Stories

BASL calls for the introduction of the 21st Amendment & a national unity govt

April 25, 2022April 25, 2022 Editor

At a special meeting of the Bar Council to discuss the BASL proposals to restore economic and political stability in Sri Lanka, thirteen proposals were approved unanimously by the Bar Council consisting of representatives of the branches from throughout Sri Lanka. The proposals include: The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) (23) issued a release highlighting a number of proposals to restore political and economic stability in the country. 1. Passing of the 21st amendment repealing the 20th amendment. The 21st amendment should improve on the 19th amendment. It will…

Open Letter to the Protesters – Prof. Indrawansa de Silva

April 25, 2022 Editor

Congratulations, you made history! And you won an early battle. You made history because there hasn’t been a mass protest like yours in recent Sri Lankan history. It is also historical because your protest is not organized by a political party, a charismatic leader or an identified entity, although, as you know by now, many parties, individuals and wizards behind virtual curtains are claiming at least the partial, if not entire, ownership of it. As the saying goes, success has many fathers and failure is an orphan. If, heaven forbid,…

TID officers said I’m a terrorist because I didn’t own Buddhist books: Ahnaf Jazeem

January 20, 2022 Editor

Former PTA detainee poet : says they threatened to detain him for 20 years if he did not sign a confession Ahnaf Jazeem, a poet and teacher from the East of Sri Lanka, was arrested in May 2020 under the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act No. 48 of 1979 (PTA). Initially arrested in connection to his Tamil-language poetry anthology, titled Navarasam, which the authorities alleged to be promoting “extremist” ideologies, Jazeem was finally granted bail on 15 December, after over a year in prison. Speaking to the media for…

Recent Police Atrocities Under Militarization in North and East Sri-Lanka

September 11, 2021 Editor

Militarized violence against civilians in North and East of Sri-Lanka has increased in the recent past. Sri-Lanka brief has also published some of the cases related to torture against fishers by the Sri-Lanka navy. Military involvement and its control in civil administration in North and East is nothing new and along with the Covid-19 pandemic military has gained more power to control the civil life. Further, militarization has given power to police and men attached to intelligence to act unlawfully and to commit various forms of violence against civilians of…

Sri Lanka government supports torture by opposing preventive law – Basil Fernando

September 3, 2021 Editor

An amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure allowing the Magistrates to visit places of detention has been turned into a political issue by a section of the government and by some extreme nationalist elements. What this means is that the opposition to the amendment is supporting the continuous practice of torture in Sri Lanka. Torture is considered in international law as one of the most heinous crimes; it is also considered a serious crime in the Sri Lankan law through the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or…

A Statement by SLCAT on International Day in Support of Victims of Torture.

June 26, 2021June 27, 2021 Editor

Today as we mark the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, we the undersigned express grave concern about the increasing use of torture in Sri Lanka. During the last year, we witnessed the COVID-19 pandemic cause unimaginable challenges to Sri Lankans. In this context of deep instability and uncertainty, Sri Lankan citizens have been made to feel more insecure through the increasing use of violence by the police. SLCAT recognizes at least 30 reported incidents of torture, 22 and 5 custodial and extra judicial deaths between the period…

BASL hits out: Condemns the failure of the Police including the IGP to protect persons in custody

May 18, 2021 Editor

The Executive Committee of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has strongly condemned the recent killing of two suspects in police custody, namely Melon Mabula alias ‘Uru Juwa’ and Tharaka Perera Wijesekera alias ‘Kosgoda Tharaka’ which has occurred on two consecutive days. In a statement today (13), the BASL pointed out that the Attorney-at-Law representing Tharaka Wijesekera had made representations to the Police as well as the IGP, the Director of the CID and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL) with regard to their safety prior to…

Covid -19 and the constitution

May 11, 2021 Editor

Basil Fernando Arundhati Roy, prominent writer and social activist in India has written several important articles in the recent few days on the problem of the spread of Covid and the vast numbers of deaths that are taking place in India. In an article written just a few days back, Arundhati Roy directly addresses the prime minister of India, Narendra Modi and points to the fact that the Covid crisis in India is a problem of governance in India. System of governance have failed and it is now threatening the…

Sri Lanka: Criticism of Ongoing Use of Torture

January 20, 2021March 29, 2021 Editor

(May 13, 2016) In a statement following a nine-day trip to Sri Lanka, Juan E. Méndez, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on torture, claimed that criminal and terrorism investigators in Sri Lanka still use torture against detainees, even though the use has declined since the end of the country’s civil war seven years ago. While in the country, Méndez conducted a series of interviews with individuals who had been detained; their stories were confirmed with forensic tests. (Taylor Isaac, UN Rights Expert: Sri Lanka Investigators Still Using Torture, PAPER CHASE…

UN rights expert warns torture routinely used against Sri Lankan security suspects

January 20, 2021March 29, 2021 Editor

“The Tamil community has borne the brunt of the State’s well-oiled torture apparatus,” said Ben Emmerson, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism, adding that the law is used disproportionately against the minority group. During his visit between 10 and 14 July to assess the progress Sri Lanka has achieved in its law, policies and practice in the fight against terrorism since the end of its internal armed conflict, Mr. Emmerson heard first-hand accounts of brutal torture. “These included beatings with sticks, stress positions, asphyxiation using plastic bags…