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AG instructs IGP to urgently probe attacks on protest sites

11 May 2022

  • Terms attacks ‘unlawful’, also advises probe into violent retaliation
  • IGP tasks CID with probe  
  • HRCSL summons IGP/Army Commander
  • ‘GotaGoGama’ rebuilt by protestors 
BY Pamodi Waravita, Dinitha Rathnayake, and Buddhika Samaraweera  Attorney General (AG) Sanjay Rajaratnam PC has reportedly instructed Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chandana D. Wickramaratne to investigate the “unlawful interferences” into the people’s Constitutional rights on Monday (9).  “The peaceful assemblies of protests were interfered with by a large group of people in breach of the Constitution and the Penal laws of the land as could be seen from the incidents that occurred in Colombo on Monday,” Rajaratnam said in a letter to Wickramaratne yesterday (10), according to a copy of the letter circulating on social media.  “Unlawful interference was seen to have been carried out in the form of the physical assault of a serious nature, causing bodily injury to those who engaged in the exercise of their Constitutional freedoms.” The AG has noted that people have been acting according to their Constitutionally granted rights (the freedom of speech, peaceful assembly, and association) over the past few weeks.  “In this regard, it is the Constitutional duty of all organs of the Government, to respect, secure, and advance the fundamental rights in terms of Article 4(d) of the Constitution.” Thus, the AG has instructed the IGP to conduct a fully fledged investigation into the aforementioned unlawful interferences, the circumstances that led to them, and the consequent commission of Penal offences in the process.  “As the incidents in metropolitan Colombo have triggered sporadic acts of violence of a serious nature involving people and their property all over the country, I advise you to further investigate the aftermath of the incidents on Monday,” said the AG.  The AG also urged the IGP to complete the investigations on an urgent, priority basis, considering both the domestic and international ramifications that surround these incidents of a serious nature.  Following this, the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) has been assigned to conduct the investigation into the attacks on peaceful protestors in Colombo, the Police said. The CID will conduct investigations into the attacks on anti-Government protesters near the Temple Trees and at the Galle Face Green in Colombo by supporters of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP).  On Monday, supporters of then-Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa gathered at Temple Trees, where they engaged in chants, asking him not to resign. They were addressed by Rajapaksa, inside the Temple Trees.  Following this, the crowd assaulted the protesters outside the Temple Trees, at “MynaGoGama”, where they were engaged in a days-long struggle, demanding his resignation. The crowd then moved towards “GotaGoGama”, where they assaulted anti-Government protesters, setting fire to many structures near the Galle Face Green that belonged to the protestors.  Government MP Johnston Fernando was at the Temple Trees, whilst video reports show SLPP Government MP Sanath Nishantha forming part of this pro-Government mob, and allegations have also been levelled at Moratuwa Mayor Saman Lal Fernando for transporting busloads of people to be a part of the mob. Rajapaksa resigned from the Premiership later that day.  Following this, “GotaGoGama” was rebuilt at the Galle Face Green, with the struggle demanding the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa continuing for the 33rd consecutive day.  The homes of several MPs have been burnt around the island, including in Medamulana, which the Rajapaksa family has named as their ancestral home in Hambantota.  Meanwhile, several clips of video footage have emerged showing the inaction of the Police when Rajapaksa supporters stormed the protest site at the Galle Face Green. Nishantha, who was among the SLPP supporters who led the attacks on peaceful protestors, was also pictured with Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police Deshabandu Tennakoon at the Galle Face at the time.  In the wake of the sequence of incidents on Monday and yesterday, the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) has issued a summons on the IGP, and Army Commander and Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Shavendra Silva. The HRCSL said that the IGP and the Army Commander have been summoned to the Commission tomorrow (12), to explain why they failed to maintain law and order during incidents that took place when unrest broke out in Sri Lanka on Monday. Several parties including religious leaders, professional bodies, and civil and political movements have called on the authorities to carry out a transparent investigation into the attacks on peaceful protestors carried out by the SLPP supporters on Monday in front of the Temple Trees and at the Galle Face Green, which led to a series of countrywide incidents in which eight were killed and more than 150 were injured.


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