Posted on October 19, 2009 by srilankalawlessness
The people of Sri Lanka have always looked forward to the rainy season, which generally begins in October and ends in January, as it brings many blessings. It brings much needed water to the paddy fields and assures food for the year to come. It also fills the reservoirs. Many of the blessings for the year ahead also depend on rains from the heavens.
However, for the nearly 300,000 people in camps for internally displaced persons, the expectation of rain this year will not create such feelings of joy. In fact, for them it will bring enormous adversity. Leaking roofs, overflowing gutters and swamp-like conditions are what they will have to expect. Their relatives living outside, the people of goodwill in the country, Read more »
Filed under: Human Rights Commission, IDPs, Sri Lanka, civil war, human rights | Leave a Comment »
Posted on October 6, 2009 by srilankalawlessness
The opposition politician Ranga Bandara’s house was burned to cinders on the evening of the 4th October. Sometime earlier, the house of another opposition politician, John Pulle, was similarly raised to the ground.
In any place where the rule of law exists, even to a basic level, this kind of action would be deemed incredible. However, in Sri Lanka the event is treated as yet another trivial event in the political ’samsara’. There will be a few noises and the government will promise inquiries but in all likelihood no serious action of any credible nature, in terms of criminal justice, will happen.
In a rule of law state this kind of attack on politicians is a most unlikely event for the following reasons:
Prevention
The policing system of the country has its own capacity to detect crime and to prevent such attacks. The strength of a rule of law system is that it has sufficient Read more »
Filed under: Sri Lanka, corruption, crime, justice, police, politics, rule of law, violations | Leave a Comment »
Posted on October 1, 2009 by srilankalawlessness
The spread of the security apparatus helps to maintain a conflict time mentality, even in peace time. Why should such a tense mentality be maintained any longer?
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Nearly five months have passed since the government claimed complete victory over terrorism by the defeat of the LTTE. And at the same time, it was claimed that peace had arrived. However, throughout the country the presence of the security forces and the operation of the security system go on in the same manner as before. This week the opposition demanded that the government security is brought to the level of peace time security and an end to the ‘war time’ measures.
The opposition complained that the road blocks in Colombo itself continue to be maintained in the same manner as before the victory. In fact, one of the opposition leaders claimed that things have even become worse. Read more »
Filed under: Defence Ministry, IDPs, Sri Lanka, civil society, civil war, human rights, justice, police, politics, rule of law, violations | Leave a Comment »
Posted on September 29, 2009 by srilankalawlessness
This article is related to my previous articles on Sri Lanka, the gulag island
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The degeneration of mind that can place in the midst of extraordinary forms of repression is unbelievable. One demonstration of that is the way in which forced disappearances are treated by some parts of the population in Sri Lanka. They not only support but are overjoyed to see such things happening. When the family members cry about it, they are told not to be hysterical or emotional about it.
Accepting cruel treatment silently is considered rational. To protest against it is considered hysterical, over emotional and irrational.
How has such an ugly mentality become part of the heritage-urumaya-of Sri Lankans?
From 1971 up to now, in all parts of the country, we have seen the worst form of cruelties. We have also seen so many who enjoy seeing and remembering such cruelties as triumphs. The causing of such cruelties is even seen as heroic.
Every attempt to express human reactions to such cruelties is talked about as hysteria. Read more »
Filed under: IDPs, Sri Lanka, civil society, civil war, disappearances, human rights, justice, rule of law | Leave a Comment »
Many reactions to the killing of B Sivakumar by several policemen in an attempt to arrest him treat the issue as a matter of malice of society rather than an issue of extrajudicial killing by a group of policemen. If the matter is looked at from the point of view of extrajudicial killings by policemen, then the incident would not be treated as some sort of an exception at all, but rather as one of many such killings that are happening in Sri Lanka almost every day. The Sri Lankan police are notorious for extrajudicial killings. Whether the killing happens by way of misadventure in the attempt to make an arrest, or a deliberate killing under the pretext of self-defense, is not significant. In all instances, the police officers are responsible for the murder of the person.
