Author: editor
Did the suspect who died in mt.Lavinia due to Police torture?
Relatives of a man who died after being arrested by Mount Lavinia Police and produced before a court have lodged a complaint with the IGP and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka. The deceased has been identified as Vasana Susantha Dissanayake, 49, a resident of Pasal Mawatha, Kalubowila. He is said to have run a motorcycle repair business by profession. His son also runs a motorcycle spare parts shop in Attidiya. Vasana Susantha, who died on March 18, was arrested by the police in Ratmalana while carrying food to…
Read MoreComplaints to the Authority for the Protection of Victims and Witnesses of Crime are on the rise!
The National Authority for the Protection of Victims and Witnesses of Crime was established under the Assistance to and Protection of Victims and Witnesses of Crime Act No. 04 of 2015. No. 428 / 11A, Denzil Kobbekaduwa Mawatha, Battaramulla on 18th May 2016. Its main objectives are to protect, promote and enforce the rights of crime and witnesses while meeting the needs of crime and victims. An emergency hotline number for this authority was introduced in 2019. That was the 1985 short phone number. The latest statistics from the National…
Read MoreMany legal reforms in the judiciary!
We talk almost every day about the case delays and forensic report delays in the Ministry of Justice. In many cases, delays in forensic reports have led to unjustified imprisonment. As a result, the government has to bear the additional burden of maintaining them. Sometimes we have seen the test reports are 1-2 years late. The same is true of cases. Many cases drag on for years and in some cases the victim dies. In recent days, civil society has repeatedly pointed out to the government that this situation must…
Read MoreHow to build a non-violent police force?
Police violence has become a current topic in Sri Lanka. There will be 26 illegal killings in Sri Lanka in 2020 alone, said Philip Dissanayake, spokesman for the Sri Lankan Alliance Against Torture. Police are responsible for about half of those killings. The Department of Prisons is the main agency responsible for the rest. In addition, there were a number of incidents of police torturing suspects in 2020. There were also reports of disruptions, assaults, arrests and harassment of peaceful protesters. In June, activists, including women from the Frontline Socialist…
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