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More PTA prisoners to be freed for next year's Thai Pongal

01 Nov 2022

BY Mirudhula Thambiah Thamil Makkal Thesiya Kuttani Leader MP C.V. Wigneswaran said that Minister of Justice, Prison Affairs, and Constitutional Reforms President’s Counsel (PC) Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe had informed him that the Government hopes to release more prisoners detained under the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act (PTA) by Thai Pongal of next year in January.  Speaking to The Morning, Wigneswaran said yesterday (31) that he had met Dr. Rajapakshe in Jaffna on 30 October, and during the meeting, he was told that more PTA prisoners are expected to be released by Thai Pongal next year.  “I requested to release all the others. They have not been happy about it because they have been there for a long period of time. Then, he said that they are interested in releasing the prisoners but that there are various legal snags which they are discussing with the Attorney General’s Department. By Thai Pongal, they are hoping to release as many as possible out of the detained balance. Maybe a substantial number would be released around Thai Pongal,” he added. Wigneswaran further stated that Dr. Rajapakshe had pointed out that there was no backlash from the perspective of the Sinhalese with regard to those who had been already released.  “I pointed out to them that the ‘aragalaya’ (struggle) had changed the attitude and mindset of the Sinhalese. This is a welcome sign because people feel that after 13 years of the end of the war, they are being given a chance to get back to their lives,” he added. Some family members of the PTA prisoners and detainees also came to speak to Dr. Rajapakshe during this meeting, he said.  “There was a sister of a person who was taken into custody when he was 16-years-old whereas now he is 44-years-old. Therefore, he had been in prison for 28 years. She made an appeal to release him as he had not seen the outside world for a long period. Sometimes, it was a little emotional the way they were making their pleas to the Minister. There was a prisoner who was released after 25 years. He came from Vavuniya just to thank Minister Rajapakshe. There were other family members of the PTA prisoners as well,” he added. Meanwhile, a total of eight prisoners convicted by court for involvement in the activities of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) under the PTA were pardoned by President Ranil Wickremesinghe, nearing the Deepavali festival. Earlier, Wigneswaran wrote to President Wickremesinghe with the relevant details of the PTA prisoners and detainees requesting to consider their release.  


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