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Interdiction from service of alleged perpetrators to take place following the initiation of criminal and/or disciplinary proceedings Where investigations have commenced against alleged perpetrators, such persons should be transferred out of the area of the alleged incidents under investigation and if any perpetrator is alleged have attempted to interfere with a witness threatened lawyers, threatened the prosecutor, or obstructed investigations, such action to be a subject of a further inquiry followed by further punishments which should also be a ground for interdiction. 334 While a recent Court of Appeal decision has upheld the interdiction of police officers who have been indicted in relation to prosecutions of enforced disappearances ensuing from the Commission reports (as examined later), this decision is applicable to only a small amount of cases in which alleged perpetrators have, in fact, been indicted. Armed forces personnel repeatedly implicated in some of the most serious human rights violations during this period continue to serve in the military establishment, some at senior levels, without being brought before the law in any manner whatsoever. Affirmation of the principle of accountability in respect of past acts for the good of society in the future 335 Interestingly, this Commission also unequivocally affirmed the need for recognition of the liability of armed groups for human rights abuses committed by them as distinct from the liability arising as a result of the breach of the domestic criminal law. 336 3.3. Post-1994 COIs regarding Specific Incidents/Occurrences 3.3.1. The Batalanda Commission Date of Appointment: 15 th December 1995 337 Date of Report: 2000 338 Mandate: To inquire and report on the following: (a) the circumstances relating to the disappearance of Sub-Inspector Rohitha Priyadarshana of the Sapugaskanda Police Station… and the persons directly or indirectly responsible; (b) the circumstances relating to the arrest and subsequent detention of Sub- Inspector Ajith Jayasinghe of the Peliyagoda Police Station… and the persons directly or indirectly responsible; (c) the establishment and maintenance of a place or places of detention at the Batalanda Housing Scheme of the State Fertilizer Manufacturing Corporation 334 ibid, at pp. 18-19. Recommendation not implemented. 335 ibid, at p.83. Recommendation not implemented. 336 ibid, at p.83. Recommendation not implemented. 337 Appointed by President Chandrika Kumaratunge. The Batalanda Commission comprised judges D. Jayawickrema (Chairman) and NE Dissanayake. 338 Sessional Paper No. 1, 2000. 95
and whether … any person or persons … were subject to inhuman or degrading treatment or to treatment which constitute an offence under any written law as a result of a conspiracy and the person or persons directly or indirectly responsible for the same; (d) whether any inquiry or probe into any of the aforesaid matters had been conducted by any officer and whether any person or persons directly or indirectly interfered in such inquiry or probe and the person or persons responsible for such interference; (e) whether any officer of any other person was responsible for the commission of any criminal offence under any written law or the use of undue influence or misuse or abuse of power in relation to any of the aforesaid matters. The Batalanda Housing Scheme had allegedly been used as a ‘torture chamber’ during the late 1980s through the early 1990s when the second insurrection of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) was at its height. The Commission found senior politicians of the UNP, (which was in the government at the time), and senior police officers culpable of using the Batalanda ‘torture chamber’ to torture and ‘disappear’ dissidents. Public controversy was generated by the manner in which this Commission was established as well as by specific aspects of its functioning. 339 The strongest findings of the Commission were against a senior superintendent of police, Douglas Pieris, for having “masterminded and executed the Counter Subversive Unit operations from the Batalanda Housing Scheme”, thus becoming directly responsible for the arbitrary detention and torture of persons. 340 In particular, the Commission found that SSP Pieris was directly implicated in the abduction and detention of a Sub-Inspector of the Peliyagoda Police Station who had been investigating the alleged enforced disappearance of another colleague, Rohitha Piyadarshana. Priyadarshana, a police officer attached to the Sapugaskande Police station, had allegedly incurred the SSP’s disfavour by apprehending suspects without consideration to political considerations. SSP Peiris was found to be indirectly responsible for Priyadarshana’s enforced disappearance as well. 341 The Commission arrived at more contentious findings of indirect responsibility against other senior police officers, such as Nalin Delgoda and Merril Guneratne, who were found to have participated in discussions on counter subversive activities presided over by then Industries Minister 342 Ranil Wickremesinghe at Batalanda. 339 While there was no doubt about the substantive merit of the allegations that the Batalanda Housing Scheme was used as a “torture chamber”, the manner in which this Commission functioned did cast doubt on its credibility. The allegation was that the Commission was politically appointed by President Kumaratunge to discredit Leader of the Opposition Ranil Wickremesinghe who had been a senior Minister of the UNP during the time that the Batalanda “torture chamber” was in operation. As will be discussed below, some of the police officers against whom disciplinary action was taken on the findings of the Commission report later successfully challenged these actions in the Supreme Court on the basis that they had been deprived of a fair hearing. 340 Final report of the Batalanda Commission, Sessional Paper No. 1, 2000, at pp. 61 and 62. 341 ibid, at p. 84 onwards as well as at p. 113 onwards. 342 For example, ibid, at pp. 63 – 70 and at p. 122. 96
