Sri Lanka Two Nations

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Suspected war criminal Jagath Dias opens school in Vanni

*What is Good Governance?

War Crimes in Sri Lanka-genocide

31 March 2015

A new school building constructed at the Roman Catholic College in Puthukkudiyiruppu wasopened by suspected war criminal Major General Jagath Dias earlier this month.

Mr Dias, who is the commander of the Mullaithivu headquarters of the Sri Lankan army, was leading an army division during the armed conflict and is thought to be responsible for mass atrocities committed during the final phase.

The commander was last year refused entry into Australia over his role in the final stages of the armed conflict and allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Only two days before the opening of the school on March 4, Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera, told the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, that the Sri Lankan military had ceased its civilian activities.

"Just days after assuming office, the President replaced the former military governors of the Northern and Eastern provinces of the country with two senior former civil servants. This set in motion the process of strengthening civilian administration in these provinces including the cessation of military involvement in civilian activities, review of high-security zones and releasing land for resettlement of the internally displaced," Mr Samawaraweera had said.

The military's ongoing involvement in Tamil affairs almost 6 years after the end of the armed conflict has been widely condemned by Tamil politicians and activists, with numerous calls for the new president, Maithripala Sirisena to demilitarise the North-East.