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Returned asylum seeker missing

A failed Tamil asylum seeker, known as Mr X for safety reasons has been reported missing since he was deported from Australia.

Spokeswoman for Refugee Action Collective, Sue Bolton, said that Mr X’s family had waited outside the airport for more than 14 hours but received no news about his whereabouts.

Mr X’s claims to asylum that he had been arrested by the army and tortured due to alleged affiliation the LTTE were rejected and he was deported from Australia on Wednesday, despite a UN appeal against his return.

Expressing concern that the man has been detained by Sri Lankan police, Ms Bolton said,

"They fear the worst, they fear torture, they fear interrogation, they fear indefinite detention, they fear just straight out disappearance."

"There have been many, many Tamils who have just simply disappeared since the end of the war".

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