An Article published in the ‘Ceylon Today’, on 9th September 2015, forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission
By Ruwan Laknath Jayakody
The available statistics show that almost 80% of the victims of torture are innocent persons and almost always from the poorer communities, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) noted.
Director of Policy and Programmes of the AHRC and the Asian Legal Resource Centre and Right Livelihood Award/Alternative Nobel Prize Winner, Basil Fernando said, in countries such as Sri Lanka, torture is effectively used as a means of obtaining bribes.
“For many decades, the Sri Lanka Police has been seriously exposed to criticism in international and local forums due to the widespread use of torture and ill treatment by the police. Well documented records show that the victims are almost always from the poorer communities. A police force that resorts to such widespread use of torture indicates that it is poorly equipped to engage in the task of law enforcement. The use of torture and ill treatment is an indication of an outdated and primitive policing system. Modern systems which rely on more technical means of collection of evidence do not need to resort to torture and ill treatment. Therefore, the government must make a commitment to end the use of torture and ill-treatment,” he added.
