Dear friends,
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the brutal assault of 16-year-old schoolboy Marage Sameera Sampath Kumara, by three of his teachers, including the school vice principle, at the D.S. Senanayaka Mada Vidyalaya, Kandalama, Dambulla, on 6 June 2006. Furthermore, the boy was not allowed to continue his education at the school, while the school authority reported a case against him to the Galewela Education Office.
On 6 June 2006, at around 1:25 pm, all eleventh-grade students were summoned to the school office. When they got there, the vice principle Mr. Vijitha was waiting for them with a broomstick in his hand. He then proceeded to question a schoolboy named Saliya; “Who threw a red-ant’s nest into the year 9 classroom?” Saliya replied that he did not know, and that his class, 11C was under the supervision of their teacher, Mr. Kumbukgolla the entire time. The other pupils also confirmed this.
Mr. Vijitha then separated the students into their respective classes, and continued questioning young Saliya of 11C. When still, Saliya replied that he did not know who was responsible for the incident, Mr. Vijitha smacked him twice hard with the broomstick. When Sampath was questioned, he too replied that he was not responsible for the throwing of the red-ants nest into the year 9 classroom, and that he did not know who was. At this point, Ms. Kalyani, a teacher, entered the room, and accused Sampath and Saliya of orchestrating the incident.
When Sampath attempted to defend himself, Mr. Vijitha slapped him hard on his right cheek. In brave defiance, Sampath challenged the vice principle to “slap the ones who have done the mischief”. Outraged by his remark, Mr. Vijitha replied “Are you coming to teach me?“, and severely beat Sampath with the broomstick. In the course of the beating, Sampath managed to grab hold of the broomstick. Then, Mr. Piyasena, another teacher, grabbed Sampath by his neck, and both Mr. Vijitha and Mr. Sarath, a teacher, slapped the boy and continued to beat him.
In self-defense, Sampath tried to kick the teachers. He managed to kick Mr. Vijitha, who momentarily dropped the broomstick. Sampath managed to escape his teachers’ hold and move away, while his schoolmates took Mr. Vijitha away from the scene. By this time, it was 1:45 pm, and the schoolboys were dismissed early from school. Sampath informed his parents of his brutal assault, and together with him, they returned to the school to confront the responsible teachers; this, at around 2:30 pm.
The following day, Sampaths parents, Mr. and Mrs. Kumara, were informed by Mr. Senarath, the acting head principle, that Sampath would no longer be allowed to continue his education at the school. Mr. and Mrs. Kumara filed an official complaint against the named school at the Dambulla Police Station on 18 June 2006. The Police then contacted the accused teachers, asking them to come to the police station, where Sampath was then told to ask for their pardon. He acquiesced purely because of the fact that he wanted to be able to sit for his upcoming G.C.E. Ordinary-Level Examinations in December.
Sampath was pardoned by his teachers, who then told him that he would be able to begin school from 24 June 2006. However, when he went to school with his mother on the said date, they were both told that the incident had been reported to the Galewela Education Office and that until they had conducted and completed an official investigative inquiry, Sampath could not be reinstated at school.
Sampath’s case was registered as an official case with the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission (SLHRC); (Registration No.:- HRC/K/439/06-III) with a help of a local human rights organization named SETIK. The case was also informed to the national Child Protection Authority by letter on 23 August 2006.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the relevant authorities below, expressing your grave concern and moral denunciation of the unlawful, unwarranted and wholly unethical behaviour of the named teachers and Principle of the D.S. Senanayaka Mada Vidyalaya in the brutal assault of Sampath Kumara.
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear __________,
SRI LANKA: Schoolboy brutally assaulted by his teachers
Name of victim: Marage Sameera Sampath Kumara, aged 16, student of D.S. Senanayaka Mada Vidyalaya in Kandalama, Dambulla, Sri Lanka
Name of alleged perpetrators:
1. Mr. Vijitha; vice principle of D.S. Senanayaka Mada Vidyalaya
2. Mr. Sarath; teacher of building technology
3. Mr. Piyasena; teacher of history
Date of incident: 6 June 2006.
Place of incident: D.S. Senanayaka Mada Vidyalaya in Kandalama, Dambulla, Sri Lanka
I am writing to voice my deep concern regarding the brutal assault of 16-year-old schoolboy Marage Sameera Sampath Kumara, by three of his teachers, including the school Vice Principle, at the D.S. Senanayaka Mada Vidyalaya in Kandalama, Dambulla, Sri Lanka on 6 June 2006.
