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SRI LANKA: Pussellawa Police illegally arrested, detained, tortured, and filed fabricated charges against an estate labourer

September 7, 2010

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION-URGENT APPEAL PROGRAMME

 

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-129-2010

 

 

 

7 September 2010

 

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SRI LANKA: Pussellawa Police illegally arrested, detained, tortured, and filed fabricated charges against an estate labourer

 

ISSUES: Illegal arrest; arbitrary detention; torture; fabricated charges; impunity; rule of law

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Dear friends,

 

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that an estate labourer was illegally arrested by police officers attached to the Pussellawa Police Station and arbitrarily detained and tortured. Later, the police produced him before the Magistrate at Hellbodde Circuit Court on fabricated charges of possession of materials used for to produce illicit liquor. After learning that the victim is taking legal action against the police officers who violated his rights the officers concerned rearrested him and threatened him with future false charges.

 

 

CASE NARRATIVE:

 

 

Manivel Saundrarasau (46) of Ayarie Division, Frotoft Group, Ramboda, is a laborer in the Frotoft estate. He is married with two children, a daughter and a son both of whom have completed their studies.

 

On 10 August 2010 three police officers attached to the Pussellawa Police Station came to Manivel's house and inquired about him. One officer was in uniform bearing number 73252 and the others were in civilian clothes. Since Manivel was not at home, the police officers have given a notice to his wife, Angal Selvi, asking him to present himself at the Pussellawa Police Station by 4pm on the same day. Manivel received the message when he was at the Kovil (Hindu temple) and immediately went to the Pussellawa Police Station.

 

When Manivel went to the police station he saw a barrel and a hose pipe within the police compound. Later the officer in the station accused him of making illicit liquor and he was slapped and was pushed into a police cell. Manivel categorically denied that the materials belonged to him at anytime. In the evening his wife went to the police station to visit Manivel. Later he was released on police bail which was signed by his wife as surety. However, Manivel was asked to appear before the Hellbodde Circuit Court on 18 August, 2010. When he appeared before the Magistrate he found that the police have filed fabricated charges of processing "Goda" (which is used to make illicit liquor) and possessing a hose pipe and 2 barrels for the same purpose, against him. In the charge sheet it mentioned that the items were detected on 10 August 2010, the day he appeared at the police station. However Manivel categorically states that he has never been involved in making illicit liquor nor had any previous convictions.

 

When the case against Manivel was taken up before the Magistrate, an Attorney-at-Law appeared on his behalf and pleaded not guilty for the chargers filed against him. For an estate labourer it is not usual to retain a lawyer and pleading not guilty as the proceedings would take numerous appearances and time due to the prolonged delays in the courts. Later on the police suspected that Manivel was being assisted by civil society activists or an organization which works in the field of the promotion and protection of human rights on a pro bono basis. They then began to follow him in the hopes of finding further incriminating evidence against.

 

Then two police officers attached to the Pussellawa Police Station arrived in civilian clothes at his residence on 3 September at around 6.30am and questioned him about seeking the assistance of a human rights organization. When he was being questioned, in front of his house, people of the neighborhood started to gather, including the Grama Sevaka (state officer belong to the village). Then the police officers asked Manivel to get into the jeep which was parked on the main road. He was then taken towards Pussellawa town and on the way he was threatened by these two police officers that they would rearrested him on many other fabricated chargers for taking action against the police officers on the basis of violating his human rights. He was finally dropped off and the jeep went towards Pussellawa town.

 

Presently Manivel is in fear that he would be rearrested and laid with fabricated charges. Further he is in fear that police officers would continue to threaten and harass him and his family members in future.

 

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

 

 

The Asian Human Rights Commission has reported innumerable cases of arbitrarily arrest, detentions, torturing the innocent when they are at the hands of the police and filling enormous amounts of fabricated charges against innocents by the Sri Lankan police which are illegal under international and local law and which have taken place at different police stations in the country over the past few years. The Asian Human Rights Commission has observed that Sri Lankan police have used the filling of fabricated chargers against innocent persons as an illegal instrument to harass the public.

 

The Constitution of Sri Lanka has guaranteed the right freedom from torture. According to Article 11 of the Constitution 'No person shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment'. Article 12 (1) of the Constitution of Sri Lanka has guaranteed the right to equality for all persons as stated that 'all persons are equal before the law and are entitled to the equal protection of the law'. Further Article 13 (1) has stated that 'No person shall be arrested except according to procedure established by law. Any person arrested shall be informed of the reason for his arrest'

.

 

Furthermore, Sri Lanka has signed and ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Nevertheless the lack of protection offered to those who are willing to take cases against abusive police officers and the state authorities, means that the law is under-used continues to be employed as a tool by the police to harass people. This not only takes a long-term toll on the victim and his or her family, but on society as a whole, by the undermining of civilian respect for the law and encouraging impunity.