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In exploring what constitutes a ver
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ABBREVIATIONS AC AG AHRC AI A-L ALR
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TAB TELO TUF TULF TYL UN UNHRC UNP
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government agencies may be unable o
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appointed under the Commissions of
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communities. Krishanthi Kumaraswamy
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investigative function that could m
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measures recommended in regard to r
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and Bandaranaike became the prime m
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assembly and association of trade u
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majority pro-Sinhala political lead
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The violence reached a crescendo in
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enforced disappearances were report
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The Court of Appeal dismissed petit
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process and commissions of inquiry
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Declaration on Upholding Human Righ
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terms, 66 and clear guidelines laid
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Though the drafters of second Repub
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• Perera v. AG 89 and Wickremeban
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was also spared the distinction of
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The Court’s reasoning at times ap
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Page 50 and 51: The Court of Appeal when sending th
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Page 56 and 57: The Embilipitiya case is unique in
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Page 60 and 61: sexual intercourse […].” 177 He
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Page 66 and 67: Chapter Three - Commissions of Inqu
Page 68 and 69: excesses that had preceded the acti
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Page 72 and 73: appear before the Commission was al
Page 74 and 75: Notwithstanding these consideration
Page 76 and 77: The Commission’s recommendation t
Page 78 and 79: Date of Publication of Report: not
Page 80 and 81: (f) the measures necessary to preve
Page 82 and 83: were SLFPers. I was told, that area
Page 84 and 85: The 1994 Western, Southern and Saba
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Page 88 and 89: 3.1.3. Reflections on the Procedure
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Page 100 and 101: 3.3.3. The Bindunuwewa Commission D
Page 102 and 103: ecommendation to this effect by the
Page 104 and 105: As of 31 December 2000, according t
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Page 108 and 109: Chapter Four - Evaluating Sri Lanka
Page 110 and 111: pattern of harms, to recommend meas
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Page 114 and 115: against any particular soldier or s
Page 116 and 117: analysis, these pillars of the judi
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Page 124 and 125: 6.4. Affording alleged perpetrators
Page 126 and 127: Chapter Five - Sri Lanka’s Crimin
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Page 130 and 131: 2.1. First Information Reports In a
Page 132 and 133: arrests. In consequence, most of th
Page 134 and 135: Lengthy delays in filing indictment
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Page 140 and 141: y the byzantine and unfair burdens
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Page 144 and 145: 5.2. Language Issues at Trial Stage
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enforced disappearance; (ii) Exerci
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as to why specific reform of the cr
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6.3. Absence of a Specific Crime of
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camp. Scrutiny of the evidence in t
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any direct or indirect physical or
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have been adjourned by the relevant
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fact, acknowledged. 563 The accused
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The Human Rights Committee affirmed
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Thavaneethan v. Dissanayake [2003]
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Dias v. Abeywardene [1966] 68 NLR 4
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Vadivel Sathasivam and Parathesi Sa
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Criminal Courts Commission, Session
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Keenan, Alan, ‘Making Sense of Bi
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Principles on the Effective Prevent
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United Nations Human Rights Committ
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Pinto-Jayawardena, Kishali, ‘Furt
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