Attorney-at-law Senaka Perera yesterday said that the NPP government should ensure the protection of those who had been arrested in Indonesia and brought back to Colombo over the weekend.Perera, who heads a civil society organisation that promotes prisoners’ welfare, said that successive governments allowed deaths in custody. “The NPP, too, is responsible for such killings,” lawyer Perera said.
Pointing out that Public Security Minister Ananda Wijepala and IGP Priyantha Weerasooriya assured no holds barred investigation into the activities of the men in custody, lawyer Perera warned there could be attempts to silence them. “We haven’t forgotten how Makadure Madush was killed in under controversial circumstances. His death was just one among dozens perpetrated by successive governments,” Perera said.
Responding to The Island queries, Perera said that regardless of assurances given by the government the planned killing of Madush was not investigated.
Police claimed that Madush was killed by rival gang during a police raid on a narcotics den in Maligawatta in late Oct 2020. At that time Madush had been under police custody and law enforcement authorities couldn’t under any circumstances absolve themselves of the responsibility for his life, the lawyer said. Killings in police custody remains a serious issue in spite of the supreme Court intervention, Perera said, adding that those who obtained the services of the likes of Kehelbaddara Padme would do anything to finish them off.
Perera said that a comprehensive investigation would help the government to identify those who had been involved with the underworld. Referring to VIP type security provided to gangsters who had been brought to BIA and then escorted to Colombo, Perera said the possibility of an inside attempt on their lives could not be ruled out.
Perera said that deaths in police custody should receive the attention of Parliament. The civil society activist found fault with both the government and the Opposition for not making a genuine attempt to clean up the police. The removal of IGP Deshabandu Tennakoon over the Colombo Crime Division (CCD) carrying out an attack on the W15 hotel in Weligama in Dec 2023 exposed the police, he said.
The police should follow guidelines issued by the Human Rights Commission as regards suspects in custody. The HRC intervened following a spate of killings in police custody, he said, urging all stakeholders to pay sufficient attention to the issue at hand. “We hope the HRC maintain a close watch on the developing situation,” Perera said.
by Shamindra Ferdinando 