 

The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT) was signed by the State of Sri Lanka and ratified on 3 January 1994. Following state obligations Sri Lanka adopted Act No. 22 of 1994 the law adopted by the Sri Lankan parliament making torture a crime that can be punishable for minimum seven years and not less than ten years on being proven guilty. The Attorney General of Sri Lanka is supposed to file indictments in the case where credible evidence is found on the torturing of people by state officers.

 

Furthermore, the Asian Human Rights Commission has continuously exposed the way the witness and the victims are getting harassed and on some occasions even killed to suppress the justice. Furthermore we have urged the State of Sri Lanka to adopt a law for the protection of witness protection.

 

SUGGESTED ACTION:

 

 

Please send a letter to the authorities listed below expressing your concern about this case and requesting an immediate investigation into the allegations of illegal arrest, arbitrary detention, torturing, filling fabricated charges and finally threatening the witness by the police perpetrators, and the prosecution of those proven to be responsible under the criminal law of the country for misusing powers of a state officers and for mis-prosecution. The officers involved must also be subjected to internal investigations for the breach of the department orders as issued by the police department.

 

Please note that the Asian Human Rights Commission has already written separate letters to the Special Rapporteur on the Question of Torture of United Nations on this regard.

 

To support this appeal please click here:

 

 

SAMPLE LETTER:

 

 

Dear ________,

 

SRI LANKA: Pussellawa Police arbitrarily detained, tortured and fabricated charges against an estate labourer

 

 

Name of Victim:

Manivel Saundrarasau (46), living in Ayarie Division, Frotoft Group, Ramboda

Name of alleged perpetrators:

Police officer bearing number 73252 and another 2 police officers attached to the Pussellawa Police Station

 

Date of incident:

10 August 2010

Place of incident:

Pussellawa police station

 

I have learned that Manivel Saundrarasau (46) of Ayarie Division, Frotoft Group, Ramboda, who is a laborer in the Frotoft estate, has been illegally arrested, detained and tortured by the Pussellawa police

 

On 10 August 2010 three police officers attached to the Pussellawa Police Station came to Manivel's house and inquired about him. One officer was in uniform bearing number 73252 and the others were in civilian clothes. Since Manivel was not at home, the police officers have given a notice to his wife, Angal Selvi, asking him to present himself at the Pussellawa Police Station by 4pm on the same day. Manivel received the message when he was at the Kovil (Hindu temple) and immediately went to the Pussellawa Police Station.

 

When Manivel went to the police station he saw a barrel and a hose pipe within the police compound. Later the officer in the station accused him of making illicit liquor and he was slapped and was pushed into a police cell. Manivel categorically denied that the materials belonged to him at anytime. In the evening his wife went to the police station to visit Manivel. Later he was released on police bail which was signed by his wife as surety. However, Manivel was asked to appear before the Hellbodde Circuit Court on 18 August 2010. When he appeared before the Magistrate he found that the police have filed fabricated charges of processing "Goda" (which is used to make illicit liquor) and possessing a hose pipe and 2 barrels for the same purpose, against him. In the charge sheet it mentioned that the items were detected on 10 August 2010, the day he appeared at the police station. However Manivel categorically states that he has never been involved in making illicit liquor nor had any previous convictions.

 

When the case against Manivel was taken up before the Magistrate, an Attorney-at-Law appeared on his behalf and pleaded not guilty for the chargers filed against him. For an estate labourer it is not usual to retain a lawyer and pleading not guilty as the proceedings would take numerous appearances and time due to the prolonged delays in the courts. Later on the police suspected that Manivel was being assisted by civil society activists or an organization which works in the field of the promotion and protection of human rights on a pro bono basis. They then began to follow him in the hopes of finding further incriminating evidence against.

 

Then two police officers attached to the Pussellawa Police Station arrived in civilian clothes at his residence on 3 September at around 6.30am and questioned him about seeking the assistance of a human rights organization. When he was being questioned, in front of his house, people of the neighborhood started to gather, including the Grama Sevaka (state officer belong to the village). Then the police officers asked Manivel to get into the jeep which was parked on the main road. He was then taken towards Pussellawa town and on the way he was threatened by these two police officers that they would rearrested him on many other fabricated chargers for taking action against the police officers on the basis of violating his human rights. He was finally dropped off and the jeep went towards Pussellawa town.

 

Presently Manivel is in fear that he would be rearrested and laid with fabricated charges. Further he is in fear that police officers would continue to threaten and harass him and his family members in future.

 

I request your urgent intervention to ensure that the authorities listed below instigate an immediate investigation into the allegations of illegal arrest, detention, torture, filling fabricated charges and threatening the witness by the police perpetrators, and the prosecution of those proven to be responsible under the criminal law of the country for misusing powers of a state officers and for wrongful prosecution. 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. Mahinda Balasuriya

Inspector General of Police

New Secretariat

Colombo 1

SRI LANKA

Fax: +94 11 2 440440 / 327877

E-mail: igp@police.lk

 

2. Mr. Mohan Peiris

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

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

 

 

Thank you.

 

Urgent Appeals Programme

Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrc.asia

)

 

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
AHRC-UAC-129-2010
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.