SRI LANKA: Brutal torture of a 27-year-old man by the Pamunugama Police 

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you that a 27-year-old man, Navinna Arachchige Manjula Prasad, was brutally tortured by policemen attached to the Pamunugama Police Station on 18 December 2005. Prasad was on his way home when the policemen stopped him and took him to the police station for questioning regarding the looting of copper wires. There the policemen brutally tortured Prasad while he was being investigated.

On December 19, the police forced Prasad to sign a statement they prepared without having him read its content. He was taken to a rural hospital in Pamunugama where he was partially treated for his injuries. The Magistrate Court in Wattala remanded him despite an appeal made by his lawyer, Mr Amitha Ariyaratne, that it was a case of police torture. Prasad was taken to the Mahara Remand prison where he was remanded. He was not given any adequate treatment inside the prison.  On December 27, he was released and subsequently sought treatment at the Ragama Hospital.

Your urgent intervention is required to have the victim’s allegation of irregularities in the arrest, filing of charges and brutal torture perpetrated by the policemen investigated thoroughly as stipulated in the Convention against Torture Act (CAT) No. 22 of 1994 of Sri Lanka. The policemen involved must be suspended from their duty once the investigation commences. Charges against the victim in court must be dropped if it is found that the evidence against him was obtained by way of torture.

Finally, please urge the concerned government agencies in Sri Lanka to reimburse the victim of his medical expenses. An inquiry should also be conducted into who must be held responsible from the police and prison officials for their failure to have the victim treated while in their custody. Such failure and inaction must be dealt with accordingly. Additionally, the victim must be placed in a rehabilitation programme for adequate medical and trauma treatment.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission
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DETAILED INFORMATION:

Name of the victim: Navinna Arachchige Manjula Prasad (27), a baker living at 476/30, Sagarsirigama, Epamulla, Pamunugama.
Alleged perpetrators: Four police officers attached to the Pamunugama Police Station in the Assistant Superintendent of the Police (ASP) Division of Negombo
Date of the incident: 18 December 2005

Case details:

On 18 December 2005, at 4:30pm Navinna Arachchige Manjula Prasad was riding a bicycle on his way home from Bopitiya when two policemen wearing plain clothes stopped him near the Leo Stadium. He was told that they wanted him to go with them to the police station for questioning regarding the looting of copper wires. At the same time, another policeman arrived onboard a three wheeler and went with them to the police station.

Upon arrival at the police station, the policemen started questioning Prasad about the looting which took place at a near by company where several Indian employees work. When Prasad denied any knowledge of the looting, he was taken to a room where the police removed his shirt and used it to tie his hands and legs together. He was suspended in between a half-size wall and a chair after an iron bar was inserted in between his hands and legs. While in this position, the policemen pushed Prasad and started beating him all over his body with a rubber pipe. When he continued to deny what he was being accused of, the police began assaulting him mercilessly wooden pole. The torture lasted for one and a half hours.

Later he was untied and ordered to walk nine times around a table while jumping, a physical activity which was very difficult for the victim to perform given the immense pain he was in. After that, the police threatened to torture him further later that night and placed him in a detention cell. At around 7pm, Prasad’s mother arrived at the police station. She met the Officer-in-Charge (OIC) of the police station before being allowed to see her son.

The following day, December 19, at 9:30pm a police officer forced Prasad to sign a statement they prepared without having him informed or allowing him to read its content. He was taken to a rural hospital in Pamunugama. At the hospital, his relatives informed the hospital staff that Prasad had been severely tortured but they were ignored. They only attended to the victim’s wounds.

After that Prasad was taken to the Magistrate Courts in Wattala. The Magistrate remanded him despite an appeal by his lawyer, Mr Amitha Ariyaratne that his client was severely tortured. The Magistrate instead issued orders to the police to have Prasad checked by medical personnel and required that a medical certificate be produced at the following hearing. He was taken to the Mahara Remand prison until he was released on December 27. While in prison custody, he was not afforded any medication attention despite having him confined at the prison’s hospital.

The same day after his release, Prasad went to the Ragama Hospital for treatment as his back was swollen and his fingers numb. He was confined in Ward 5. While at the hospital, the policemen assigned at the hospital recorded the victim’s statement regarding the incident. The Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) likewise examined him. On December 28, the police officers then came back and asked him to sign a document they prepared. The police, however, did not properly inform Prasad of its content or have him read it. He was sent home in the evening of that day.

SUGGESTED LETTER:

Please send letters to the addresses listed below and raise your concern regarding Prasad’s case. An independent and impartial inquiry must take place in this case without delay. The policemen involved must be charged in accordance with the Convention against Torture Act (CAT) No. 22 of 1994.

 

 

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