Persons taken into custody held in ‘undisclosed locations’

Claiming ‘enforced disappearances’ related to Aragalaya: Ex-HRC and OMP officials file FR petitionax

Former member of the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, Ambika Satkunanathan, and ex-Commissioner of the Office on Missing Persons (OMP), Mirak Raheem, have filed a Fundamental Rights Petition, pertaining to, what they called, a wave of enforced disappearances.

The respondents are Inspector General of Police, C. D. Wickremaratne, Minister of Justice, Prison Affairs and Constitutional Reforms, Wijeyadasa Rajapakse, Minister of Public Security, Tiran Alles, Army Commander, Lt. General Vikum Liyanage, Commander of the Air Force, Air Marshall S. K. Pathirana, Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Nishantha Ulugetenne, the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, the Office on Missing Persons, and the Attorney General.

The petitioners have challenged what they term the arbitrary, capricious, irrational and ultra vires actions of the Police and the military in creating an administrative/executive practice, of arresting individuals, and temporarily keeping them in secret detention, contrary to the Constitution, the rule of law, and accepted international human rights norms.

The petitioners said the recent spate of arbitrary arrests, carried out by individuals, in no identifiable uniform, with protesters being taken away in vehicles that are not identifiable as belonging to the Police, and where protesters are being detained sometimes for several hours, in undisclosed locations, prior to being produced before a Magistrate. During this period, they are not allowed to inform their next of kin about their place of detention and no arrest receipt is issued to the next of kin. In other instances, unidentified individuals, in no identifiable uniforms, have conducted searches for particular individuals.

The petitioners stated that, all individuals (especially in the current context, protesters), who are arrested, must be arrested for a clearly identifiable penal offence, by officers of the Sri Lanka Police, in clearly identifiable uniforms/insignia, such arrestees’ families must immediately be notified of such arrest, and if they are present when the person is arrested, be issued an arrest receipt. That the person should be kept at police stations, be allowed access to family members and lawyers and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka, and produced before a Magistrate with sufficient provision being made for such arrestees to obtain legal representation.

The petitioners alleged a violation of their fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 10, 11, 12(1), 12(2), 13(1),13(2), 13(3), 13(4), 13(5), 14(1)(a), 14(1)(b) and 14(1)(c) of the Constitution. They state that the continued tacit permission of the State of arbitrary arrests and secret detentions of adversely impacts on the Rule of Law and the Sovereignty of the People and is contrary to Articles 3 & 4(d) of the Constitution.

The petitioners request the Court to grant interim orders preventing the Respondents, and any other officer serving under them and their agents, from carrying out any arrest and detention, contrary to the Constitution and the Law, including the International Convention For The Protection of All Persons From Enforced Disappearance Act No. 5 of 2018. They further request a direction to the IGP, and any other officer serving under them and their agents, to take all measures necessary to ensure the safety of any witnesses to any arrest and/or secret detention.

The petitioners also requested the Court to direct the IGP to formulate guidelines to ensure that arbitrary arrest and secret detentions do not occur. Additionally, the petitioners request the Court to make appropriate orders for measures to be taken by the National Authority for the Protection of Victims of Crime and Witnesses to assess and provide all appropriate assistance, compensation and support for recovery and restitution of all individuals (and in the current context especially protesters) arrested and detained in a manner contrary to the Constitution and the Law, including the International Convention For The Protection Of All Persons From Enforced Disappearance Act No. 5 of 2018.

Application will be supported by Saliya Pieris, Pulasthi Hewamanna, Harini Jaywardena and Fadhila Fairoze.