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!he Sri Lanka "ampaign for #eace and $ustice is outraged %&
recent attempts %& theovernment of Sri Lanka to silence its
critics.
(s reported in the media, freed activists )uki *ernando and *r
#raveen +ahesan were toda& hit
with a %an on speaking to international media and ordered to
hand over their sim cards and
ipads. #olice told the " that was %ecause the& were involved
in an incident in -illinochi,
which mustnt %e divulged until investigations were over.
+eanwhile $e&akumari alendran a human rights activist who
was arrested in connection with
the same alleged incident is at high risk of torture. "redi%le
reports allege she was assaulted in
front of her daughter at the time of detention in -illinochchi.
"urrentl& she is %eing detained at
the oossa facilit& under the #revention of !errorism (ct
that permits suspects to remain in
police custod& for 1/ months without charge.
(mnest& International has documented e0tensive use of
torture and other illtreatment %& !ID
officers in %oth "olom%o and oosa Detention "entre, and is
concerned for the welfare of
alendran $e&akumari. She has %een held without access to her
law&ers or an& famil& %eingallowed to see her. Her
onl& child is now willfull& orphaned %& the state and
remains in a
childrens welfare home %ecause of her mothers arrest.
Sri Lanka "ampaign calls on all governments for her immediate
release to ensure her safet&.
Increased dou%t has %een cast on the alleged incident that the
overnment of Sri Lanka claims
is the root of all three arrests.
!he overnment of Sri Lankas version of events alleges
that an L!!2 cadre known as 3o%i3 was %elieved to %e sheltering
in the house that he had ac4uired a num%er of weapons and was
looking to revive the L!!2,
and that $e&akumari, )uki and *r #raveen had close
association with various individuals and
locations which were of interest to police in their search for
o%i.
ut e&ewitness statements, circulated online %& credi%le
sources, tell a ver& different stor&, that
an armed stranger did enter the house of $e&akumari, %ut
that the arm& entered the house
seconds later and detained the stranger5 and that the stranger
and mem%ers of the armed forces
then left together without an& o%vious signs of hurr& or
an& seeming injur& on either part.
It should %e noted that it has %een a common tactic of the Sri
Lankan overnment in the past to
use the idea of an cadre attempting to reform the L!!2, or the
recover& of hidden caches of
arms, as an e0cuse for crackdowns of this sort, and that such
actions have never resulted in the
alleged cadre ever %eing produced %efore a court or indeed ever
%eing heard from again.
6evertheless the phantom of a resurgent L!!2 has once again %een
used as an e0cuse to clamp
down on dissent. ( statement %& Sri Lankan "ivil Societ&
circulated earlier in the week pointed
to two further ar%itrar& arrests under antiterror
legislation and new checkpoints and an
increased militar& presence have %een felt across the north
and east.
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*red "arver, "ampaign Director of the Sri Lanka "ampaign for
#eace and $ustice, said,
3!he continued harassment of activists demonstrates that the
overnment's actions have
nothing to do with preventing a resurgence of the L!!2, and
ever&thing to do with intimidating
its critics into silence.
3!hese unaccepta%le attempts to stifle free speech and
intimidate activists must not %e allowed
to succeed. 7nl& a strong resolution at the Human )ights
"ouncil, calling for an independent
international investigation in Sri Lanka, and the threat of
strong action %& the international
communit& if detainees are not released and restrictions
lifted, will prevent Sri Lanka from
sliding deeper into t&rann&.3
