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SRI LANKA: Intervention sought for a Buddhist Novice sexually abused by a monk

December 19, 2008

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION – URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-266-2008

19 December 2008
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SRI LANKA: Intervention sought for a Buddhist Novice sexually abused by a monk

ISSUES: Child Rights; child abuse; sexual abuse
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you regarding the sexual abuse allegedly perpetrated upon an 11-year-old Buddhist novice by the head of the temple where he stays. Although the person responsible had already been charged and arrested, there are concerns that pressure may be put upon the victim unless the police ensures that they have effectively investigated the case to hold the person to account.

CASE DETAILS:

The 11-year-old boy (name withheld) is a resident of Arnaganvila. He has been a Buddhist Novice at the Rotawewa Temple at Inamaluwa in Dambulla.

On 19 November 2008, a woman connected with the temple had taken the boy to the Dambulla Hospital for treatment. At first, he was taken due to asthma he had been suffering from. However, while at hospital, it was later discovered that he had also been a victim of sexual abuse and was exposed to sodomy.

The boy's health condition has been examined and the result of which was also released by a Judicial Medical Officer (JMO). After concluding their findings on the boy's condition, the hospital authorities have immediately notified the Dambulla Police Station about the boy's case and who now investigates the case.

As of December 17, it is learnt that since having been admitted for treatment at the hospital, the boy has already refused to go back to the temple because of the person allegedly responsible for sexually abusing him, Venerable Dammananda Himi, who was also the monk in charge of the Rotawewa Temple.

After the boy's condition had come to light, there are serious concerns now about the welfare of the 20 other Buddhist Novices who also stay in the same temple. Some of them had already been ordained as monks.

On 1 December 2008, a letter of complaint has already been made to the chairman of Child Protection, Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of Women and Children's Bureau and the chairman National Human Rights Commission for them to take immediate action about the boy's case.

According to the latest information from a reliable source, the police had already arrested Venerable Himi. However, the details of his arrest and the progress of the complaint against him are yet to be known. It is also learned that there is the likelihood that other Buddhist Novices inside the temple may have suffered the same abuses; thus, there is also a need to have their conditions examined with urgency.

After Venerable Himi's arrest though, there are serious concerns that unless proper police investigations are carried out to ensure he is effectively prosecuted, the complaint may be undermined as what has happened in previous cases wherein members of the clergy are involved.


SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write letters to the concerned authorities, in particular the police investigating this case, to ensure that investigations are effectively done. Also, the victim should be afforded the appropriate assistance he requires, like protection and shelter, as he endures the process of prosecuting those responsible for his abuse.

To support this appeal, please click here:

SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear __________,

Re: SRI LANKA: Intervention sought for a Buddhist Novice sexually abused by a monk

Name of victim: An 11-year-old boy, a resident of Arnaganvila
Person who allegedly sexually abused him: Venerable Dhammananada Himi, a person in-charge of the Rotawewa Temple Dambulla
Police investigating the case: Dambulla Police Station, Matale District II, Matale Division
Date of incident: 19 November 2008 to present

I am writing to express my deep concern into the plight of a Buddhist Novice who has been allegedly sexually abused by Venerable Dhammananada Himi, the head of the temple where he is staying.

The boy was first taken to a hospital for treatment for asthma on 19 November 2008; however, it was learned later by a Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) who had examined him that he had also been a victim of sexual abuse. The medical examination and interviews which the JMO has made on him confirms the boy had been sexually abused and was needlessly exposed to sodomy.

After learning of this incident, the JMO had immediately informed the Dambulla Police Station about the boy's case which they have also investigated. Separate letters of complaints have also been sent to the chairman of Child Protection, Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of Women and Children's Bureau and the chairman National Human Rights Commission for them to take immediate action.

Though I have learned that Venerable Himi has already been arrested recently after the complaint was made on him, I am deeply concern over the possibility that the case may be needlessly undermined unless the police do their job effectively and impartially.

I therefore urged you to have this case consistently followed upon to ensure that the person responsible is held to account.

Also apart from ensuring the case progresses effectively, I also urge you to afford appropriate assistance—psychological and trauma treatment; rehabilitation and legal assistance, amongst others—the boy urgently requires. I have learned that after the incident, he has since refused to return to the temple which shows the extent of the fear and trauma he has suffered from the incident.

I expect that you will take appropriate action in this case.

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

1. Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse
President
Socialist Democratic Republic of Sri Lanka
C/- Office of the President
Temple Trees
150, Galle Road
Colombo 3
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2472100 / +94 11 2446657
E-mail: secretary@presidentsoffice.lk 

2.  Mr. Jayantha Wickramaratne
Inspector General of Police (IGP)
New Secretariat
Colombo 1
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 440440/327877
E-mail: igp@police.lk

3.  Chairperson
National Child Protection Authority
330, Thalawathgoda Road
Madiwella
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 778975
Tel: +94 11 2 778912/13/14
E-mail: ncpa@childprotection.gov.lk  

4.  Officer-in-charge
Women and Children’s Bureau
25, Yst Building
Srimath Baron Jayathilake Mawatha
Colombo 01

5. Mr. Priyasath Dep Attorney General
Attorney General's Department
Colombo 12
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 436421
E-mail: attorney@sri.lanka.net 

6. Secretary
Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka
No. 36, Kynsey Road
Colombo 8
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 694 924 / 696 470
Tel: +94 11 2 694 925 / 673 806
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-266-2008
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.