The refugees, who were displaced and who sought refuge in a school at Kathiraveli, Vaharai, were cruelly killed by blind folded shelling and artillery attacks by the Sri Lankan army. This resulted in the deaths of more than 50 people including the old and the women. More than 100 people were badly injured.

The Tamil homeland is horrified at this merciless atrocity. The expatriate Tamils are chilled with shock at this horror.

The Sri Lankan government is trying to acquit itself by saying that this onslaught by the security forces was unfortunate and tries to explain that this was due to the LTTE using the refugees as human shields.

Nobody will be tried or punished for this act of horror against humanity under the laws of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka because there is a special provision to exempt the perpetrators of such acts of violence from any legal proceedings.

This is nothing new to the Tamil people for they have been the victims of such violence during the lat two decades.In the 90’s, the government forces killed 170 Tamil refugees who were housed in Navaly Church in Jaffna by aerial bombardment and brazenly denied it. But ultimately government stood exposed in the eyes of the international community.

The question uppermost in our mind is what the response of the international community is going to be. When there was an air strike on the Kilinoch hospital claiming the lives of five people, the international community did not condemn it but just expressed its concern. Is the international community going to be satisfied with expressing concern at this horror at Kathireveli, in which more than the lives of 50 refugees have been claimed?.

The international community that has been repeatedly appealing to the government and the LTTE to refrain from military offensive must realize that the air strikes of this nature can permanently impede all peace efforts.

Eelam Tamils await whether the international community that condemned the violence in Kepitigollawa, Habarana and Galle Harbour spontaneously will denounce the government in the same spirit and with such spontaneity.

Will the international community be sensitive or insensitive to the Kathiraveli horror? Will the international community be even handed? That is the pertinent issue today.

An English translation of the editorial in Uthayan, a Tamil daily based in Jaffna.

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