SRI LANKA: Yet another man is extrajudicially killed in broad day light by the police

Dear friends, 

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that Mr. Sanchiarachchige Thushara of Keselwatte, Pitakotuwa in the Colombo District was extrajudicially killed by police officers in broad daylight on 8 September 2011. While he was talking to two of his friends on the roadside the police officers who arrived the scene opened fire wire on the victim without warning. Neither the victim nor any person at the scene, which is one of the highest populated urban areas, made any threatening gestures towards the officers nor did they obstruct them in their duties. The state’s policy of combating crime by killing suspects has encouraged the police officers to kill innocents with impunity. The fact that no proper investigation has been carried out yet is a denial of justice to the victim and his family. The case further illustrates the exceptional collapse of the rule of law in the country. 

CASE NARRATIVE: 

According to the information that the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) received Mr. Sanchiarachchige Thushara of Keselwatte, Pitakotuwa in the Colombo District was extrajudicially killed by police officers in broad daylight on 8 September 2011. 

Thushara was at Grandpass, a suburb in Colombo talking to two of his friends in the morning of 8 September when a group of police officers approached the three men. Without giving any warning or demanding that he surrender the offers mercilessly shot Thushara several times. This heinous crime took place in the full view of dozens of witnesses. Grandpass, the place where the incident took place is one of the highest populated urban areas in the capital. There was no apparent reason for the shooting as neither the victim nor any of the onlookers made any attempt to harm or obstruct the officers. No arrest warrant was produced nor did the police inform the victim that he was under arrest. They simply shot him in cold blood. 

If the officers had informed Thusara that he was under arrest, and correctly shown him an arrest warrant they might have had some justification in shooting him when he tried to abscond. However, that was not the case; they simply approached the victim and shot him dead. 

Thushara when seriously injured but still alive when the officers admitted him to the National Hospital of Sri Lanka (NHSL) at Colombo but later succumbed to his injuries. 

Several hours later the police announced that Thushara had pulled out a machine gun and aimed it at the police officers who encountered him while they were heading for Grandpass. The police also said that Thushara was talking to two persons when they saw him but could offer no explanation as to why he turned a weapon on them. 

Then, in contradiction to the first statement the police later announced that Thushara had had a gun in his possession and had aimed it at the police officers when he saw them from a distance. The police officers then tried to take the gun into their custody. They went on to say that Thushara was a criminal suspect who has allegedly been involved in a number of criminal activities and that they had shot him during the melee. The police also announced that they found a loaded clip and a gun in his possession. There was no explanation as to why they had previously claimed that he was in possession of a machine gun and to a trained police officer (and anyone who watches television) there is a consider difference between a machine gun and a hand gun. 

The Sri Lankan police have adopted a systematic practice of extrajudicially killing its citizens in the name of crime prevention. The innocent, even after arrest by the police, especially by the Special Task Force (STF) have been killed while in police custody. In a recent incident the police claimed that one suspect drowned while trying to escape their custody. They offered no explanation when it was pointed out to them that the ‘suspect’ had been a navy specialist and an expert swimmer. 

The prevention of crime is a one of the sacred and paramount duties of the any civilized state. According to the Constitution of the country the law enforcement authorities are bound to protect the right to life of the people and their constitutionally enshrined rights. Sri Lanka, while running the country with a democratic framework is bound to support the judiciary and impose the rule of law and protect the civil liberties of the people. The killing of civilians by police officers has become a peremptory norm in the country. 

Any incident in which a person is killed by a policeman should be investigated promptly, efficiently and without delay. However, in this instance the state has not shown any interest in investigating the killing and bringing the responsible police officers before the court. For many years now there has been no command responsibility in the Sri Lankan police and it is the supervisory officers that should be held primarily responsible for the killings perpetrated by the officers under their command. 

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: 

The Asian Human Rights Commission has reported innumerable cases of arbitrary arrest, detention, torture and extra judicial killings cases of citizens at the hands of the police which is illegal under international and local law and which have taken place at different police stations in the country over the past few years. The Asian Human Rights Commission has observed that the Sri Lankan police have used torture as an instrument to terrorize innocent persons and harass the public. Further, the country’s police are implementing a policy of eliminating criminals by killing them after arresting them without producing them to the court of law. 

The Constitution of Sri Lanka has guaranteed the right freedom from torture. According to Article 11 of the Constitution ‘No person shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment’. Further, Article 13(4) “No person shall be punished with death or imprisonment except by order of a competent court, made in accordance with procedure established by law. The arrest, holding in custody, detention or other deprivation of personal liberty of a person, pending investigation or trial, shall not constitute punishment.” Further article 13 (5) guarantees the right of presumption of innocence until being proven guilty. 

Furthermore, Sri Lanka has signed and ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Nevertheless the lack of protection offered to those who are willing to take cases against abusive police officers and the state authorities, means that the law is under-used continues to be employed as a tool by the police to harass people. This not only takes a long-term toll on the victim and his or her family, but on society as a whole, by the undermining of civilian respect for the law and encouraging impunity. 

Furthermore, the Asian Human Rights Commission has continuously exposed the way the witness and the victims are getting harassed and on some occasions even killed to suppress the justice. Furthermore we have urged the State of Sri Lanka to adopt a law for the protection of witness protection. 

SUGGESTED ACTION: 
Please send a letter to the authorities listed below expressing your concern about this case and requesting an immediate investigation into the allegations extra judicial killings by the police perpetrators, and the prosecution of those proven to be responsible under the criminal law of the country. The officers involved must also be subjected to internal investigations for the breach of the department orders as issued by the police department. 

The AHRC has also written a separate letter to the Special Rapporteur on Extra-judicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions on this regard. 

To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER