Massacres on 30.01

1. Vaddakandal massacre – 30.01.1985

On 30.01.1985, around 5.00am , 200 Sri Lankan military men stationed in the Thalladi military camp came out and moved into the Vaddakandal village through Mathawachchi road and along the Kaddukarai Lake.

At 6.30 am they entered the homes of the villagers and began shooting and stabbing people. During this massacre the Sri Lankan Air Force helicopters also strafed the village. The military entered the Vaddakandal Government Tamil Mixed School and attacked the principal, teachers and students. Eighteen people were killed in the school.

The SLA from Thalladi Army Camp surrounded the following 3 villages, Palaperuman Kattu and Vaddakandal and Parapankandal. Around 1.00am, we heard vehicle noise. We had no idea they were coming or what they would do. At about 5am in the morning – we heard gun fire from all directions. People woke up and started running everywhere. There was a helicopter in the air which started firing.

They did not worry about a person’s age. Young or old – they were all shot and killed that day. They went into the paddy fields and picked up people with both hands, held them up and shot them for others to see. This is the first time we saw this happen. 35 people were shot in the fields, 15 people were shot in town. At the school there were about 250 children studying. They dragged the principle and all the teachers out, tortured and shot them in front of the villagers. They were all asked to stand in a line – when they were shot. A few people escaped. I was one of them. 18 people were shot there.

Beside this village there was a Muslim village – but nothing happened to them. Three days later, there were funerals happening in every house. The army returned and surrounded the forest. At that time we did not have any associations with the LTTE. They may have been there, but we did not know where they were. The SLA kept coming back after that and tormented all the villagers who had to live in constant fear.”

Ponnar Ponnappan, Fisherman 30,  Santhan Thombaimiyes, Farmer 28,  Savariyan Alponsparula, Farmer 25,  Madaiyappan Pandiyappan, Farmer 24,  Muththannathevar Nadarasa  39,  Murukesu Thambappillai  55, Rasu Selvarasa, Driver 30,  Kannikkavundar Suntharalinkam, Farmer 23, Karuppaiya Jeyaratnam 25,  Piransi Kaiththan, Farmer 27, Piransi Saminathan, Farmer 37, Thirumal Ramachchanderan 26,  Manaval Victor, Salesman 45,  Alexsandar Parnanthu 72,  Arunasalam Suntharamoorththi 45, Sebamalai Pernando, Business 21,  Sellaiya Ramasami, Farmer 35, Vellaichchami Muththurasa, Farmer 20,  Sellaiya Ramasami 30,  Venkadasalam Thevaraj, Farmer 34, Vellaichchami Muththurasa 35,  Ganappirakasam Sebmalai, Farmer 22,  Santhiyeku Anthoni, Farmer, Suppan Palani 42,  Suppiramaniyam Sanmukanathan, Labourer 33, Sinnaya Seruvarajan, Labourer 33, Srikori Radnathurai 32,  Raman Thankarasa 56, Ramasami Atputharasa 19,  Ramasami Selvarasa 22, Raman Thankarasa, Farmer 35,  Ramachchandiran Theyvenduran, Farmer 18, Ramasami Selvarasa, Farmer 27, Piransi Saminathan, Farmer 36,  Muththusami Saththiyaseelan, Farmer 42.

2. Puthukkudiyiruppu junction bombing30.01.1991

On 30.01.1991, at 5.30 pm, Sri Lankan Air Force bombers dropped bombs around the Puthukkudiyiruppu junction. 20 bodies were recovered from the area. 50 people were taken to the hospital with injuries. Because the daylight was ending not all bodies could be recovered the same night. Seriously injured Eelamtamils were sent to the Yaalppanam hospital the same night. However, three of the injured died on the way to the Jaffna hospital. Five more bodies were recovered the next day. In total 28 people were killed in the bombing. 8 of those killed were displaced people. One of the full term mothers who jumped into a bunker to escape the bombing gave birth to a baby with damaged vertebra and is unable to walk.

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