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Statement by Tamil Information Centre, London:

Arrest or Disappearance Telephone Hotlines: Positive Step by the Sri Lankan Government

The Tamil Information Centre welcomes the decision of the Sri Lankan Ministry of Disaster Management and Human Rights to establish 24-hour telephone hotlines at the Disaster Management Centre in Colombo for a period of eight months with effect from 7 May 2008 for the declared purpose of dealing with requests for information or clarification from family members of persons taken into custody by police or any other government authority or who have been abducted or disappeared. According to information released by the Ministry, persons seeking information may call telephone number 011 2676513 or 060 2119246 from any part of the island throughout the week and would be able to receive information in Sinhala, Tamil or English. It is also stated that the Ministry has taken this step to ensure that laws on arrest and detention and the Presidential Directives on Arrest and Detention are fully implemented, particularly in relation to arrests under Emergency Regulations.

Telephone hotlines have been established in the past in relation to human rights, particularly by the police and the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission. Local human rights agencies say that these were not effective and did not contribute to the solutions of the problems. The information released by the Ministry has the following sentence regarding telephone calls: “The operators can also direct callers to access law-enforcement authorities in order to initiate/cause investigations into alleged disappearances or cases of abduction”. It is unclear as to whether the calls will be simply transferred to other authorities or the callers would be provided clear advice. The TIC urges the Ministry to issue a further statement clarifying and explaining what practical assistance would be provided to the callers.

The widespread and continuous pattern of enforced “disappearances” by the security forces and para-militaries against suspected members and supporters of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and opponents of the government are a matter of serious concern. “Disappearances” have been used by government security forces as a method in the attempt to weaken the LTTE and instill fear in the Tamil community. Enforced or involuntary disappearances constitute a violation of the rules of international law that guarantee the right to recognition as an individual before the law, the individual’s right to liberty and security and the right not to be subjected to torture and other cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment.

The TIC has constantly called upon the government to establish mechanisms for human rights safeguards, witness protection and to investigate and clarify the fate and whereabouts of the thousands of people who have disappeared, and bring perpetrators to justice. Since January 2006, more than 1,100 Tamils have disappeared, majority of them in the Jaffna peninsula. Family members of victims have found themselves powerless and in a judicial limbo because the justice system has failed to establish the whereabouts of their loved ones.

The announcement of the hotline numbers is a positive step. The TIC hopes that this would be a first step towards further changes leading to a new policy and a new mechanism against disappearances that bring those responsible for the crime to justice.

[Full text of media release by Tamil Information Centre, London]

CPA welcomes Supreme Court order on evictions

5th May 2008, Colombo, Sri Lanka: The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) welcomes the Supreme Court order stating that future evictions should not take place unless in accordance with the law and with a judicial order. The order was by a three-member bench headed by the Chief Justice in the fundamental rights application filed by the Centre for Policy Alternatives and its Executive Director, Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu on the mass scale eviction of Tamils from Colombo that took place on the 7th of June 2007.

An interim order had already been issued by the Supreme Court on the 8th June 2007 on the same matter, under Article 12(1) and (2) and 14(1)(h). Further leave to proceed was granted based on Article 11, 13(1) and (2) of the Constitution on the 27th July 2007. The court further held that by issuing the interim order, the court recognized that there was an infringement under Article 11, 12(1) and (2), 13(1) and (2) and 14 (1)(h).

The petitioners argued that evicting Tamils from Colombo is wrongful, unlawful and illegal and violates the fundamental rights of those persons who were so evicted. CPA filed the case in response to the mass eviction of Tamils that took place on the 7th June 2007. As reported in the media, the operation commenced in the early hours of the morning, with police and army officers visiting various lodges occupied predominantly by Tamils in Colombo and forcibly them from their lodgings. It was reported that people were given less than half an hour to pack all their belongings and board buses. Newspaper reports also raised the issue as to what the police considered as being a valid reason, given that a patient undergoing treatment and a woman who was to be married within a few days in Colombo were among those evicted. The evictions were directly attributed to the statement made by the IGP on 1st June 2007, claiming that Tamil people cannot remain in Colombo without a valid reason. Subsequent to the interim order of the Supreme Court, many of the people evicted were brought back by the police to their lodging houses. On 10th June 2007 Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake expressed regrets to the hundreds of Tamils for their eviction from the city, saying it was a ‘big mistake’ by the government.

The petition held that the evictions violate the fundamental rights of those persons who were so evicted, guaranteed by Article 11, 12 (1), 12(2), 13(1), 13(2) and 14(1)(h) of the Constitution. Article 11 provides no person shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Article 12 provides that all citizens are equal before the law and ensures that no citizen shall be discriminated against grounds specified in the Constitution. Articles 13 (1) and (2) provide protection from arbitrary arrest and detention. Article 14 (1)(h) provides for the freedom of movement and the right to choose his residence within Sri Lanka.

