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SRI LANKA: Arbitrary detention and torture committed yet again by the Horana police

January 10, 2006

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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION – URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal

10 January 2006
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UA-014-2006: SRI LANKA: Arbitrary detention and torture committed yet again by the Horana police

SRI LANKA: Abuse of power; Torture; Illegal detention; Impunity
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the torture and arbitrary detention of Nihal Kithsiri. Nihal was arrested by SI Silva and PC Bandara and taken to the Horana Police station without being charged.  The victim was allegedly inhumanly and brutally assaulted all over his body.  He says that the police officers also suspended him from a ceiling where he was beaten.  On the same day, two of Nihal’s friends, Kumara and Sumith Haputhantri were arrested by the same police officers who had tortured Nihal.  They were taken to the police station where they too were subjected to severe torture.  The police officers also confiscated several of Nihal’s belongings, including a bicycle and a radio.  To this date the three victims are still arbitrarily detained without charge at the Horana Police station where they are continually being subjected to torture and abuse from the police officers.

The AHRC urges you to intervene in this matter. Please write a letter to the Inspector General of Police to ensure that the three victims are immediately released or produced before a Magistrate’s Court.  They must be examined by a Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) and afforded medical treatment for their heinous injuries.  Furthermore, the Special Investigations Unit must immediately commence an investigation into this case, in order to make those police officers from Horana Police station accountable for the alleged torture.  If it is found that the alleged perpetrators had committed crimes against the three victims, then they must be made accountable for their actions and if found guilty of torture, indicted under the CAT Act No. 22 of 1994. Protection must be afforded to the victims and their families while the guilty officers are being investigated and compensation must be awarded. 

The AHRC is disappointed to find that the Sri Lankan government has failed to take any action against the Horana police considering the numerous urgent appeals we have done on their officers’ misconduct, including one last week, one in December and one in June 2005.  We hope that this urgent appeal will be taken seriously by the Sri Lankan government and can result in the guilty parties being brought to justice. 

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission
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DETAILED INFORMATION:

Name of victims: Nihal Kithsiri, 30, married with one child, occupation - casual labourer; and Kumara and Sumith Haputhatri, friends of the victim. 
Alleged perpetrators: Policemen including Bandara and Kaldera of the Horana Police station
Date of incident: 7 December 2005

Details of the incident:

Nihal Kithsiri was arrested on 7 December 2005 at around 10.00am by SI Silva and PC Bandara of the Horana police.  Nihal was then taken to the police station where officers Bandara and Kaldera allegedly brutally assaulted Nihal all over his body.  The victim was then suspended from the ceiling and once again severely beaten.  The injuries sustained from the alleged torture were witnessed by the victim’s mother and lawyer who were allowed to see him while he was in police custody.  They saw a number of injuries all over his body and noticed that he was in severe pain.  The arrest by the Horana police was completely unprovoked and they still have not filed any charges against the victim.

Later, in the evening of the same day, police officers Bandara and Kaldera arrested Kumara and Sumith Haputhantri who are friends of Nihal.  They were taken to the police station and allegedly subjected to acts of torture from the police officers.  Kumara sustained severe burn injuries to his body.  The police also went to Nihal’s home where they confiscated several items including a bicycle and a radio.  On December 11, Nihal’s brother informed the Human Rights Commission via their ‘torture hotline’ regarding the victims’ torture at the hands of the Horana police.  However, despite these notifications, the victims continue to be arbitrarily detained and tortured at the hands of the Horana police officers.  

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please send a letter to the Inspector General of Police voicing the need for an independent investigation to be instigated against the unlawful abuse carried out by the Horana police officers.  Furthermore, other relevant authorities need to be contacted urging them to ensure that the three victims are brought swiftly to a Magistrate’s Court and also examined by a Judicial Medical Officer.

