The admission by the Chief of Police in Sri Lanka that the police, army and the army deserters are responsible for abductions and killings of civilians is a bold move. However, for the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) this is no news since the AHRC has been in the past calling for intervention and warning the domestic and international community that the security forces in that country is behind many abductions and killings within Sri Lanka. For further information please see AS-029-2007, AS-027-2007, AS-312-2006 and AS-241-2006.
The Chief of Police Mr. Victor Perera has been reported to be admitting that a ‘large number’ of police officers and troops had been arrested on charges of abduction and extortion. However, for the ordinary Sri Lankan a few questions remain unanswered. Who are these officers who have been arrested and how far is the state machinery geared up and open to contain this? Will their names be disclosed to the public? Will those who have been arrested charged with a case and brought to trial after investigation of their case? Will such an investigation be fair and true? Will they be convicted? Will those who had been disappeared be able to return to their families and will the families of those who had been murdered or held captive receive any compensation? And last but not least does the Chief of the Police and Chief of Army has command responsibility over the acts of their subordinate officers and if yes how are they going to exonerate themselves from this?
If the Sri Lankan government and its Chief of Police is honest enough to contain this practice of criminal law enforcement officer nexus, the first step that the government must take is to publicly announce the names of those officers who have been arrested in connection with abductions and killings. The government must also make sure that the charges against those who are identified now are investigated by an independent agency and the progress of the investigation also made available for public scrutiny. There must also be an honest attempt to further investigate the cases so that the rest of those who are still to be identified as culprits in service with nexus with the criminals are investigated and booked for their offences.
The AHRC has been intensively involved in issues of security and law enforcement in Sri Lanka for the past few years. Through its work and the experience gained by analysing several circumstances and cases in Sri Lanka the AHRC is certain that the law enforcement agencies in Sri Lanka are not at the moment capable enough to deal with the grave situation. The statement of admission by the Chief of Police is just the tip of the iceberg.
The issue is much deeper that affects the day to day life of every citizen. For example questions must be asked regarding what is the standard of selection into the security forces? Are those who are selected to serve in the forces good enough to meet the minimum standards of behaviour and in discharge of duties as a law enforcement officer? Are there any senior officers within the system who by their bad influence corrupt the new recruits? How transparent is the recruitment process itself? If there is a complaint by a subordinate officer against a superior officer are there any credible and functioning mechanisms to address such a complaint? If an officer is found to be involved in a grave crime, for example custodial torture, are the courts in the country honest enough to punish such an officer? Well, the AHRC’s experience shows that the courts in Sri Lanka still do not approach such crimes with the adequate seriousness and gravity such crime disserve.
The continuing failures in all the above, which in an ideal situation a government must have tried its best to prevent and punish crimes committed by a law enforcement officers, has resulted in a situation that the law enforcement officers within Sri Lanka are the most feared by the ordinary people. They enjoy complete impunity. This was promoted to a large extent by the earlier Chief of Police. For further information please see AS-241-2006. This has further isolated the law enforcement officers from the public. The call by the current Chief of Police with the bait of a ransom for information regarding erring officers is not likely to yield the intended result since the ordinary people relate to their law enforcement agencies as an unsafe place to tread.
The AHRC is aware that with a fallen system as it is in Sri Lanka, it would be difficult for the Sri Lankan authorities to be successful in an attempt to contain a serious situation of law enforcement officers involving in grave crimes, without external help. Help is readily available, from international agencies like the United Nations and even from other developed countries. However, it is for the authorities in Sri Lanka to admit their limitations, pack-up all egos and try to put an end to the corrupt law enforcement agencies the country has been suffering from for the last few decades. Such an attempt will in fact ease the authorities in Sri Lanka from being accused as doing a poor job and will also bring certain amount of transparency. However, it for the authorities in Sri Lanka to decide how they want to bring an end to the current situation.
The AHRC hope and will support all further sensible moves by the Chief of Police to put an end to the grave situation the law enforcement agencies in Sri Lanka are now in. To start with the Chief of Police must divulge the identities of the officers who are currently held for abducting and murdering civilians. The Chief of Police must also make it public what his government and department plan to do about the cases that has been identified as instances where law enforcement officers were involved with abduction, murder and extortion. The authorities must also make sure that there is a proper complaint mechanism that accepts complaints and investigate cases against officers and keep the complainant informed about the progress of such an investigation.
It is these primary but most essential steps that will later decide how far the authorities are serious in dealing with this terrible situation. The AHRC will continue monitoring the situation and expects that authorities in Sri Lanka will be serious and honest in its immediate attempts to contain this grave situation haunting the country and its people.
