Reverend George Jeyarajasingham was an Eelamtamil and was born in the village of Komari in the eastern part of Tamileelam. He belonged to the Mannar District Methodist Church.

He was in charge of a large Methodist farm called ‘Jeevothayam’ in the Methodist centre in a nearby village called Murungan in Mannar district. He was involved in social and pastoral work with the victims of the many forced disappearances and killings by the Sri Lankan armed forces that took place in the area. He was known for helping the Eelam Tamils by advocating for them with the local military authorities.

During the Sri Lankan Army military offensives in 1984, which were part of the ongoing genocidal war in the Mannar region, local Roman Catholic priest Fr Mary Bastian and George Jeyarajasingham became the focal point for human rights activities on behalf of the local people. He and Mary Bastian became the local contact person for the Presidential Committee appointed by the Sri Lankan government to investigate the human rights violations committed by the SL army in the Mannar district.

According to Pax Christi International, on 13 December 1984 he was called by the army to testify about some of the matters he had reported. Together with his driver Abdul Cader Sulaiman, his Singalese wife Brigette Jeyarajasingham and a policeman named Jesuthasan Roche from the Murunkan police station, he was allegedly stopped by members of the Sri Lankan army while travelling from Mannar to Murunkan.

The victims, including Jeyararajasingam, were shot at close range. The perpetrators (SL Army) later burnt the car and the bodies of the victims along with the vehicle. Rev. Mary Bastian collected the mortal remains of the victims including Jeyarajasingham and handed them over to the Methodist Centre of Jeevothayam (Later Rev. Mary Bastian was also killed by the SL Army).

Why was Rev. George Jeyarajasingam killed?

Rev. George Jeyarajasingam reported on the massacre committed by the SL army a week ago…. On 4 December 1984, the military started shelling the Eelam Tamil residential areas from the Thalladi military camp. The military burnt alive 15 men who had previously been arrested by them. The military also arrested 30 other people who were travelling on the road in front of their camp and burned them alive as well. People in the town of Mannar could see the smoke rising from the 45 burning bodies.

On the same day, the army from Thalladi and Silawaththai military camps rounded up several residential areas. The army, which had moved out from Mannar, travelled along the Mathawachchi road through the villages of Sirunavatkulam, Nochchikulam, Kallikkaddaikadu, Uyilankulam, Parapankandal, Uyirththarasankulam, Aththikkuli, Chemmanthivu, Murunkan and went up to the Madhu road. All along the route, they attacked houses and offices, burnt them down and shot people. Employees of the Chemmanthivu Cooperative Society and the Murunkan post office were killed in these atrocities. The military that left Silawaththai also committed atrocities along the way.

The military from the Thalladi camp stopped a bus full of passengers after arriving at the Madhu road. They ordered everyone to leave the bus and all the passengers and the driver were shot dead. Two days later, the Bishop of Mannar and the government representative of Mannar picked up 90 bodies and took them to Mannar hospital. More than 200 people were killed by the military in this genocidal act.