Dear friends,
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that a teacher severely caned three young students in Kurunegala before forcing them to eat inedible produce as part of a punishment. One 13-year-old fell violently ill and has since been to hospital a number of times, missing a month of school. Corporal punishment in schools has been illegal since 2005.
CASE NARRATIVE:
On 11 February 2010, 13-year-old Hettiarachchige Don Vimantha Buddhima Neranjana Jayathissa (pictured) and two friends, M.D. Rahiru Iroshion Piyasiri and T.A. Wijekumara, were questioned by a teacher, Udaya Kantha, at the Mawathagama National School. The teacher had seen the boys picking corn in the garden and allegedly caned them to force a confession. The boys admitted to picking to the corn.
The teacher reportedly continued to cane them, before forcing them to eat the uncooked, unpeeled corn cobs, despite them being clearly inedible. We are told that Buddhima tried to tell another teacher about it afterwards, who did nothing.
Shortly after Buddhima returned home that afternoon he started to vomit blood. He was prescribed tablets at a nearby clinic but vomited again at school the next day. After teachers took him to Mawathagama Hospital he was placed on a ward for two nights until 14 February, but still vomited (in a police station) after being discharged. A second diagnosis concluded that Buddhima’s throat had been significantly injured by the corn husk, and he was kept back from school on sick leave until 24 March.
At the school one teacher, according to the two other young victims, instructed them to say that Buddhima’s injuries resulted from a beating by his father.
On 14 February Buddhimas father filed a complaint with the Mawathagama police (Entry No.291/207 CIB-2) and a case was filed against Udaya Kantha after an investigation. The court date is fixed for 16 August 2010. A complaint has also been filed with the National Human Rights Commission and letters of complaints have been sent to the Inspector General of Police, the Senior Superintendent of Police Kurunegala, O.I.C. Mawathagama Police station, and the National Police Commission. These must be considered thoroughly and without delay.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Under Sri Lanka’s CAT Act of 1999, torture is defined as any severe pain, mental or physical, inflicted by a public officer as a means of punishment. Furthermore according to the secretary of the Ministry of Education (in Ministerial Circular No. 25/17) in 2005 and to the Corporal Punishment (Repeal) Act No. 23 of the same year, such punishment is illegal in schools.
We urge the relevant authorities in the police and the Attorney General’s department to take all the steps necessary to prosecute the offenders, following a thorough criminal investigation. We further urge the secretary of the Ministry of Education to initiate an independent investigation and call for a disciplinary enquiry against the teacher in question, instructing the relevant authorities to interdict Mr. Kantha until the proceedings are concluded.
The rights of children require the utmost respect and protection, as acknowledged by the Sri Lanka government when it ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please call on the authorities to ensure that the case is properly investigated, and to hold the abusive teacher accountable in a court of law. Please also call for a review of the operations at the Mawathagama National School to ensure the safety of its students and combat any negligence or abuse among its staff.
The AHRC has sent this case to the UN Committee for the Rights of the Child.
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear __________,
SRI LANKA: Teacher uses illegal corporal punishment on three young students, making one violently ill
Name of victims:
1 Hettiarachchige Don Vimantha Buddhima Neranjana Jayathissa, 13, of Ranjith ‘Niwasa’ (house), Boyagoda, Waauda, Kurunegala.
2. M.D. Rahiru Iroshion Piyasiri
3. T.A. Wijekumara
All students at the Mawathagama National School
Name of alleged perpetrator: Mr. Udaya Kantha
Date of incident: 11 February 2010
Place of incident: Mawathagama National School, Kurunegala
I am writing to voice my deep concern over the use of corporal punishment on three teenage boys by a teacher at Mawathagama National School.
According to the information that I have received, on 11 February 2010, 13-year-old Hettiarachchige Don Vimantha Buddhima Neranjana Jayathissa and two friends, M.D. Rahiru Iroshion Piyasiri and T.A. Wijekumara, were questioned by a teacher, Udaya Kantha, at the Mawathagama National School. The teacher had seen the boys picking corn in the garden and allegedly caned them to force a confession.
Reportedly the teacher then continued to cane the boys after they had admitted to picking the corn, before forcing them to eat the inedible uncooked, unpeeled corn cobs. We are told that Buddhima tried to tell another teacher about it afterwards, who did nothing.
Shortly after Buddhima returned home that afternoon he started to vomit blood. I am told that he was prescribed tablets at a nearby clinic but vomited again at school the next day. After teachers took him to Mawathagama Hospital he was placed on a ward for two nights, until 14 February, but still vomited (in the police station) after being discharged. A second diagnosis concluded that Buddhima throat had been significantly injured by the corn husk. He was kept back, sick, from school until 24 March.
At the school one teacher, according to the two other young victims, allegedly instructed them to say that Buddhima’s injuries were due to a beating from his father.
It is my understanding that on the 14 February Buddhimas father filed a complaint with the Mawathagama police (Entry No.291/207 CIB-2) and a case was filed against Udaya Kantha after an investigation. The court date is fixed for 16 August 2010. A complaint has also been filed with the National Human Rights Commission and letters of complaints have been sent to the Inspector General of Police, the Senior Superintendent of Police Kurunegala, O.I.C. Mawathagama Police station, and the National Police Commission.
As exhibited by the details of this incident, there needs to be strong vigilance in Sri Lanka to protect children from the use of corporal punishment which is illegal, according to the secretary of the Ministry of Education (in Ministerial Circular No. 25/17) in 2005 and to the Corporal Punishment (Repeal) Act No. 23 of the same year.
I urge you to ensure that all the necessary steps are taken to prosecute the offenders, following a thorough criminal investigation. The secretary of the Ministry of Education must also initiate an independent investigation and call for a disciplinary enquiry against Mr. Kantha, instructing the relevant authorities to interdict him until the proceedings are concluded. It should be noted that under Sri Lanka’s CAT Act of 1999, torture is defined as any severe pain, mental or physical, inflicted by a public officer as a means of punishment.
The rights of children require the utmost respect and protection, as acknowledged by the Sri Lanka government when it ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Yours sincerely,
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1. The Chairperson
National Child Protection Authority
330, Thalawathgoda Road
Madiwella
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 778 912/13/14
Fax: +94 11 2 778 975
E-mail: ncpa@childprotection.gov.lk
2. Mr. A D S Premajayantha
Minister of Education
Ministry of Education
‘Isurupaya’, Pelawatte
Battaramulla
Colombo
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 784 832
Fax: +94 11 2 784 825
E-mail: minedu@moe.gov.lk
3. Director Provincial Education
No 76, Ananda Kumaraswamy Mawatha
Greenpath
Colombo 07
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 693 893 / 11 2 693 895
Fax: +94 11 2 693 894 (ATTN: PROVINCIAL DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION)
4. Mr. Mahinda Balasuriya
Inspector General of Police (IGP),
New Secretariat,
Colombo 1,
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 440440
Email: com@police.lk
5. The Secretary
Human Rights Commission
No. 36, Kynsey Road
Colombo 8
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 694 925 / 673 806
Fax: +94 11 2 694 924 / 696 470
E-mail: sechrc@sltnet.lk
6. Bo Viktor Nylun
Head of Child Protection
UNICEF Sri Lanka
P.O. Box 143, Colombo
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 555 270 (6 lines)
Fax: +94 11 2 551 333
E-mail: colombo@unicef.org
7. Director
Bureau for the Prevention and Abuse of Children and Women
No: 25, Srimath Baron Jayathilake Mawatha
Colombo 01
Tel: +94 011 2392488
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Thank you
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrc.asia)
