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SRI LANKA: Victim of a sexual harassment continuously harassed by the Dikwella Police and denied justice

June 6, 2012

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION-URGENT APPEAL PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-098-2012



6 June 2012
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SRI LANKA: Victim of a sexual harassment continuously harassed by the Dikwella Police and denied justice

ISSUES: Right to fair trail; witness protection; violence against women; impunity; rule of law
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that Miss S.H. Thushari Dilrukshi of Dikwella in the Matara District was illegally arrested by police officers attached to the Dikwella Police Station. She had earlier made a complaint of sexual harassment by a youth who also attacked and injured her father. Rather than arrest the youth the police officers arrested her father and charged him in another case. Her attempts to obtain justice have so far been thwarted by the police working in collaboration with the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka. This case is yet another illustration of the exceptional collapse of the rule of law in the country.

CASE NARRATIVE:

On 28 November 2011 Miss S.H. Thushari Dilrukshi of Dikwella in the Matara District was illegally arrested by police officers attached to the Dikwella Police Station. The officers involved were Sub Inspector (SI) Pushpakumara and two police constables (PCs).

At about 3PM, on 26 January 2011, a youth called Suranga Lahiru Prabath Parananamanage came to Thushari's house under the influence of alcohol and started blackguarding Thushari and her younger brother in filthy language. Thushari, a young woman of 22 years was grabbed by this youth who held her by the hair, placed his hand about her shoulder and tried to sexually abuse her. She managed to escape and ran in search of her father who was working at a construction site at the harbor.

Her father immediately came with her to their house and he asked Suranga for an explanation. Suranga then started verbally abusing him also. Thereafter there was a struggle and Suranga tried to stab Thushari's father but fortunately she and her brother was able to halt the attack. However, one of her father’s hands was bleeding due to an injury received during the struggle. Suranga threatened her father, saying, "Do not come to the beach, I will kill you if you come there".

As they were afraid of the possibility of further violence, Thushari and her father went to the Dikwella Police Station to lodge a complaint the same day. At first the police took Thushari's father into custody and they later learned that before their arrival at the police station, Suranga had made a complaint against him. The police officers then refused to record their complaint. However, Thushari and her father informed the police officers that if they did not accept the complaint they would proceed to the office of the Superintendent of Police (SP) to make a complaint. The officers then allowed them to make the complaint and Thushari's brother was named as a witness. Thushari realised that the officers on duty were inebriated.

After recording the complaint the officers took them to their house where the policemen broke open the front door. They then threatened them not to make any complaint about the damage to the door.

Thushari's father was taken back to the police station and remanded. On 27 January 2011, he was produced before the Magistrate's Court of Matara and released bail which was set at Rs. 3500/= in case no. 48598/11.

Subsequently the case has been called on several occasions but remains pending due to the Attorney General's (AG) report not being ready. Thushari and her family members still do not know the exact reason for filing the case against her father and the reasons for seeking the AG's advice.

Later the police filed a case against Suranga for sexual abuse under case no. 40209 also in the Magistrate's Court of Matara. This case is also still pending.

On 28 November 2011, Thushari was at home preparing to attend court for Suranga's case. At around 6 AM, three police officers in civilian clothes arrived while she was still in her under skirts and abused her in filth language. They threatened her saying, "Come to police station, if you don’t come I'll give you a slap on your ear and send you to prison for 14 days".

When Thushari inquired as to whether there was a warrant issued by any court against her the officers refused to respond and instead continue to verbally abuse her and waited until she got ready. They made the arrest without a woman constable being present and dragged her into a three wheeler. At that time her mother said, "You cannot take my daughter alone". And she also got into the three-wheeler.

The officers then brought Thushari and her mother to the Dikwella Police Station where they waited for three hours. They were then taken to the Magistrate's Court of Matara where she was produced and represented by Attorney-at-Law, Ranjith Rathnayaka. The Magistrate informed the open court that she was the plaintiff and that there was no warrant for her arrest. The Magistrate released her after warning the police. Suranga's case was postponed to 26 March 2012.

