan Tamil civilians | ||
2006 murder of TRO workers refers to the incident of abduction of seven Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO) employees who were later presumed dead.
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Abduction
Seven TRO workers were abducted in two separate incident on January 2006 in Jaffna. The first incident happened when five workers were traveling from Batticalo to Kilinochchi. They were subjected to checks at the Sri Lanka Army checkpoint at Welikanda. At this point they noticed a white van behind them. After traveling a short distance from the checkpoint the workers were attacked by armed men in the white van. The assaulter then tied the workers and took them to a camp in the jungle. Three of the five abducted were released later. The next day another 15 workers were abducted 100 meters in front of the Walikanda checkpoint. 10 of the 15 abducted were released and were told to prepare the funeral rights for their colleges.
Reaction
The President of Sri Lanka has asked the security forces to speed up the investigation concerning the abduction of the TRO workers. He further asked to search the Walikanda area for the abducted. The government also denied any links to this abduction.
Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation has alleged that their staff were abducted by the Karuna Group, a paramilitary organization which is believed to be working with the Sri Lankan Armed Forces. It further added that they have not received any reports or response from any investigating authorities.
The Amnesty International has asked for the immediate release of these workers
The former US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, Christina Rocca, made an appeal for their release.
The LTTE expressed concern over the abduction of the TRO workers.
Conflicting reports
UTHR reported that the LTTE had staged the abduction of the TRO workers but later said that they were not correct on this statement. However, TRO alleged that a government backed paramilitary was responsible for this abduction