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SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear___________,

Re: SRI LANKA: Arbitrary detention and torture committed yet again by the Horana police

Name of victims: Nihal Kithsiri, 30, married with one child, occupation - casual labourer; Kumara and Sumith Haputhatri, friends of the victim. 
Alleged perpetrators: Policemen including Bandara and Kaldera of the Horana Police station
Date of incident: 7 December 2005

I am writing to voice my concern over the alleged torture of Nihal Kithsiri, Kumara and Sumith Haputhatri committed by police officers attached to the Horana Police station.  Nihal Kithsiri was arrested on 7 December 2005 at around 10.00am by SI Silva and PC Bandara of the Horana police.  Nihal was then taken to the police station where officers Bandara and Kaldera allegedly brutally assaulted Nihal all over his body.  The victim was then suspended from the ceiling and once again severely beaten. 

Later, in the evening of the same day, police officers Bandara and Kaldera arrested Kumara and Sumith Haputhantri who are friends of Nihal.  They were taken to the police station and allegedly subjected to acts of torture from the police officers.  Kumara sustained severe burn injuries to his body.  All three victims’ arrests were completely unprovoked and no charges have been filed against them by the Horana police officers.  The police also went to Nihal’s home where they confiscated several items including a bicycle and a radio.  On December 11, Nihal’s brother informed the Human Rights Commission via their ‘torture hotline’ regarding the victims’ torture at the hands of the Horana police.  However, despite these notifications, the victims continue to be arbitrarily detained and tortured at the hands of the Horana police officers.  

I am very disappointed to find that the Sri Lankan government still has not taken any action against the Horana police officers considering the numerous urgent appeals the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) have done on the Horana police officers’ misconduct, including one last week, one in December and one in June 2005.  I hope that this and all the other cases will be taken seriously by the Sri Lankan government and can result in the guilty parties being brought to justice. 

I request your urgent action to ensure that the Special Investigations Unit immediately commence an investigation into the alleged conduct of the police officers from the Horana Police station in accordance with Article 12 of the CAT. If it is found that the alleged perpetrators had committed crimes against the three victims, then they must be made accountable for their actions and if found guilty of torture, indicted under the CAT Act No. 22 of 1994.  Furthermore, the relevant authorities must ensure that the three victims are either immediately released or produced before a Magistrate’s Court.  A Judicial Medical Officer must also be assigned to examine the injuries of the three victims.  Protection must be afforded to the victims and their families while the guilty officers are being investigated in accordance with Article 13 of CAT and compensation must be awarded for medical treatment applied on the victims’ heinous injuries.   

Finally, I would like to remind the Sri Lankan government of its obligations to adhere to the Articles contained within the CAT and the recent conclusions and recommendations of the Committee Against Torture submitted by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, in particular, the need for prompt and impartial investigations (article 12) and protection from intimidation and threats (article 15). 

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND LETTERS TO:

1. Mr. Chandra Fernando.
Inspector General of Police (IGP)
New Secretariat
Colombo 1
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 440440/327877

2. Mr. K. C. Kamalasabesan
Attorney General
Attorney General's Department
Colombo 12
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 436 421

3. National Police Commission
3rd Floor, Rotunda Towers,
109 Galle Road
Colombo 03
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 395310
Fax: +94 11 2 395867
Fax HOME: +94 11 2 674148
E-mail: polcom@sltnet.lk

4. Dr. Radhika Coomaraswamy
Chairperson Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka
No. 36, Kynsey Road
Colombo 8
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 694925 / 673806
Fax: +94 11 2 694924 / 696470
E-mail: sechrc@sltnet.lk

5. His Excellency the Hon. 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 (this is contact for Secretary to President) 
Email: secretary@presidentsoffice.lk

6. Prof. Manfred Nowak
Special Rapporteur on the Question of Torture
Attn: Mr. Safir Syed
C/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9230
Fax: +41 22 917 9016 (general)
E-mail: ssyed@ohchr.org

7. Ms Leila Zerrougui
Chairperson
Working Group on Arbitrary Detention
c/o Miguel de la Lama
OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (ATTENTION: Working Group on Arbitrary Detention)
Email: mdelalama@ohchr.org

Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-014-2006
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.