Sri Lanka’s law enforcement community has many allegations levelled against it. Growing out of a colonial Police foundation, and plunged into cold war era, counter-insurgency and anti-communist operations in the ’70s, the island’s mainstream law enforcement agencies have long been criticised for abuse of power, politicisation, inefficiency, collusion with criminal elements and acting with impunity. The ills and the merits of the domestic law enforcement agencies have been well discussed and debated, resulting in the public calling for the sector to be reformed and cleansed. 

Often, Opposition parties, minority groups, legal professionals have questioned how the Police can be entrusted to ‘police’ or investigate themselves. The practice has often been to let the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Special Task Force (STF) or Special Branch carry out investigations regarding allegations where Police are alleged to be linked to a crime or are called the perpetrators. However, the efficiency of such units within the Police, have also come under scrutiny and or linked to disrepute. Besides, the STF – being a para-military law enforcement agency tasked with counterinsurgency, well recognised in its field as leaders in their field, are nevertheless also accused of many allegations.  In general, there is a significant trust deficit between the public and the local law enforcement authorities.

Recently, the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) following a fact-finding mission at the Chemmani mass grave site, where more than 200 human remains had already been unearthed, noted in a report that foreign expertise and advanced technology would be required to complete the investigation effectively. It also warned that the continued involvement of regular Police officers who are deployed to guard the site may prejudice the outcome of the investigations. The report from the Human Rights watch dog, may be a bitter pill for the State to swallow, and also casts a shadow over the overall credibility of the State in investigating serious conflict era allegations which have largely been left unaddressed by multiple governments, thus far. Nevertheless, the concern has been raised. The Ministry of Public Security has pushed back against the statement, stating that it is not practical to frequently rotate or assign different Police officers to the excavation site. 

Speaking to The Daily Morning, Minister of Public Security Ananda Wijepala said that Police officers from nearby stations are deployed according to shift rosters and are present solely to provide security to the site. “That is how policing is done. Officers have to be deployed to a particular place from nearby stations. There is no alternative. We can’t deploy Police officers from Colombo to Chemmani, can we?” While Wijepala is correct to assert operational deployment challenges of Police officers, it does not answer the sting of the primary law enforcement arm of the State being placed under a cloud in such a manner. The NPP Government, since it came to power, has tried to show that they are ‘cleaning house’ with the Police department. There have been some successes with the process, and some significant criticism about how it is being done as well.

However, the deep distrust, domestically and internationally, about the Sri Lankan law enforcement agencies on a range of issues, points to the requirement for an entity with credibility, perhaps one without legacy baggage and tainted names in its command structure. Is it time for Sri Lanka to establish a ‘new sheriff in town’? Is it time for a new agency, under a new mandate, to be recruited, screened, trained, equipped and tasked with specialised law enforcement duties, and outside the chain of command of the Police Department? Perhaps it is time for Sri Lanka to have its version of the United States Marshals Service, placed under the purview of the Ministry of Justice or a Special Prosecutor to handle internal investigations about law enforcement, locating and arresting high-risk suspects, the administration of fugitive operations, the seizure of criminal assets and, managing protective services such as Witness Protection Programmes. Such an entity freshly stood up, with world-class training and vetting could also provide protection of courthouses and judicial personnel. A new service, void of legacy allegations, trained to better professional standards and more representative of the national demography, may be well received by all communities and begin to bridge the trust deficit, while the legacy law enforcement agencies undergo reform and restructuring. Such an entity may also be better received internationally, and may be able to better network with regional for international crime fighting partners, a need which has also been highlighted.