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UPDATE (Sri Lanka): Gerald Perera died after gunshot; His family needs urgent protection

November 25, 2004

UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Update on Urgent Appeal
25 November 2004

[RE: UP-74-2004:  SRI LANKA: No action from the government to protect torture victim even after attempt on his life  on 23 November 2004; UA-157-2004: SRI LANKA: Torture victim pursuing criminal torture case shot on 21 November 2004; UP-44-2002 (RE: UA/18 and 19/2002 - Torture by police, impunity, denial of proper rehabilitation on 21 June 2002; UP-47-2002 (RE: UA/18 and 19/2002 - Torture by police, impunity and denial of proper rehabilitation on 2 July 2002 ]
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UP-76-2004: SRI LANKA: Gerald Perera died after gunshot; His family needs urgent protection

SRI LANKA: Lack of witness protection; Impunity; Rule of law
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is very sorry to inform you that Mr. Gerald Perera, a torture victim who was shot by an unknown person on 21 November 2004, succumbed to his injuries at around 1:00pm local time on 24 November 2004, at the Colombo Hospital, Sri Lanka. (See further: AHRC statement AS-51-2004 and AHRC press release AHRC-PL-100-2004)  Mr. Gerald Perera had been in a critical condition since he was shot on November 21. He leaves behind a wife and three children, the youngest of whom is eight-months' old.

A complaint to the police was made within moments of the incident followed constant interventions at the domestic and international level to the Sri Lankan authorities on this issue. The local and international media also had given broad coverage to this murder.

However, so far no person has been arrested or produced before a court in connection with this heinous crime.  This is despite the fact that the murder has been shown clearly to be linked to a torture case in which Gerald Perera was to give evidence in the Negombo High Court.  He was due to give evidence in court against seven police officers accused of torture on 2 December 2004. 

Representations regarding the case have been made to the government through the Inspector General of Police, the Attorney General, the National Police Commission and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka.  However, despite constant ressure appealed by all concerned, there seems to have been no progress.  Neither the family of Gerald Perera nor the public has received any information regarding the investigation into this crime.  Whether there is pressure to hush up this crime or whether this silence is due to other reasons, is difficult to predict.

The AHRC has been reliably informed that Gerald Perera's wife and other family members are now scared for their lives. They live in mortal fear because they see that law-enforcement officers have set murderers onto them. Even the noise of a vehicle outside is said to cause the whole family to run and hide under a bed.

The AHRC once again calls for your strong intervention into this matter. Please send a letter to the government of Sri Lanka as well as the Sri Lankan embassy/consulate in your country demanding prompt inquiries into this case so that the culprits may be brought to justice. Please also urge them to provide protection to Gerald Perera's family and to enable his funeral rites to be performed in an atmosphere of peace.

Further, the AHRC calls upon everyone to rally in front of the Sri Lankan embassy/consulate in your country to condemn this murder of Gerald Perera. It is high time to demonstrate your strong support to Gerald's family and other torture victims and human rights activists in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka may be heading towards a major catastrophe characterised by lawlessness and a lack of basic security that only extremely urgent action can avert.  

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send a letter, fax or email to the addressees below and express your deep concern about this case.

Sample letter:

Dear _________,

Re: SRI LANKA: Inquiries into the murder of Gerald Marvin Perera; The victim's family and other torture victims need urgent protection

Gerald Perera was shot on 21 November 2004 and succumbed to his injuries on 24 November 2004. A complaint to the police was made within moments of the incident. There have been constant interventions from numerous quarters since. The local and international media also have given broad coverage to this murder. Gerald Perera had already won a fundamental rights case in the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka for the torture done to him (SCFR 328/2003) and obtained a record compensation payment, and was due to testify to the Negombo High Court on December 2 (HC 326/2003).

However, so far no person has been arrested or produced before a court in connection with this killing. This is even though the murder has been shown to be linked to a torture case in which Gerald Perera was to give evidence in the Negombo High Court. The accused in the case are seven police officers.  Representations regarding the case have been made to the government through the Inspector General of Police, the Attorney General, the National Police Commission and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka. However, despite constant reminders there seems to be no progress. Neither the family of Gerald Perera nor the public has received any information regarding the investigation into the crime.  Whether there is pressure to hush up this crime or whether this silence is due to other reasons is hard to say.

Other torture victims and persons close to them are also now getting death threats. Since the killing of Gerald Perera, there seems to be a plan spreading wider and wider to get rid of torture victims who have made complaints in the courts. In the current situation, the victims and also the persons supporting them are in grave danger. 

I urge you to make prompt inquiries into the killing of Gerald Perera so that the culprits may be brought to justice without delay. I also urge you to take necessary steps for protection of other victims and human rights defenders whose lives are in danger. Without protection of these persons, the law to prohibit torture is meaningless. Without protection, nobody will make complaints of torture against the police and other authorities. The government of Sri Lanka has repeatedly said that it wants to protect human rights, but when people complain of violations of their rights, their lives are in danger. I urge you to change this situation.  

Yours sincerely,


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PLEASE SEND A LETTER TO:

1. Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse
Prime Minister
Cambridge Place
Colombo 7
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 682905 / 575454
E-mail: secpm@sltnet.lk  or bradmanw@slt.lk

2. Mr. K. C. Kamalasabesan
Attorney General
Attorney General's Department
Colombo 12
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 436 421
Email: attorney@sri.lanka.net  or counsel@sri.lanka.net

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

4. Mr. Ranjith Abeysuriya PC
Chairperson
National Police Commission
69-1 Ward Place, Colombo 7
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 669 528
Fax HOME: +94 11 2 674148
E-mail: polcom@sltnet.lk

5. Dr. Radhika Coomaraswamy
Chairperson
Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka
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. Mr. Theo C. van Boven
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. Mr. Philip Alston
Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions
Att: Lydie Ventre
Room 3-016
c/o OHCHR-UNOG, 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Tel: +41 22 917 9155
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (general)
E-mail: lventre@ohchr.org

8. Ms. Hina Jilani
Special Representative for human rights defenders
Att: Ben Majekodunmi
Room 1-040, C/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 93 88
Fax: +41 22 917 9006
E-mail: bmajekodunmi@ohchr.org

Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Update
Document ID :
UP-76-2004
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.