Relocation of Magistrate’s security: Threat to judicial independence’
07 May 2022
Relocation of Magistrate’s security: Threat to judicial independence’
07 May 2022
Police detail of Kaduwela Magistrate restored
The Police security detail assigned to Kaduwela Magistrate Chanima Wijebandara had been fully restored last Friday (6) night, The Sunday Morning reliably learns.Issuing a press release, the Prime Minister’s Office yesterday (7) stated that the PM had directed the Inspector General of Police to restore the Kaduwela Magistrate’s security detail and reinforce the security of all judges across the island. Several Police personnel assigned to the Magistrate’s security detail had been relocated without notice on Friday (6) morning, prompting the Judicial Services Association Sri Lanka (JSASL) to write to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) on the matter.In the letter to the IGP, JSASL President Prasanna Alwis stated that reducing the protection of security personnel offered to a magistrate was viewed as a threat to the independence of the Judiciary. Alwis alleged that the move to relocate the security officers had been carried out under the order of the Thalanagama Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OIC).Alwis called for a disciplinary investigation regarding the removal of security personnel and urged the IGP to ensure such acts did not happen again.However, when asked why part of the security detail had been relocated and if the full security detail had been restored, the Police Media Unit declined to comment, except to say that an official statement on the matter would be released today (8).
