Sri Lanka: Justice process must be strongly international
Publication of the UN report on war crimes in Sri Lanka, to which Freedom from Torture submitted evidence, is imminent. It is sure to be an important, although painful, exposé of the terrible suffering connected with the civil war and its aftermath. The future for justice is in the hands of the UN Human Rights Council which ordered the investigation and will determine what happens next.
Investigating, prosecuting and punishing the perpetrators of such serious abuses should not be left to the Sri Lankan authorities alone. There must be strong international participation at every stage and level. Sri Lankan survivors of torture have told Freedom from Torture, time and time again, that they could not trust a domestic process.
Freedom from Torture is calling for a genuine accountability process with a strong international component; this would not be satisfied by international advisors operating in the background. The process must be independent, credible, transparent and accessible to victims, including those outside the country. It must meet international human rights standards.
Torture is ongoing and must stop
Freedom from Torture urges the Sri Lankan government to:
- Suspend from duty anyone accused of torture
- End the use of 'agents' to arbitrarily detain and torture people
- Launch criminal investigations and prosecute those responsible for torture, no matter how powerful or senior they are within government or the military, police and security services.
The UK government should:
- Ensure that individuals are not forcibly returned to Sri Lanka to a risk of torture
- Update its asylum policy to reflect further evidence of torture in peacetime Sri Lanka.
For a complete set of recommendations see the full version of Tainted Peace: Torture in Sri Lanka since May 2009.
