Army's human element saves teenage cadre's life

by Shanika Sriyananda

She could have breathed her last in a few minutes or would have been tucked with other dead bodies of her colleagues. Found among 17 dead bodies, she had sustained serious injuries in the stomach and the left arm and had the luck to live, thanks to the sharp eyes of a soldier, who is fighting a battle to liberate thousands of Tamils still suffering for the sake of one man's craze to have a separate land.

The fighting escalated at 5.30 am as the LTTE was still holding ground at the A 32 Road towards Pooneryn. Eight-man team of the Delta Company of the 11 Sri Lanka Light Infantry of the 58 division, led by Captain Lalantha Collurage was taking its maximum effort to capture the location bunkers at Paddaruyal Villu between the 10 and 11 Mile Posts which is three and half km East of Ponneryn-Mannar main road. After hours long heavy fighting using RPG attacks, the team managed to gain control of the location in the wee hours of November 1 killing 17 LTTE cadres.

While recovering dead bodies of the LTTE cadres, the soldiers found a female cadre was still breathing. The field medics gave her fist aid. After regaining consciousness she pleaded of the soldiers to give her some water. Later she asked something to eat saying they were left without food for days. Honouring the moral values, the soldiers did not let her die and they treated her as one of their colleagues and was given saline. She was then brought to the nearest medical dressing station where she was treated.

This girl, who was found lying unconscious among dead bodies in a trench. She was a cadre attached to the 'Malathi' regiment and a resident of Mulankavil.

Trained in Jaffna, the 18-year-old girl was brought down to Paddaruyal Villu from Muhamalei forcibly. The blindfolded LTTE cadres including females were just dropped at battle fronts and forced to fight.

The girl, with her norm de guerilla 'Priya', was abducted by the LTTE some months back and was given a crash training on handling weapons and facing the battle. Knowing nothing about the strength or the fighting capacity of the Security Forces, the teenage girls and boys were shown heroic pictures of the LTTE cadres and misled by saying that the LTTE would confront any battle against the Security Forces. The young cadres were given an assurance that the LTTE would win the battle and are fighting a wining battle.

Still abducting underaged children to keep the battle going, the LTTE, which is fighting a losing battle with less man and fire power, gives hopes for a separate State for Tamils while shutting down all possible communication links to knowing the truth about the battle. Arriving at a very decisive stage, the LTTE still maintaining the human shield, according to information, has become very hard on those who try to flee LTTE controlled areas. The outfit does not spare even 10 year old children and sources said the LTTE now abducts small children to employ them in other work while the senior cadres are being sent to battle fronts.

The sources said that the new recruits from elsewhere were blindfolded and dropped at the front lines and as they have no option and without knowing much about each other they are forced to fight for their survival.

Priya had a grenade and she did not bite the cyanide as she wanted to live. Priya's story will be the best example to show the difference between a professional army and a terrorist organisation.

During the Thoppigala operation, Sergeant K.G. Priyantha Pathirana was found with serious injuries and was taken under LTTE custody before the Security Forces captured the Illuppadichena town. The LTTE terrorists, including female cadres, treated him in an inhuman way before his neck was cut while he was struggling for life. Later his head was displayed at the Illuppadichena junction.

But, the fate of Priya turned a new leaf in her life and she will live to tell the difference. The mission to rescue another 'human' at the battle front was a success due to immediate action by the 58 Division Commander Brigadier Shavendra Silva. The teenager was given a new lease of life.

It will be a showpiece to tell the world that Sri Lanka is carrying a humanitarian operation and not even a battle against those have been misled by the LTTE. Not only Priya but many LTTE carders, who crossed to liberated areas with serious injuries, were given medical treatment like the soldiers wounded in the battle fronts.

The highly disciplined soldiers carried Priya more than a kilometre from the point that they were fighting simply to save the life of another human being. There was no space for them to disregard the international humanitarian laws and even the soldiers at the front lines are well aware about those values - not to kill even an enemy who is fighting for life.

Already suffering from internal bleeding Priya was brought by stretcher to the nearest Medical Dressing Station (MDS) where she was given immediate treatment. Then she was transported in an ambulance for over eight km to the main MDS where the military doctor of the 58 Division treated her for abdominal injuries.

Giving top priority, the teenage female cadre was airlifted to the Anuradhapura General Hospital for further treatment as she was badly injured. Then her journey for freedom as well as for life began at the Colombo National Hospital, where she is now given special medical treatment and care.