The Asian Human Rights Commission wrote today to the Sri Lankan authorities and the UN Special Rapporteur on the Question of Torture regarding death threats to one of the witnesses in the Gerald Perera murder trial which is being heard before the Negombo High Court.
Gerald Perera, a torture victim was summoned to give evidence in the High Court regarding six police officers in a trial under the Prevention of Torture Act, Act No 22 of 1994. A week before he was to appear in court he was shot while traveling on a bus and died of his injuries on November 24, 2004.
A Sub Inspector of Police who was an accused in the torture is the 1st Accused in the murder case of Gerald Perera and the 2nd Accused is alleged to be a close associate.
This murder case regarding the torture victim Gerald Perera is proceeding in the Negombo High Court. The last date of the trial was May 16 and it has been postponed to May 30, June 6, July 25 and August 1. Thus, the next date of the trial is May 30.
One of the witnesses to give evidence is a police officer who made a voluntary statement to the magistrate in the early stages of the inquiry into this murder about his knowledge of matters relating to the murder.
The trial of this case started in February 2006 and evidence was recorded before a High Court judge who was later transferred before the end of the trial. As a result the trial has now been taken up before another High Court judge and due to a request by the lawyers for the two accused the court ordered the taking of evidence from the very beginning.
This police officer has already finished giving his evidence at the initial trial before the previous judge. Now as the case is to be heard from the beginning he has to give his evidence all over again at the High Court.
He now complains that he is being threatened to alter his evidence when he testifies for the second time. The specific issue on which he is requested to change his evidence relates to the assassination of Gerald Perera who is the murder victim in this case. According to the witness he has been threatened with death to give false evidence relating to the case, avoiding any reference to the assassination of Gerald Perera. The witness lives in great fear and is afraid that he may come to harm due to this.
The murder victim Gerald Perera was to give evidence against the police officers including the 1st Accused in the murder case. Thus, the murder case itself is a case of the killing of a witness.
Given this witnesss knowledge about the killing of Gerald Perera for the same reason for preventing him from giving evidence, he is scared that his life may be harmed if he does not comply with the demand to alter his evidence.
The Asian Human Rights Commission has urged the immediate intervention of the Sri Lankan government and the UN Rapporteur to ensure protection for the witness. There is no witness protection law or programme in operation in Sri Lanka and failure to take steps to protect this witness may cause harm to the witness and also cause a miscarriage of justice through witness intimidation in the case of a murder trial relating to the torture victim Gerald Perera.
