SRI LANKA: A 16-year-old boy assaulted by his teacher in Dumbulla 

Dear friends,

The Asian Human +Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a 16-year-old boy was assaulted by a school teacher at the Pannampitiya Secondary School in Lenadora, Dumbulla District, Sri Lanka on 22 September 2005.

Due to the assault, the boy suffered from bad ear pain and blurred vision. He also had several scratches and bruises on his neck due to the assault. He was admitted to a village hospital in Lenadora on the same day, and was later transferred to the hospital in Dambulla, from where he was again transferred to the Base Hospital in Matale on September 23. He was discharged on the following day (September 24).

Meanwhile, the boy’s father lodged a complaint to the Dambulla Police Station but the police pressured the boy’s family to settle the matter instead of conducting an investigation. Your urgent action is required in this matter so that the responsible teacher is punished according to law.

Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
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DETAILED INFORMATON:

Name of the victim: S.M. Saman Kumara, aged 16, a student of Class A of the 11^th year at the Pannampitiya Secondary School [Maha Vidyalaya], residing in Puribena, Lenadora, Dumbulla District, Sri Lanka
Alleged perpetrators: Anuradha Mahinda Dissanayaka of Pannampitiya Maha Vidyalaya
Date of the incident: 22 September 2005

Case details (based on the summary of a victim’s petition to the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka):

On 22 September 2005, Mr. Anuradha Mahinda Dissanayaka, the teacher in charge of the subject Sinhalese held the lesson not in the classroom but out in the open and collected the books of the students at about 1:30pm. He instructed S.M. Saman Kumara to take all the books to his house and he said yes. However, subsequently the teacher himself took all the books with him and went into the classroom. The teacher came to S.M. Saman Kumara’s desk, grabbed his shirt’s collar and dragged him towards him. He then squeezed Saman’s neck and hit him hardly on his right ear.  The school principle saw the incident but said nothing. After that, the teacher instructed Saman to come to his house before 6:00pm with his father or mother.

After returning home, Saman told the incident to his mother. Due to the assault, the boy suffered from bad ear pain and blurred vision. He also had several scratches and bruises on his neck due to the assault.

When Saman went to the teacher’s house with his mother as instructed, his mother told the teacher, showing his wound on the neck, that if a child had behaved foolishly, it would have been better to give a small punishment or a good  advice without squeezing the neck in this manner. The teacher then got angry and grabbed a chair to hit her. At which she said, “I came here because I was asked to come to talk to you about our son who is assaulted by you.”

After returning home, Saman was taken to a village hospital in Lenadora and admitted in ward 1. The same night at 7:00pm, his father went to the Dambulla Police Station and lodged a complaint (No. CIB II 166/379). Saman was later transferred to the hospital in Dambulla where the police stationing there recorded his statement about the incident. He was again transferred in an ambulance to the Base Hospital in Matale and warded in no. 9 on September 23  Saman was discharged at around 2:00pm on the following day (September 24).

The Dambulla police instructed Saman to come to the police station for inquiries regarding the complaint no. CIB II 224/322 filed by themselves and the other complaint made by his father on September 25. When he went to the police station together with his family, he saw the school staff and the responsible teacher who wanted a settlement. The police also strongly suggested settling the matter instead of going for official inquiries saying that it might damage the good name of the school. They added that the boys (witnesses and Saman) would be harassed by appearing at the police station on several occasions. The police further said that they refrained from taking any legal action and would try to make the teacher pay all the medical expenses incurred by the parents. The school staff also strongly urged Saman’s family to get 10,000 rupees (about 98 USD) as compensation.

The incident traumatized Saman but he goes to school now because of the his final exam s. But he complained that he does so with the greatest reluctance. Meanwhile, Saman’s family lodged a complaint to the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka.

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