On 29 November 2011, she went to SP's office of Matara and made a complaint about this bogus warrant, but since then there has been no inquiry. As there was no response after one & half months, then she went to SP’s office on several occasions but to no avail.

Later she received a message by a police officer from the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) of Matara, Damayantha Wijayasri, informing her to go to the Dikwella Police Station to inquire about it.

As there was no progress she went to Regional Office of Human Rights Commission (HRC) at Matara and made a complaint against the police officers attached to the Dikwella Police Station. Her HRC case no. is HRC/MT/14/12/S.

For a number of days the police did not participate in the inquiry. Finally, on 9 May 2012, an inquiry was held and the police submitted that she had been arrested on a warrant. However, they had not brought the necessary books or documents to prove this.

Thushari produced the certified copy of the case proceedings of case no. 40209, taken from the courts. The HRC stated that the entries in the proceedings certificate were not clear and requested the applicant to produce another certified copy. Thushari states that the police and the officers of the HRC are working together to deny her justice for the indecencies she was subjected to. The case is still pending in HRC, Matara.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has reported innumerable cases of the victims of crimes who have face enormous harassment by the police; on several some occasions the witnesses and the victims have been killed by the perpetrators. The AHRC has continuously urged the state of Sri Lanka on the necessity of adopting a witness protection law and implementing a successful witness protection mechanism to verify the smooth running of the rule of law system. The state of Sri Lanka is bound to implement the legal provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) as it has signed and ratified the convention. Nevertheless the lack of protection offered to those who are willing to take cases against criminals, abusive police officers and state authorities, means that the law is under-utilised continues to be employed as a tool by the police to harass people. This not only takes a long-term toll on the victims and their families, but on society as a whole, by undermining of civilian respect for the law and encouraging impunity.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send a letter to the authorities listed below expressing your concern about this case and requesting an immediate investigation into the case rape and the witness protection. The criminals as well as the police officers who are having lethargic approach to investigate the crimes must also try before the court of law for breaching the laws of the country and also should be subjected to internal investigations for the breach of the department orders as issued by the police department.

Please note that the AHRC has also written a separate letter to the Special Rapporteur on violence against women on this regard.

To support this appeal please click here:

SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear ________,

SRI LANKA: Victim of a sexual harassment case continuously harassed by the Dikwella Police

Name of the victim: Miss S.H. Thushari Dilrukshi, Dikwella in the Matara District
Alleged perpetrator: Police officers attached to the Dikwella Police Station
Date of incident: 28 November 2011
Place of incident: Dikwella Police Division

I am writing to express my serious concern over the case of Miss S.H. Thushari Dilrukshi of Dikwella. On 28 November 2011 in the Matara District Thushari was illegally arrested by police officers attached to the Dikwella Police Station. The officers involved were Sub Inspector (SI) Pushpakumara and two police constables (PCs).

At about 3PM, on 26 January 2011, a youth called Suranga Lahiru Prabath Parananamanage came to Thushari's house under the influence of alcohol and started blackguarding Thushari and her younger brother in filthy language. Thushari, a young woman of 22 years was grabbed by this youth who held her by the hair, placed his hand about her shoulder and tried to sexually abuse her. She managed to escape and ran in search of her father who was working at a construction site at the harbor.

Her father immediately came with her to their house and he asked Suranga for an explanation. Suranga then started verbally abusing him also. Thereafter there was a struggle and Suranga tried to stab Thushari's father but fortunately she and her brother was able to halt the attack. However, one of her father’s hands was bleeding due to an injury received during the struggle. Suranga threatened her father, saying, "Do not come to the beach, I will kill you if you come there".

As they were afraid of the possibility of further violence, Thushari and her father went to the Dikwella Police Station to lodge a complaint the same day. At first the police took Thushari's father into custody and they later learned that before their arrival at the police station, Suranga had made a complaint against him. The police officers then refused to record their complaint. However, Thushari and her father informed the police officers that if they did not accept the complaint they would proceed to the office of the Superintendent of Police (SP) to make a complaint. The officers then allowed them to make the complaint and Thushari's brother was named as a witness. Thushari realised that the officers on duty were inebriated.

After recording the complaint the officers took them to their house where the policemen broke open the front door. They then threatened them not to make any complaint about the damage to the door.

Thushari's father was taken back to the police station and remanded. On 27 January 2011, he was produced before the Magistrate's Court of Matara and released bail which was set at Rs. 3500/= in case no. 48598/11.

Subsequently the case has been called on several occasions but remains pending due to the Attorney General's (AG) report not being ready. Thushari and her family members still do not know the exact reason for filing the case against her father and the reasons for seeking the AG's advice.

Later the police filed a case against Suranga for sexual abuse under case no. 40209 also in the Magistrate's Court of Matara. This case is also still pending.

On 28 November 2011, Thushari was at home preparing to attend court for Suranga's case. At around 6 AM, three police officers in civilian clothes arrived while she was still in her under skirts and abused her in filth language. They threatened her saying, "Come to police station, if you don’t come I'll give you a slap on your ear and send you to prison for 14 days".

When Thushari inquired as to whether there was a warrant issued by any court against her the officers refused to respond and instead continue to verbally abuse her and waited until she got ready. They made the arrest without a woman constable being present and dragged her into a three wheeler. At that time her mother said, "You cannot take my daughter alone". And she also got into the three-wheeler.

The officers then brought Thushari and her mother to the Dikwella Police Station where they waited for three hours. They were then taken to the Magistrate's Court of Matara where she was produced and represented by Attorney-at-Law, Ranjith Rathnayaka. The Magistrate informed the open court that she was the plaintiff and that there was no warrant for her arrest and released her after warning the police. Suranga's case was postponed to 26 March 2012.

On 29 November 2011, she went to SP's office of Matara and made a complaint about this bogus warrant, but since then there has been no inquiry. As there was no response after one & half months, then she went to SP’s office on several occasions but to no avail.

Later she received a message by a police officer from the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) of Matara, Damayantha Wijayasri, informing her to go to the Dikwella Police Station to inquire about it.

As there was no progress she went to Regional Office of Human Rights Commission (HRC) at Matara and made a complaint against the police officers attached to the Dikwella Police Station. Her HRC case no. is HRC/MT/14/12/S.

For a number of days the police did not participate in the inquiry. Finally, on 9 May 2012, an inquiry was held and the police submitted that she had been arrested on a warrant. However, they had not brought the necessary books or documents to prove this.

Thushari produced the certified copy of the case proceedings of case no. 40209, taken from the courts. The HRC stated that the entries in the proceedings certificate were not clear and requested the applicant to produce another certified copy. Thushari states that the police and the officers of the HRC are working together to deny her justice for the indecencies she was subjected to. The case is still pending in HRC, Matara.

I request your urgent intervention to ensure that the authorities listed below instigate an immediate investigation into the allegations of failure in investigation of case of sexual harassment and illegal arrest and the threatening the life of the witness. Further the prosecution of those proven to be responsible under the criminal law for not implementing the criminal law of the country instead of protecting the criminal and encouraging the existing situation of impunity. The officers involved must also be subjected to internal investigations for the breach of the department orders as issued by the police department.

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

1. Mr. N K Illangakoon
Inspector General of Police
New Secretariat
Colombo 1
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 440440 / 327877
E-mail: igp@police.lk

2. Ms. Eva Wanasundara
Attorney General
Attorney General's Department
Colombo 12
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 436421
E-mail: ag@attorneygeneral.gov.lk

3. Secretary
National Police Commission
3rd Floor, Rotunda Towers
109 Galle Road
Colombo 03
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 395310
Fax: +94 11 2 395867
E-mail: npcgen@sltnet.lk or polcom@sltnet.lk

4. Secretary
Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission
No. 108
Barnes Place
Colombo 07
SRI LANKA
Tel: +9411 2694925, +9411 2685980, +9411 2685981
Fax: +9411 2694924 (General) +94112696470 (Chairman)
E-mail: sechrc@sltnet.lk
 

Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrc.asia)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
AHRC-UAC-098-2012
Countries :
Issues :
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.