Two other petitions filed by evicted persons were also taken up today by the Supreme Court.

M A Sumanthiran with Viran Corea, Sharmaine Gunaratne, Bhavani Fonseka, Hamsana Vamadeva and Ermiza Tegal Attorneys at Law appeared for the Petitioners instructed by Mr. Moahan Balendra. Additional Solicitor General Mr. Palitha Fernando, President’s Counsel appeared for the Respondents.

[Full Text of Media Release by The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA)]

Statement by International Federation of Journalists:

Sri Lanka Government Must Explain Defence Minister’s Comments

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate, the Free Media Movement (FMM), in calling on Sri Lanka’s Government to explain chilling and inflammatory statements by Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary suggesting independent media should be prevented from running reports allegedly detrimental to the security forces.

The Defence Secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, who is the brother of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, was quoted in a local newspaper calling for the ban and alleging that critical media reports amount to treason.

Rajapaksa has made a series of anti-media comments last year and early this year in response to media reportage with which he disagrees, including reports about civilian war casualties.

His latest reported call for a media ban follows another public attack by the Defence Ministry on Iqbal Athas, defence correspondent for The Sunday Times.

According to the FMM, an article published on the ministry’s website on World Press Freedom Day on May 3 accused Athas of bias toward the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in his coverage of the latest clash between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan Army. The article accuses Athas of “misleading the public”, intending to demoralise troops and promoting “terrorist” propaganda.

In September 2007, Athas’s security was withdrawn and senior government figures launched a hate campaign against him after Athas wrote an investigative report on a multi-million-dollar MiG-27 attack aircraft purchase involving government officials. In October, the Defence Ministry accused Athas of assisting the LTTE in psychological warfare operations.

The IFJ and the FMM unequivocally condemn the Defence Secretary’s statements and the Government’s “naming and shaming” of journalists who report in the public interest.

The IFJ joins the FMM in seeking urgent clarification from the Government and the President about the Defence Secretary’s comments.

“The Defence Secretary must be held accountable for his words and reined in. Independent media today faces unprecedented challenges in Sri Lanka in the pursuit of accurate, responsible and impartial journalism. Sadly, the most significant of them come from the Government in the South,” the FMM said in a statement.

The IFJ reminds the Government that all complaints about media coverage, including complaints made by the Government, must be processed through appropriate mediatory channels.

“The IFJ has repeatedly asked Sri Lanka’s Government to stop the war on journalists in Sri Lanka,” said IFJ Asia-Pacific Director Jacqueline Park. “The Government may disagree with claims made by journalists, but it has no right to provoke hatred and endanger the lives of journalists and media workers with inflammatory comments.”

For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +612 9333 0919

The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 120 countries

By Natasha Gunaratne

Sri Lanka’s inflation hit an all-time high in recent decades when it peaked at a near 30 percent, according to the latest Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) figures — up from 28.1 percent the previous month.

Inflation — measured by the new Colombo Consumer Price Index, the CCPI (N) – also peaked to 25 percent in April, up from 23.8 percent the previous month. Economist Dr. Harsha de Silva said the last time inflation reached close to 30 percent was in 1980.

He said that while the CCPI(N) was a better reflection of inflation, the 25 percent figure was still misleading.”The problem with the new index is that the government has forcibly removed part of the consumption basket. Alcohol and tobacco have been removed even though they are almost as much as an average household’s expenditure on education,” he said explaining that on average Rs. 630 was spent on education a month while Rs. 510 was spent on alcohol and tobacco a month.

In a statement the Central Bank (CB) said a surge in global inflationary pressures, far in excess of expectations, caused by the continued high oil prices and a sharp rise in other commodity prices had passed through to domestic prices, causing a substantial increase in domestic inflation worldwide.

The CB has also decided to further restrict its quarterly targets for reserve money through a down revision for the remaining three quarter of 2008. Dr. de Silva said such a move should have been done months ago. “I have been arguing that there is too much money in the system and that the reserve money targets are wrong,” he said.

“When growth figures came in at 6.7 percent instead of 7.5 percent which the CB used to calculate the reserve money target, it should have immediately revised the figure downward. We need a certain amount of money to sustain a certain amount of economic growth. If that growth doesn’t happen, the money in the system is too much. Now, the CB has admitted that its targets are wrong and has revised them. Inflation might have been less if the CB did what it should have done. Even though it is late, I applaud it,” the well-known economist added. Dr. de Silva said he agreed with the CB there was more influence from the international prices now than six months ago but that the CB was putting the blame fully on international prices instead of adjusting its reserve money targets downward.

“Now there is a huge difference between other countries and ours. The difference is not converting. It is true that worldwide, inflation is going up but in Sri Lanka, it is hitting 30 percent. The CB has to be even more careful with the demand side issues because oil prices don’t seem to be coming down,” he added. [sundaytimes.lk]