“Government has not kept its promises to protect Human Rights”

( February 23, 2015, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The government has not yet kept its promises on human rights and that it should take immediate action to fulfill those promises, Executive Director of the Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE), Rajith Keerthi Tennakoon said. He made this statement at a press conference regarding those who had disappeared, political prisoners, custodial deaths and those who left the country due to suppression today (23) at CSR, Colombo.

“During the election period the leaders of the current government gave a lot of promises about upholding human rights. Although almost 50 days have passed since the government assumed duties, they have not fulfilled the promises,” Tennakoon said. “The government promised that it would take actions regarding the persons who were suppressed by the Rajapaksa administration. However it has not even taken the basic steps to commence an inquiry on the disappeared political activists Lalith and Kugan.”
Tennakoon added that the government has taken steps to investigate the Welikada prison riots. He also urged the release of Jeyakumari who is still being detained and Kumar Gunaratnam given the political freedoms.

“Gunaratnam is asking the right to engage in politics. The government has urged the journalists who left the country to return. However they have not returned because the environment necessary for their return has not been established. Therefore only a few policemen and army officers have returned but they have also arrived to re-join the service,” he said.

Meanwhile Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), Propaganda Secretary, Pubudu Jagoda, Federation of Media Employees Unions, General Secretary Dharmasiri Lankapeli, Ceylon Teachers Union (CTU), General Secretary, Joseph Stalin, and Inter University Students federation (IUSF) Convener, Najith Indika also spoke at the event.