Dear Friends,

 On 07 May 2008, the Meetiyagoda police allegedly tortured a  14 year old school boy   Uspatabandige Buddhi Ivantha Gunasekara resident of Don Jayawardana Mawatha, Eranawila, Meetiyagoda, in order to get information and a confession.

 

According to the information we have receive, a police search party had followed a police dog to the boy’s house including two other houses in the area. Sub Inspector (SI) Athukorale of the Meetiyagoda police was leading the search party and had questioned as to the whereabouts of the boy’s father and when told that he had gone to work asked to be taken to him. The mother of the boy declined and instead sent her son Buddhi to show the way to where his father was working in the paddy fields.

 

The search party took the boy to the Meetiyagoda police station instead. Here the boy says he was slapped, assaulted by the Officer-in-charge of the Meetiyagoda Police Station and handed over to SI Athukorale who further tortured him together with a Home-guard who had been one of the search party. While they ill treated the boy they continually asked him about the ‘stolen goods’ of which the boy said he knew nothing.

 

We are informed that at one point SI Athukorale tortured the boy with a lighted cigarette. Then, SI Athukorale and the Home-guard took the boy to another room at the rear of the police station. The boys says that they tied his hands behind his back with a thick rope and threw the other end of the rope over a beam on the roof. Thus they hung the boy while SI Athukorale supported him by holding him by his legs. The Home-guard then hit him with a pole on his buttocks.

 

We are informed that the boy kept denying that he had been involved in a theft of money or goods, but accepted that he had some money which belonged to his 11 year old younger brother. The officers then took the boy to his house and asked him to show it to them. The boy gave them a purse that belonged to his younger brother and then both boys were taken into to the Meetiyagoda Police Station. Both boys were questioned. The older boy Buddhi was then put into the police cell with adult inmates and kept overnight. On the next day he was produced before the Balapitiya Magistrate and bail granted. On March 9, the boy was admitted to the Balapitiya Hospital for treatment for injuries sustained in the police torture.

 

We are informed that the boy’s father Uspatabadige Jayantha Gunasekara made a complaint about the incident to the Elpitiya Assistant Superintendent of police (ASP) Fernando on March 19 and Human Rights Commission (HRC) on March 19 respectively. Officers from the HRC visited Buddhi’s house to inquire into the incident on March 27. On the same day, ASP Fernando visited the house and scolded his parents referring to the fact that the incident had been broadcast on local TV. He told the boy to come to Meetiyagoda Police Station where the ASP took down a statement from him.

 

Subsequently the boy’s father made a written complaint about the incident to the Chairperson of Human Rights Commission and National Police Commission, Inspector General of Police and Deputy Inspector General (Legal).

 

Further a fundamental rights case SC/FR 126/2008 was instituted in the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. Leave to proceed was granted on 27 May 2008 by a Bench  consisting of – Shirani Tilekewardene J  &  Balapatebendi  J.

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Please join us to stand by Buddhi and his family who may now be exposed to undue influence and much pressure from the authorities to withdraw the case. This has been our experience in earlier cases once leave to proceed has been obtained. You could help by writing to the authorities mentioned below to act accordingly and impartially in the name of justice.

 

Janasansadaya

04.06.2008


You may contact -

 

1.Mr. Victor Perera, Inspector General of Police (IGP) ,New Secretariat, Colombo 1,
Fax: +94 11 2 440440/327877; E-mail: igp@police.lkInspector General of Police, Police Head Quarters, Colombo 1.

2. Mr. C.R. De Silva, Attorney General, Attorney General’s Department, Colombo 12, Sri Lanka . Fax: +94 11 2 436421

3. Secretary,  National Police Commission, 3rd Floor, Rotunda Towers , 109 Galle Road
Colombo 03, Sri Lanka . Tel: +94 11 2 395310, Fax: +94 11 2 395867, E-mail: npcgen@sltnet.lk or polcom@sltnet.lk

4. 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