Sri Lanka
05.01.05
Urgent Interventions
Sri Lanka - Arbitrary arrest and torture of Mr. Kavirathna Piyantha Kumara de Silva
Case LKA 050105
URGENT APPEAL
Arbitrary arrest/Torture
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Sri Lanka.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), a member of the OMCT network, of the arbitrary arrest and torture of Mr. Kavirathna Priyantha Kumara de Silva by police officers on 19 December 2004 in Kalutara North Police Station.
According to the information received, at midnight (around 0:30am) of 19 December 2004, a group of people arrived in the house of Mr. Kavirathna Priyantha Kumara de Silva and smashed doors and windows while accusing him of stealing a mobile phone. They also threatened to cut him into pieces. Terrified, his sister and brother-in-law went to the Kalutara North Police station at about 1:00am and made a complaint about the incident.
However, 30 minutes later four police officers came to Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva's house in a police jeep and arrested him without an arrest warrant, instead of arresting those people who attacked his house. Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva was then taken to the crimes branch of the Kalutara North Police Station. At the police station, Police Constable 15050 Amitha and another policeman reportedly severely beat him with wooden poles and their fists, and kicked him on all over the body including his soles, legs, face and back. They then placed some books on the victim's head and hit it hard with poles. The torture was continued for more than four hours till about 6:00am. At around 6:30 a.m. Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva was again beaten with a pole by Sub Inspector (S.I.) Weerasiri of the crimes branch who asked him where the mobile phone was. He was put into the lock-up at 8:00am and kept there until 4:00pm. While he was in police custody, the police did not provide any food.
The Kalutara North police produced Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva before Kalutara Magistrate Court at 4:30 p.m. on December 19. The magistrate ordered him to pay Rs. 3,500/ - cash bail and Rs. 25,000/ - personal bail. He was then remanded to Kalutara Remand Prison as he could not pay the bail money. At the prison, he informed the prison officers that he had been tortured by the police. He was then sent to the prison hospital where he was treated until 3:00pm of the following day (December 20). Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva was produced before Kalutara Magistrate Court again in the afternoon and was released on bail. Immediately after release, he was admitted to ward no. 11 of Nagoda General Hospital where the Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) examined him. He was discharged on the same day.
In its Medico-Legal report (No. 1590/04 dated 21.12.2004) issued by the JMO, the victim has the following injuries: a contused area of 15x10cm on the outer of the right hip and in the center of this area, 1x1cm grazed abrasion was found; and generalised swelling on both soles of the feet, caused by blunt weapons
On December 22, the mother of Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva lodged a complaint about her son's case to Senior Superintendent of Police- Kalutara. On the same day, the victim lodged written complaints to the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, the National Police Commission and the Attorney General. The victim is still suffering from severe pain due to torture and cannot walk freely.
Action requested
Please write to the authorities in Sri Lanka urging them to:
i. Take all measures necessary to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva
ii. Immediately order a thorough and impartial investigation into these events, in order to identify all those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
iii. Provide adequate protection to the victim, his family and any witnesses;
iv. Guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Addresses
Please also write to the embassies of Sri Lanka in your respective country.
Geneva, 05 January 2005.
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
URGENT APPEAL
Arbitrary arrest/Torture
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Sri Lanka.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), a member of the OMCT network, of the arbitrary arrest and torture of Mr. Kavirathna Priyantha Kumara de Silva by police officers on 19 December 2004 in Kalutara North Police Station.
According to the information received, at midnight (around 0:30am) of 19 December 2004, a group of people arrived in the house of Mr. Kavirathna Priyantha Kumara de Silva and smashed doors and windows while accusing him of stealing a mobile phone. They also threatened to cut him into pieces. Terrified, his sister and brother-in-law went to the Kalutara North Police station at about 1:00am and made a complaint about the incident.
However, 30 minutes later four police officers came to Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva's house in a police jeep and arrested him without an arrest warrant, instead of arresting those people who attacked his house. Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva was then taken to the crimes branch of the Kalutara North Police Station. At the police station, Police Constable 15050 Amitha and another policeman reportedly severely beat him with wooden poles and their fists, and kicked him on all over the body including his soles, legs, face and back. They then placed some books on the victim's head and hit it hard with poles. The torture was continued for more than four hours till about 6:00am. At around 6:30 a.m. Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva was again beaten with a pole by Sub Inspector (S.I.) Weerasiri of the crimes branch who asked him where the mobile phone was. He was put into the lock-up at 8:00am and kept there until 4:00pm. While he was in police custody, the police did not provide any food.
The Kalutara North police produced Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva before Kalutara Magistrate Court at 4:30 p.m. on December 19. The magistrate ordered him to pay Rs. 3,500/ - cash bail and Rs. 25,000/ - personal bail. He was then remanded to Kalutara Remand Prison as he could not pay the bail money. At the prison, he informed the prison officers that he had been tortured by the police. He was then sent to the prison hospital where he was treated until 3:00pm of the following day (December 20). Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva was produced before Kalutara Magistrate Court again in the afternoon and was released on bail. Immediately after release, he was admitted to ward no. 11 of Nagoda General Hospital where the Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) examined him. He was discharged on the same day.
In its Medico-Legal report (No. 1590/04 dated 21.12.2004) issued by the JMO, the victim has the following injuries: a contused area of 15x10cm on the outer of the right hip and in the center of this area, 1x1cm grazed abrasion was found; and generalised swelling on both soles of the feet, caused by blunt weapons
On December 22, the mother of Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva lodged a complaint about her son's case to Senior Superintendent of Police- Kalutara. On the same day, the victim lodged written complaints to the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, the National Police Commission and the Attorney General. The victim is still suffering from severe pain due to torture and cannot walk freely.
Action requested
Please write to the authorities in Sri Lanka urging them to:
i. Take all measures necessary to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. K.P. Kumara de Silva
ii. Immediately order a thorough and impartial investigation into these events, in order to identify all those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
iii. Provide adequate protection to the victim, his family and any witnesses;
iv. Guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Addresses
- Mr. Mahindra Rajapakse, Prime Minister Temple Trees, Galle Road , Colombo03, SRI LANKA Tel: +94 11 2 543938-42 / 437676, Fax: +94 11 2 384916, E-mail: pm_sec@slt.lk
- 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
- Mr. Chandra Fernando, Inspector General of Police (IGP), New Secretariat, Colombo 1, SRI LANKA, Fax: +94 11 2 440440/327877
- 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
- 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
- Prof. Manfred Nowak, 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
Please also write to the embassies of Sri Lanka in your respective country.
Geneva, 05 January 2005.
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.