SRI LANKA ABUSES CONTINUE 3 YEARS AFTER WAR ENDS

by Hibberd Kline
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka– On Tuesday, human rights group Amnesty International released a report alleging ongoing, routine, human rights abuses against ethnic Tamils in Sri Lanka by the Sri Lankan Government.

Amnesty International has accused the Sri Lankan military and paramilitary units of abducting people suspected of being critical of the government. (Photo courtesy of BBC News).

According to Amnesty, hundreds of people remain in arbitrary detention despite the end of the 26-year long civil war between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), also known as the Tamil Tigers. A recent statement by Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Gamini Lakshman Peiris, put the number of Tamil Tiger ex-combatants still in detention at 750. However, Amnesty believes that ex-combatants are not the only ones being detained in post-war Sri Lanka.

Amnesty’s report alleges that constitutional and legal protections of individuals against wrongful incarceration and unfair prosecution have been replaced by anti-terrorism laws and emergency measures, which undermine human rights and the rule of law. Amnesty has stated that these laws were enacted during the war for the purpose of combating the Tamil Tigers, but that their post-war legacy undermines human rights.

The report further alleges that Tamils are routinely detained and abducted, denied due process, intimidated, solicited for bribes, tortured and subjected to other abuses by police and paramilitary groups. The report concedes that some of those who face unlawful detention are likely Tamil perpetrators of human rights abuses and war crimes. However, it further elaborates that many of those detained are innocent.

The report linked secret detentions and abductions in Sri Lanka to “a climate of impunity where human rights violations of all types go uninvestigated and unpunished.”

In recent months, reports of abductions have skyrocketed. Human rights advocates put the number of unexplained, reported abductions between October and February at 32. Of the 32 abductions, 5 have successfully escaped, 7 have been found dead and 20 have simply vanished.

Reports indicate that the abductions have targeted not only Tamils, but also Sinhalese and the island’s muslim minority. Those targeted include human rights activists, journalists and businessmen.

Those who have witnessed abductions often report that unidentified, armed gangs forced their victims into unmarked, white vans. Rumors have been circulating that the vans belong to the Sri Lankan Government or armed groups working on its behalf.

One unnamed senior police officer in the capital allegedly told reporters of government preparations to deal with possible protests. He said; “we have arranged to bring tear gas, and we have plenty of white vans in Sri Lanka.”

According to cabinet member Vasudeva Nanayakkara, the government “…can’t say we don’t know about it.” Nanayakkara told reporters that the military is undermining Sri Lanka’s democracy by becoming too involved in civil affairs.

Opposition member of parliament Jayalath Jayawardana also recently weighed in on the issue, saying that “Jungle law is prevailing… Without the protection or blessings of the government in power or the security forces these type of things cannot take place.”

However, as a whole, the government and security forces deny responsibility for the abductions.

According to police spokesman Superintendant Ajith Rohana; “There are abductions. It happens. But generally we are conducting investigations into the matter.” Superintendant Rohana told reporters that special teams have been assigned to investigate the abductions.

In spite of the superintendant’s assurances, abductions appear to be increasing in both number and audacity. One abduction successfully targeted a prisoner who was being escorted by guards right outside the law courts in Colombo.

According to Amnesty USA’s executive director Susan Nossel, “if Sri Lanka is serious about moving from war to peace, it needs to ensure that the rule of law is not a matter of lip-service, but is the lifeblood of the nation’s justice system.”

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), which is currently meeting in Geneva, will vote next week on a resolution proposed by the United States urging Sri Lanka’s government to investigate allegations of war crimes and other human rights abuses. The resolution is further expected to call upon the Sri Lankan Government to seek reconciliation with ethnic Tamils.

A similar resolution passed in the United States Senate on March 1.

A recent statement from the Sri Lankan Defense Ministry laid out the government’s stance regarding the alleged abuses; “The Ministry of Defense rejects all allegations of human rights violations… it is able to prove with valid evidence that it was the LTTE that committed gross violations of human rights over the past three decades.”

The ethnic Sinhalese-dominated Sri Lankan government views outside pressure over human rights issues as a violation of Sri Lanka’s sovereignty and has responded to news of the proposed resolution by orchestrating protests across the country against the resolution. In Colombo, more than 10,000 people marched in protest of the resolution, while smaller groups petitioned U.N. and European officials at various embassies throughout the capital.

According to an article written by Human Rights Watch deputy director for Asia Elaine Pearson, several human rights groups and victims of human rights abuses in Sri Lanka have cancelled their plans to travel to Geneva for the UNHRC’s meeting due to fear of reprisal by the Sri Lankan Government.

In spite of the political saber-rattling inspired by the proposed resolution, next week’s vote is expected to be largely symbolic as the UNHRC has no power to implement an independent investigation.

Both the Tamil Tigers and Sri Lankan government forces have been accused of committing war crimes during the final stages of the counrty’s 26-year long civil war, which ended when a Sri Lankan military campaign crushed the Tigers in 2009.

For more information, please see:

CBS News — Tamil Lawmakers Want UN Pressure on Sri Lanka — 15 March 2012

Human Rights Watch — With Sri Lanka Resolution, Indonesia Has Chance to Show International Leadership –14 March 2012

Al Jazeera — Amnesty Alleges Illegal Detentions in Sri Lanka —  13 March 2012

Amnesty International — Sri Lanka’s Shameful Record on Detention without Trial — 13 March 2012

Amnesty International — Locked Away: Sri Lanka’s Security Detainees — 13 March 2012

BBC News — Amnesty Accuses Sri Lanka of ‘Post-War Abuses’ — 13 March 2012

BBC News — Sri Lanka’s Sinister White Van Abductions — 13 March 2012

Jurist — Rights Group Details Claim of Sri Lanka Detention Abuses — 13 March 2012

NPR — US Sri Lanka Should Reconcile with Tamils — 13 March 2012

Voice of America — Lawmakers Pressure Indian Government on Alleged Sri Lanka War Crimes — 13 March 2012

Human Rights Watch — Sri Lanka: US Senate Calls for Justice — 07 March 2012

Author: Impunity Watch Archive