Sri Lanka Police to go before UN Committee Against Torture

Nov 12, 2016

A team of senior Sri Lankan officials including police personnel are due to appear before the United Nations Committee Against Torture next week. The hearing is to take place on November 15 after several international organizations made representations to the UN committee over police abuse in the island.

Head of the police legal division, DIG Ajith Rohana and chief of CNI Sisira Mendis were to leave for Geneva yesterday (11) to attend the hearing.

Attorney General Jayantha Jayasuriya will lead the Sri Lankan delegation that will also comprise additional solicitor general Sarath Jayamanne and deputy solicitor general Nerin Pulle.
They will be joined in Geneva by Sri Lankan representatives at the UN Rohan Perera and Ravinatha Aryasiha.

The Human Rights Watch says, “On November 15, Sri Lanka is due to appear before the United Nations Committee Against Torture and is expected to make a case about its security sector reforms – something it agreed to take on after a 2015 UN Human Rights Council review. But this will be a difficult case to make, in large part because of police abuse.”

The National Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka recently confirmed the existence of unofficial police torture centers and called for police to end these practices.
- http://srilankaedition.com-