Dear Ms. Arbour,
Re: Sri Lanka’s refusal to implement recommendations made by the Human Rights Committee and the Committee against Torture
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to bring to your notice the dire situation of human rights in Sri Lanka, as a result of the breakdown in the rule of law, the breakdown of discipline within the police force–leading to grave torture and extrajudicial killings–and the blatant refusal by the government to implement the significant recommendations made by the Human Rights Committee and the Committee against Torture.
The breakdown of the rule of law within Sri Lanka has been commonly noted; even former vice president of the International Court of Justice, Mr Weeramantry, said in a recent publication that the rule of law in the country is at its lowest ebb. The AHRC has been making representations about the country’s exceptional collapse of the rule of law to the Sri Lankan government as well as international bodies for several years now. In this, we refer to the entire country: the South, the North and the East. Although there is no conflict situation in the South, the rule of law in that area also continues to suffer, due to law enforcement agencies having been used by political authorities in the past to commit large scale extrajudicial killings, illegal detentions as well as torture.
To stop this degeneration and politicisation of public institutions, an amendment was made to the Constitution in 2001, known as the 17th Amendment. Under this amendment, various bodies were established to supervise the functioning of institutions such as the police. The National Police Commission was established and given control over appointments, promotions, transfers and disciplinary control of the police, making limited progress in reforming the police force. The Commission’s efforts, accompanied by a Special Investigation Unit to inquire into torture committed by police officers, brought over a hundred policemen under trial for committing torture. While their trials were pending in court, the Commission interdicted these officers, as required by law. These interdictions led to strong protests by certain sections of the police, including the Inspector General of Police himself. The term of office of the existing Commissioners ended on November 24, 2005 however, and no new Commissioners were appointed, rendering the Commission currently dysfunctional.
The commissioners for all such public institutions established under the 17th Amendment are to be appointed on merit by a Constitutional Council, consisting of persons of moral integrity. Without this Constitutional Council, no appointments can be made. However, the term of office of the Council members ended several months ago, with no new appointments having been made. Despite expressions of public concern, no action has been taken to redress this situation. For this reason, other commissions created under the 17th Amendment are also in a similar limbo. This has created an impasse that will inevitably affect Sri Lanka’s few achievements in the protection and promotion of human rights.
After reviewing Sri Lanka’s compliance with the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Human Rights Committee in November 2003 made several recommendations to the government, requiring a report on the implementation of these recommendations within a year. However, none of the recommendations were implemented and no report was submitted. In November 2005, the Committee against Torture also made recommendations, particularly regarding torture, the lack of protection for victims and witnesses, the need for prompt and impartial inquiries, the significant court delays that obstruct attempts to seek legal redress for human rights violations, and a need for the protection of institutions such as the Human Rights Commission and the National Police Commission. With the National Police Commission now defunct, there is no likelihood that any of the other recommendations will be respected by the Sri Lankan government.
Under these circumstances, the rights of all persons are under grave threat, particularly those who have had the courage to make complaints about human rights abuse. One such complainant, torture victim Gerald Perera, was killed in November 2004, one week before he was due to give evidence in court against several police officers. Other complainants have suffered further torture in retaliation for their complaints.
On the occasion of Human Rights Day, the AHRC requests you to look into these matters seriously and to explore all diplomatic and others means to ensure that the recommendations of the Human Rights Committee and other treaty bodies are enforced. We particularly request you to intervene with the government for the appointment of the Constitutional Council, which will enable the National Police Commission and other bodies to function.
Yours sincerely,
Basil Fernando
Executive Director
Link to the Sri Lanka report: http://www.ahrchk.net/hrday/2005/pdf/HRDay-SriLanka.pdf
Link to AHRC’s 2005 International Human Rights Day page: http://www.ahrchk.net/hrday/2005/
Link to AHRC’s Human Rights Day Message: http://www.ahrchk.net/hrday/2005/05message.htm
