SRI LANKA: A young woman is sexually assaulted; police refuse to take action against the perpetrator 

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a 16-year old girl was sexually assaulted but because police officers have a connection to the perpetrator, they are refusing to investigate the case and secure protection for the victim and her family. On 12 April 2012, Mr. Gunatunga cut down and stole a tree from the garden of Mr. Gamini Jayaratne and Mrs. WD Sumithra. Shortly after Mrs. Sumithra filed a complaint at Kothmale Police Station regarding the theft, Gunatunga sexually assaulted Mali, (Mr. Jayaratne and Mrs. Sumithra’s 16-year old daughter) as she was walking to a neighbours’ house. She was later admitted to Kothmale Government Hospital for treatment of her injuries. Mali’s mother filed a complaint at the Kothmale Police Station, and has visited the station numerous times, but an investigation has yet to be initiated. When Mali and her mother visited the station after Mali had been released from hospital, they were arbitrarily arrested. According to information we have received, the police’s reluctance to investigate the case is due to a personal connection between the alleged perpetrator and police officers. This case is yet another illustration of the exceptional collapse of the rule of law in the country.

CASE NARRATIVE:

According to information that the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received, a young woman was sexually assaulted by a man who stole a tree from her parents’ garden. The police officers of Kothmale Police Station are refusing to prosecute the man because the police officers have a social connection to him.

Mr. Gamini Jayaratne and Mrs. WD Sumithra of Dehigaskotuwa, Panangammana, Katukithula, Kothmale in Nuwara-Eliya District are married and have three children. Their oldest daughter, Mali, (name changed for security purposes) is 16 years old, and is attending a highly reputed school where she is preparing for her O-level examinations this year.

On 12 April 2012, New Year’s Day for the Sinhala and Tamil communities, a person named Gunatunga cut down and stole a mahogany tree from Mali’s parents’ garden. Mali’s mother, Mrs. Sumithra, filed a complaint at Kothmale Police Station regarding the incident. However, an investigation was not initiated into the theft.

On 14 April at around 10am when Mali was going to a neighbours’ house, Gunatunga grabbed Mali and dragged her to a nearby hut where he sexually assaulted her. Mali shouted for help. Then, Gunatunga’s wife, son and mother arrived and beat Mali as well. Although she was severely injured, Mali managed to escape and run to the main road.

When Mali’s mother learnt what had happened, she reported the incident to the Kothmale Police Station and requested the officer with whom she spoke to protect her daughter and take legal action against the Gunatunga, his wife, son and mother. The officer, who introduced herself as Woman Police Constable (WPC) 7467, asked Mali’s mother to return to the station with her daughter. Mali’s mother did so, and the police officers filed a complaint under reference number WPC 9166, and suggested that Mali’s mother take her daughter to the nearest hospital for treatment of her injuries. Mali was admitted to Kothmale Government Hospital where she remained until 17 April.

Mali’s parents waited for the police to credibly investigate the case, but on 16 April, when three days had passed without the police taking action on the complaint, Mali’s mother called 119 and explained the situation.

Shortly after Mali’s mother had made the telephone complaint, police officers from Kothmale Police Station arrived at Mali’s parents’ house and brought Mali’s mother and later, Gunatunga, to Kothmale Police Station. Mali’s mother waited to speak to an officer about her daughter’s assault, but after sitting at the police station from 8am to 2:30pm, she eventually left. On 17 April, she visited the police station again to follow up on the case, and was told to come back on 23 April. She returned on 23 April with Mali who had been discharged from hospital, and requested the officers to investigate the case and bring the perpetrators of the crime to justice. In response, the police officers arrested Mali and her mother. According to information we have received, the police also arrested Gunaratna and his son. When Mali’s parents’ neighbour learnt about the arrest, he visited the station and posted bail. Mali’s mother later learnt that the police officers were reluctant to take action against Gunatunga due to matters of personal interest; some of the police officers have a social connection to him.

The police officers encouraged Mali and Mali’s mother to settle their dispute with Gunatunga, preferably through the Mediation Board. But Mali’s mother refused to settle, and insisted that the police take action to bring the perpetrators of the crime against her daughter to justice. Mali and Mali’s mother were called to meet with the Mediation Board on four separate occasions, but Mali’s mother is intent on procuring justice in a court of law. She fears further violence and discrimination against herself and her family. Indeed, her daughter was dismissed from school by the principal who said that victims of sexual abuse should not attend school. Mali was re-enrolled after her mother repeatedly petitioned the school to allow her daughter to complete her studies

Mali and her mother believe that justice has been denied to them by the Kothmale Police as well as by the principal of her school. They call for a prompt, efficient legal investigation into the assault, and for the perpetrators to be brought to justice. The delays and inefficiency with which this case has been handled delays and denies justice to Mali and her family. Mali’s rights enshrined within the Constitution of Sri Lanka have been violated, and it is imperative that state officials efficiently and transparently carry out the investigation of this crime.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has reported innumerable cases which demonstrate the breakdown of the legal code in state law enforcement agencies’ actions (or lack thereof) when investigating crimes and bringing suspects before the law to pass through the appropriate legal channels of criminal proceedings.

The victims of crimes often face harassment by the perpetrators. On some occasions, witnesses and victims of crimes have been killed by the perpetrators before they are able to testify or continue an investigation.

The AHRC has repeatedly urged the Sri Lankan government to adopt a witness protection law and implement a witness protection program to protect victims and witnesses of crimes. The Sri Lankan government is bound to implement the legal provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) as it has signed and ratified the convention. Nevertheless, the lack of protection offered to those who seek justice, abusive police officers and lethargic state authorities, mean that the law is under-used and continues to be employed by the police as a tool to harass people. This not only takes a toll on the victim and their family, but on society as a whole, undermining civilian respect for the law and encouraging a culture of impunity.

Furthermore, the state of Sri Lanka has signed and ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). State agencies, however, have failed to implement protective laws towards women effectively.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send a letter to the authorities listed below expressing your concern about this case and requesting an immediate investigation into the case and the witness protection. The criminals as well as the police officers who are having lethargic approach to investigate the crimes must also try before the court of law for breaching the laws of the country and also should be subjected to internal investigations for the breach of the department orders as issued by the police department.

Please note that the AHRC has also written a separate letter to the Special Rapporteur on violence against women on this regard.

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