Gunaratnam – Attygalle abduction :

A drama to gain publicity

”Why should the government authorities abduct a man who was with the JVP, a bankrupt political party which has a voter percentage of less than five percent who ran away recently from the JVP to set up another similar political party”, said Higher Education Minister S.B. Dissanayake.

Anyone can understand that no strong government such as ours will indulge in such acts he said. The JVP has a notorious history of murders and abductions. Their history from 1970 is dotted with destructions and damage to public property. They killed thousands of innocent people during the 1989 insurgency. Kumar Gunaratnam is no stranger to us. Orders were given by the so called Deshappremi Balakaya the armed wing of JVP to kill their opponents such as politicians and members of the security forces. Gunaratnam, a bomb expert was a front line leader of Deshappremi Balakaya. The abduction was a drama enacted by Kumar Gunaratnam and the Dimuthu Attygalle team to secure publicity. Else it was done by the JVP, he said.

There is enough evidence to prove their involvement in such activities, he said.

The extensive media publicity received through the Gunaratnam – Attygalle abduction could never have been achieved even if millions of rupees were spent, said Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa. He said that some of the claims made by the allegedly abducted parties are becoming jokes. Even after the visa had expired Gunaratnam Mudalige continued to stay in Sri Lanka. The Australian High Commission should have advised him about the expiry of his visa. Similarly the LTTE terrorists could also be hiding in Sri Lanka, the Minister said. External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris said that the objective of the operation is clearly to target the country in international fora on the flimsiest of evidence.

This has happened on many occasions and now it seems to be a recurring pattern, Minister said.

Premakumara Gunaratnam had changed his name at least three times. Gunaratnam had married as Wanninayake Mudiyanselage Daskon, according to his marriage certificate.

He had obtained a Sri Lankan passport under the name Rathnayaka Mudiyanselage Dayalal and then another passport from Australia under a different name Noel Mudalige which he produced on September 4, 2011 at the BIA. Prof Peiris said that according to a complaint received by the police, Mudalige had been abducted at 4 am on Saturday 7, though a complaint was lodged at 4.10 pm after a lapse of 12 hours. Strangely the alleged abduction of Dimuthu Attygalle, allegedly carried out at 8 pm on Friday the 6th had not been reported at 3.35 pm the same, just 30 minutes before Mudalige’s disappearence was brought to the notice of law enforcement authorities, Prof. Peiris revealed. Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa said that Mudalige would never have walked in to the CCD headquarters if he had been really abducted and interrogated by some government agents at a secret detention facility.

Being an Australian citizen Mudalige should explain why he decided to seek refuge at a police station. Had he rushed to his colleagues or waited till the following day to seek protection at the Australian High Commission, People would have taken him seriously, the secretary said. Defence Secretary said that the police had recorded his statement in the presence of the Australian High Commissioner Robyn Mudie. In his statement Mudalige had said that he was held alone whereas Dimuthu Attygalle claimed they were kept at the same facility.

Mudalige claimed that he was treated well by his captors. Attygalle claimed that her hands and legs were manacled.

The Defence Secretary emphasised that Australian authorities should conduct a thorough inquiry into the circumstances, in which Gunaratnam had received a new identity thanks to the Australian government.

Now that the Australia had acknowledged the issuance of a passport to Gunaratnam a person of dubious background it would be interested to see whether action would be taken against the Australian of Sri Lankan origin, Defence Secretary said.

(LSAW)