Custody battle for tsunami baby

A baby who survived the Asian tsunami disaster was today placed under police protection amid a custody battle involving nine mothers.

The boy, identified only as Baby 81, was found alive among dozens of dead bodies nine hours after the Boxing Day disaster which claimed the lives of at least 100,000 people.

Today, amid chaotic scenes in a Sri Lankan court, a judge ordered DNA tests to be carried out on a couple who claim to be the parents, before deciding his fate. "Thousands of babies have died and maybe hundreds of them are missing," said Judge MP Mohaideen. "It's only after a DNA test that we can be sure that we are correct."

Arriving at court on a motorcycle, clutching a set of court papers and newspaper cuttings, Murugupillai Jeyarajah, 31, and his 25-year-old wife Jenita, insisted Baby 81 was their three-and-a-half month old son Abilass. They claim the baby was ripped from his mother's arms as the waves crashed against her beach-front house.

But after the judge told them the boy would be returned to hospital care until the DNA testing was complete - a process that could take weeks - Mr Jeyarajah stormed out of court and threatened to kill himself.

The couple and several supporters then rushed to the hospital demanding to see the child - the 81st baby admitted to the local hospital in the eastern Sri Lankan town of Kalmunai the day the tsunami struck.

"I believe in God, and I am sure my baby will be given to me," said Mr Jeyarajah.

In the days following the disaster, nine women claimed the boy as their own, though only the Jeyarajahs lodged a formal custody claim. They said documents proving the boy was theirs were lost in the tsunami.

But Kalmunai Base Hospital doctors, concerned about the many rival claims, refused to comply with an earlier order giving the Jeyarajahs temporary custody, arguing the child still needed medical attention.

"Maybe the couple are not lying, but the only way to make sure 100 per cent is to have a DNA test," said Dr K. Muhunthan, an obstetrician at the hospital. "We cannot give away orphans first-come, firstserved. We must be neutral."

Doctors have allowed the Jeyarajahs to visit the boy twice a week on condition they do not lift him from his crib. "It's like visiting a prisoner," Mrs Jeyarajah said.

Her husband added: "If the judge does not give the baby to us, we will both commit suicide."

The tsunami claimed the lives of some 12,000 children in Sri Lanka, about 40 per cent of the country's total 31,000 death toll.

The next court hearing is scheduled for 20 April when the DNA test results are expected.