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UN urged to probe SL’s custodial deaths 

09 Jun 2021

  • Prisoners rights group writes to world body 

BY Pamodi Waravita and Ruwan Laknath Jayakody    Prisoners rights group the Committee for Protecting the Rights of Prisoners (CPRP) has made an urgent appeal to the United Nations (UN) to inquire into the cases of deaths and the incidents of purported torture of prisoners while in the presence or the custody of the Police.  In a letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions, Morris Tidball-Binz and the Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Nils Melzer, the CPRP has noted the “alarming rise of deaths” where the Police is implicated.  The CPRP has stated that they have written to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) about the cases of D. Sunil Indrajith, Chandran Vidushan and Mohamed Ali, the former who had died in the presence of the Police while the latter duo had died while in Police custody.  Indrajith’s family has said that after informing the Police and the health officers, he had gone out in search of food for his family during the period his family was in quarantine due to Covid-19. CCTV footage showed that Indrajith was beaten up by a man on the orders of two Policemen, after which he had fallen on the ground, which was when a bus had run over him. Subsequently, the two Policemen had been arrested on the charge of negligence of duties.  In the case of Vidushan who died while in Police custody, family members have alleged that the Police have beaten him with poles. Even though certain ante-mortem injuries were recorded in the Judicial Medical Officer’s (JMO) report, the latter records the official cause of death as an overdose of crystal methamphetamine (ICE).  With regard to Ali, he had reportedly been arrested for violating the quarantine law and he had jumped out of the Police jeep while being taken away. However, Ali’s wife has alleged that the Police had beaten him and killed him.  The three aforementioned cases have taken place within a span of three weeks.  “In our letter to the IGP, we have pointed out that the Police have a legal obligation to protect persons in their custody and that the IGP has a responsibility to prevent such incidents. We have also stated that if people lose trust in the Police, there is a danger that they may try to resolve problems by themselves. We have emphasised that it is not enough to interdict Police officers implicated in these incidents, but that action must be taken against them based on the criminal law,” the letter further stated.  Last month also saw the deaths of Mabulage Dineth Melan Mabula alias Urujuwa and Dharmakeerthi Tharaka Perera Wijesekera alias Kosgoda Tharaka within mere days of each other while in Police custody. On both occasions, the Police Media Spokesman, Deputy Inspector General of Police Ajith Rohana said that the deaths had occurred as a result of incidents which had forced the Police officers to use their weapons. However, the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) and the legal representation of both Mabula and Wijesekera have raised concerns as to whether these were extrajudicial killings. The CPRP has also noted that there were prior concerns about the safety of Mabulage and Wijesekera which were communicated to the authorities.  Meanwhile, when queried by The Morning as to whether recommending increased involvement from the judicial branch when the Police carry out raids such as by way of having the Magistrate or Judge who ordered a suspect or accused party to be placed in the safe custody of a particular arm of the Police to be informed in prior and/or to have a judicial representative assigned by the said Magistrate or Judge to accompany the team of law enforcement personnel conducting the raid during their operations, as possible safeguards against custodial deaths including extrajudicial killings, the Chairman of the CPRP, Attorney-at-Law Senaka Perera acknowledged that such could be considered.  In the same vein, he pointed out that the non use of techniques used by other jurisdictions such as the use of cameras during the course of conducting custodial interrogations was a drawback in the process pertaining to custodial investigations concerning various categories of detainees.

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