Try Maj. Gen. Janaka Perera at the International War Crimes Tribunal

An iceberg, only the tip of which is evident to the world so far, is beginning to surface in the Indian Ocean island of Sri Lanka.

The world, which is only superficially aware of the terrible human rights record of this island country, is beginning to see more. Being the country with the world's second largest number of detainee disappearances, many have come to know that things are not quite right in Sri Lanka. By clever manipulation of the media, ably assisted by high-profile public relations firms, Sri Lanka has largely managed to keep matters under wraps. With three-quarters of the population, comprised of a single ethnic group that is willing to assist the state, an oppressive (genocidal) war against the 'other quarter' has gone on for more than two decades, relentlessly. The government, which has been responsible for 98 percent of the killings, has thus far managed to portray itself as the 'victim', and the 'real victims' as the 'villains'.

With the appointment of alleged Sri Lankan war criminals in diplomatic positions around the world, voices that have remained silent for many years are now beginning to echo across the globe. The appointment of Major General Janaka Perera as the ambassador to Australia is one that has begun to shake the chains of suppressed voices. The iceberg is lifting; things are now beginning to unravel. Events that were hidden in the media censored Northeastern Sri Lanka are now coming to surface.

The majority of disappearances in Sri Lanka occurred in short spurts, at specific times and in different parts of the country. Many of these disappearances are marked by one common feature, that is the presence of Maj. Gen. Janaka Perera in charge as the ranking officer of the military outfits responsible.

In the mid-eighties, Gen. Perera worked in the eastern province helping to create a wedge, breaking up the contiguity of Thamil Eelam, the Tamil Nation, comprising of the North and East of Sri Lanka. The area connecting the North and East was ethnically cleansed of Tamil people. Tamil villages were evacuated at gunpoint, hundreds were murdered and others fled out of fear, to make way for State sponsored Sinhala settlements. As a reward for this 'heroic' act a Tamil village (Munkindimalai) was renamed Janakapura (Janaka Town).

The accusations against Perera do not rest with the disappearances of Tamils alone. His notoriety was well documented between 1988 and 1989 when he was reassigned to the south of the country to fight the Sinhala, JVP insurrection. Under his direction, in November 1989, the JVP leader Rohana Wijeweera was arrested and murdered (while still in custody). An estimated 60,000 Sinhala youths were also murdered during this time.

In 1995, he was appointed as Commander for the Welioya Brigade. Large-scale civilian killings took place in Manal Aru (Weli Oya) during this period.

President Kumaratunga's decision to resume the war against the LTTE in October 1995 propelled Perera back into a position of power. He was appointed commander of the elite 53rd Division of the Sri Lankan army which played a key role in 'Operation Riviresa'.

It was during this period that the Mass Grave of Chemmani came into being; these were supplemented by several others that scattered the landscape of Jaffna Peninsula. Over a thousand Tamil civilians arrested by the security forces disappeared (Amnesty International, the international rights watch dog, estimates at least six hundred while the US State Department states a figure of seven hundred), in the area under Janaka Perera's command. Despite widespread rumors, these disappearances could not be verified because of the media ban on the war zones. The presence of these mass graves came to light in July 1998, through the confessions of an army corporal convicted of rape and murder. Over a fourteen-month period following this confession, the area was completely sealed off, and the evidence was allegedly destroyed.

Things started to sour when the cult like admiration for Perera began to have political dimensions. Retried General Balagalle's appointment as the Joint Chief-of-Staff in August 2000, over Janaka Perera who was next in line for the job, led to public acrimony with open accusations of corruption. It is in this backdrop that Perera retired and was appointed ambassador to Australia.

Any investigation into Perera's activities to date has been staged by the Sri Lankan State and has brought up flimsy evidence, of no value.

We, the undersigned, urge the Australian Government to review its acceptance of Maj. General Janaka Perera as Sri Lanka's ambassador to Australia and instigate an international inquiry into the Ambassador's alleged war criminal activities.