A mother has sought the help of the United Nations to save the life of her son, who has been in police custody for more than a year.
She has taken this step due to her practical experience that those who have complained to the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka and the Sri Lanka Police regarding the risk to their lives will not benefit from those institutions.
In a letter to the UN Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Colombo on Tuesday (November 30) through the Committee to Protect the Rights of Prisoners (CPRP), mother Dilhani Thanoja requested that steps be taken to save the life of her son, Janith Madusanka alias Podi Lasi, who is under the custody of CID.
According to the letter written in Sinhala handwriting, Janith Madusanka was arrested by the CID on October 16, 2020 and has been detained for one year and two months.
Dilhani Thanoja has stated that investigations are being carried out despite the fact that cases have been filed against him in several other courts.
Dilhani Thanoja’s letter to the Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Colombo further stated that after the detention of Janith Madusanka (Podi Lasi) on December 16, 2021 expires, he will be handed over to the Peliyagoda Crime Branch.
She said she was aware of the killings of several detainees while in custody, adding that in each case, the detainees had been killed for allegedly trying to shoot officers while trying to show them weapons or other items. Against such a backdrop, Janith Madusanka’s mother suspects that his life could be in danger.
Dilhani Thanoja has called on the United Nations to take necessary steps to protect her son’s life, as he has learned from the recent assassination of Tinker Lasantha that it would not be helpful to inform the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka or the Sri Lanka Police about such life – threatening incidents. The organization has requested the Permanent Representative in Colombo.
Rajiv Amarasuriya, secretary of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka, said in a statement on November 26 that the death of Lunuwilage Lasantha, who died in police custody, was an “illegal murder”.
Lunuwilage Lasantha alias Tinkering Lasantha was shot dead that morning by police on Friday morning, November 26, less than two days after the Scottish police announced that they will stop the training which they had given to the Sri Lankan police force for nearly a decade and a half.
The President of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka said in statement that he had immediately informed the IGP about this murder attempt via email and SMS.
Senaka Perera, Attorney-at-Law, Chairman of the Committee to Protect the Rights of Prisoners, who intervened to hand over the complaint to the Permanent Representative of the United Nations in Colombo had told the media that these death are a serious matter which took place while that the suspects were in police custody despite informing the Sri Lanka Police before that suspects are face in life threat before they got murdered.
Senaka Perera, Attorney-at-Law, Chairman of the Committee to Protect the Rights of Prisoners, who intervened to hand over the complaint to the Permanent Representative of the United Nations in Colombo had told the media that these death which took place while that the suspects were in police custody are a serious matter despite informing the Sri Lanka Police that suspects are face in life threat before they got murdered.