Details of the case what I have received is as follows:
On 6 June 2006, at around 1:25 pm, all eleventh-grade students were summoned to the school office by the vice principle Mr. Vijitha, who wanted to find a boy who threw a red-ant’s nest into the year 9 classroom. Two boys named Saliya and Sampath (the victim) was accused by Ms. Kalyani, a teacher, of orchestrating the incident. However, the boys constantly denied this.
When Sampath attempted to defend himself, Mr. Vijitha allegedly slapped him hard on his right cheek. Sampath challenged the vice principle to “slap the ones who have done the mischief”. Outraged by his remark, Mr. Vijitha severely beat Sampath with the broomstick. Two other teachers namely Mr. Piyasena and Mr. Sarath also slapped the boy and joined to beat him. Sampath managed to escape his teachers hold and move away, while his schoolmates took Mr. Vijitha away from the scene. Sampath informed his Parents of his brutal assault, and together with him, they returned to the school to confront the responsible teachers.
However, the following day, Sampath’s parents were informed by Mr. Senarath, the acting head principle, that Sampath would no longer be allowed to continue his education at the school. Mr. and Mrs. Kumara filed an official complaint against the named school at the Dambulla Police Station on 18 June 2006. The Police then asked the accused teachers to come to the police station, where Sampath was then told to ask for their pardon. He acquiesced purely because of the fact that he wanted to be able to sit for his upcoming G.C.E. Ordinary-Level Examinations in December. His teachers then told the boy that he would be able to begin school from 24 June 2006. However, when he went to school on the said date with his Mother, they were both told that the incident had been reported to the Galewela Education Office and that until they had conducted and completed an official investigative inquiry, Sampath could not be reinstated at school.
I am appalled by this flagrant abuse of positions of authority by the named teachers of the D.S. Senanayaka Mada Vidalaya, in the brutal assault on Sampath. That such an incident could have occurred in a government school is both deeply disturbing and totally unacceptable. What possible hope can there be for the future generation of Sri Lanka, if those persons and institutions entrusted with the responsibility of aiding and nurturing their educational, personal and social development, abuse their privileged positions of authority against the very children whom they have been entrusted to protect.
I strongly urge you to take immediate steps in conducting an official investigative inquiry into the incident; which should be properly coordinated by the relevant educational authorities at the national, provincial and local level. More importantly, the accused staff of the said school must be held accountable for their malicious, irresponsible and totally inexcusable behaviour, and should therefore pay adequate compensation to the Kumara family. I also urge you to ensure that Sampath is allowed to continue his education as soon as possible. I also ask that compensation be paid to Sampath for the pain and suffering he has endured.
1989 UN Convention on the Rights of Child (CRC) clearly identifies equal access to a complete education as a fundamental right of children. As a state party to this convention, the Sri Lankan government has an obligation to protect and enforce these fundamental rights for the children of Sri Lanka. It also has an obligation to protect the rights of Sampath, whose education has been seriously undermined by the unfortunate series of events.
I look forward to your prompt and effective response in this matter.
Yours sincerely,
—————-
PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTER TO:
1. Dr. Hiranthi Wijemanne
Chairperson
National Child Protection Authority
330, Thalawathgoda Road
Madiwella
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 778912/13/14
Fax: +94 11 2 778975
E-mail: ncpa@childprotection.gov.lk
2. Minister for Education
Ministry of Education
SRI LANKA
Tel: + 94 11 2 785 617
Fax: + 94 11 2 784 846
3. Secretary
Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka
No. 36, Kynsey Road
Colombo 8
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 694 925 / 673 806
Fax: +94 11 2 694 924 / 696 470
E-mail: sechrc@sltnet.lk
4. Mr. Chandra Fernando
Inspector General of Police
New Secretariat
Colombo 1
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 440440/327877
Email: chandralaw@police.lk
5. Mr. K. C. Kamalasabesan
Attorney General
Attorney General’s Department
Colombo 12
SRI LANKA
Fax: +94 11 2 436421
Email: attorney@sri.lanka.net
6. Bo Viktor Nylun
Head of Child Protection
UNICEF Sri Lanka
P.O. Box 143, Colombo
SRI LANKA
Tel: +94 11 2 555 270 (6 lines)
Fax: +94 11 2 551 333
E-mail: colombo@unicef.org
Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ahrchk@ahrchk.org)
