The District Human Rights Co-ordinator, Gloria Frances told Sandesaya that the Commission had received complaints of these disappearances between May 9 and 15.

Among the disappeared are two women, and all those who disappeared are in the age group of 20 to 30, she said.

According to relatives the armed group of people in civilian dress had come in white vans and they spoke in Sinhala and Tamil.

Frances said that the disappeared did not belong to any political party.

"They were ordinary workers," she added.

She said the Commission had lodged complaints about these disappearances to the District Inspector General of Police in Trincomalee.

78 since January

A government minister says that seventy eight people have disappeared since the beginning of this year.

Deputy Minister of Vocational Training P. Radhakrishnan told the BBC that most of them are from Colombo; and others are from the areas of Monaragela, Puttlam, Galle ,and Trincomalee.

	Relatives of the disappeared

Twenty four people have returned and another sixteen are in the custody of government security forces including CID, he said.

Relatives of the victims have informed the minister that people who were clad in uniforms similar to defence personnel came in white vans and committed these abductions

"Upon inquiries police revealed that some of them are in their custody", said the Mminister.

He said two policemen attached to the Grandpass police station were recently taken into custody on charges of illegal arrest.

"Some resort to this type of activity in order to take revenge for private matters", Deputy Minister Radhakrishnan added.