Millennium City incident

Millennium City incident refers to an incident happened in Millennium City housing scheme, Athurugiriya, Sri Lanka on 2 January 2002, leading to a national security crisis. Widespread media coverage resulting the incident exposed the Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol of Sri Lanka Army, which was a top sercret covert operations military unit, in which, the identity was known only to a few high ranking military officers and the President of Sri Lanka.^[1][2]

Incident

On 2 January 2002, a special team of Sri Lanka Police led by Superintendent of Police (Special Operations, Kandy district), Kulasiri Udugampola, broke into a safe house maintained by Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) of Sri Lanka Army located at Millennium City housing scheme, addressed No.844, Kaduwela road, Athurugiriya. They did not have a court order to search the place. However, the Police team arrested five Army soldiers, including a Captain (Captain Shahul Hameed Nilam, Chief of the LRRP) and one paramilitary member, a former cadre of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) under the Prevention of Terrorism Act. They also recovered a cache of military equipment including land mines, light anti-tank weapons (LAW), assault rifles, thermobaric weapons and 66 LTTE uniforms. SP Udugampola immediately invited local media and presented the Police findings.

This incidet had occurred immediately after the Parliamentary election of December 2001, in which United National Front came into power, defeating the incumbent People's Alliance government. The safe house was presented to media as a hide out from which, the leaders of the United National Party, including then Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe were planned to assassinate. The allegation was first made by UNP chairman Charitha Ratwatte and vice chairman Daya Pelpola, in November 2001, prior to the election. They alleged that thermobaric weapons had been brought from the operational areas in the North to the Panaluwa Army testing range, in-order to use them at a UNP election meeting. But later, this allegation was proved to be false.^[3]

Efforts to avoid the situation

Soon after the raid, Sri Lanka Army Commander Lionel Balagalle, dispatched Director of the Directorate of Military Intelligence, Brigadier Kapila Hendavithana, to the scene. Immediately, he also contacted the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Lucky Kodituwakku and explained the situation. Then Brigadier Hendavithana called the IGP to clarify the situation to SP Udugampola. Inspector General asked the officer to take into consideration what the Army's intelligence chief was saying. SP Udugampola then contacted Minister of Internal Affairs, John Amaratunga to brief him the situation.^[4] Minister the dispatched DIG Lal Ratnayake to the scene. After that, SP Udugampola took the soldiers into custody, seized the stock of weapons and drove to the Military Police Headquarters in Narahenpita.

Reactions

Reactions to this incident were mixed. Initially there was a public outcry that the military was planning to assassinate UNP leaders. However, after details about the unit were revealed, the police was accused of compromising a State secret. The military leadership was also blamed for being unable to prevent a "serious breach of national security".^[5] The LRRP team had initially been housed at the Kohuwala Army Camp, but was relocated to Athurugiriya in December 2001. Army commander Lionel Balagalla was compelled to issue a public statement revealing the true nature of this unit. President Chandrika Kumaratunga appointed a commission headed by D. Jayawickrema, a retired Judge of the Court of Appeal to inquire into and report on the raid. The report, released in December 2003, stated that Udugampola's action "illegal and immoral". He was demoted to the rank of ASP. A Supreme Court judgement delivered in January 2004 stated that fundamental rights of the soldiers had been violated and ordered ASP Udugampola to pay a sum of Rs. 50,000 LKR each to five of the LRRP operatives, S. H. Nilam, P. Ananda Udalagama, H. M. Nissanka Herath, I. Edirisinghe Jayamanne and H. Mohamed Hilmy. The State has been ordered to pay Rs. 750,000 each for them. A number of Sri Lanka Army officers who failed to perform their duty were punushed. Most senior officer among them, Major General Ivan Dassanayake was ordered to retire from the service. Report further stated that the raid was "total betrayal and absolute treachery to the nation". Subsequently, ASP Udugampola was interdicted and arrested in March 2005.

Aftermath

Immediately after the incident, through the Criminal Investigation Department and other channels, it was revealed that the safe house was none other than a top secret military establishment. But by then, vital details regarding the LRRP had been leaked to the media. It was not until 9 January, on the orders of Defence Minister Tilak Marapana, the soldiers who were held at Katugastota Police Station were released. The arrested LTTE cardre was released only on the 11th. All of them were intensely interrogated.^[5]

Soon afterwards, the LTTE began a campaign to eliminate the members of the LRRP, and those who were suspected of assisting them. LTTE Intelligence chief, Shanmugalingam Sivashankar alias Pottu Amman travelled personally to Batticaloa to oversee the "elimination" of the "traitors". The government did not take any significant measures to stop this, and requests made by the state intelligence agencies were ignored on the basis that it will affect the ceasefire.^[5]

LRRP members who had fallen victim

Following the incident, Captain S. H. Nilam, the LRRP chief and his family disappeared from the country. Later, it was revealed that they were sent to the Sri Lankan Embassy in Indonesia, for his safety. In 2007, he and his family disappeared from Indonesia too.^[5] LTTE assassinated more than 80 Tamil informants and Intelligence officers of Sri Lanka Army, whose identity had been compromised, since then. The Sunday Times defence columnist Iqbal Athas, in February 2004 revealed the names of 24 Tamil informants, those who have fallen victim. V. Vidyarnthan alias Vidya alias Nidhi alias Mike was the most important person out of them. He was abducted on 16 January 2002. He was killed after being subjected to torture and intense interrogation for four days. He dealt directly with Captain Nilam prior to the incident. It was Mike who in turn liaised with a network of operatives as well as informants, including one time guerrilla cadres, in the Batticaloa and Ampara districts. Most senior officer who had fallen vitim of the series of killings since then was Lieutenant Colonel Tuan Nizam Muthaliff. He was the Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion, Military Intelligence Corps. He was the deputy under Captain Nilam, when the incident occurred. Kandiah Yogarasa alias PLOTE Mohan, another key informant was shot dead by LTTE in July 2004.^[6]

See also

• Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (Sri Lanka)

References

1. ^ W.A. Sunil (24 January 2002). "Police raid exposes a secret Sri Lankan army assassination squad". World Socialist Website. http://www.wsws.org/articles/2002/jan2002/sri-j24.shtml. Retrieved 25 December 2008. 
2. ^ "PTA arrests expose covert operation - paper". TamilNet. 8 January 2002. http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=6607. Retrieved 5 August 2011. 
3. ^ Iqbal Athas. "How a 'top State secret' became public". The Sunday Times. http://sundaytimes.lk/020106/sitrep.html#1. Retrieved 5 August 2011. 
4. ^ Iqbal Athas. "The great betrayal". The Sunday Times. http://sundaytimes.lk/020120/sitrep.html. Retrieved 5 August 2011. 
5. ^ ^{a b c d} Iqbal Athas. "Tigers crack Mike mystery after Safe House blunder". The Sunday Times. http://sundaytimes.lk/040201/columns/sitrep.html. Retrieved 25 December 2008. 
6. ^ "LTTE guns down 'dreaded' informant Plote Mohan". Sunday Times. July 2004. http://sundaytimes.lk/040801/news/6.html. Retrieved 5 August 2011.